Winter is Back

Thursday, it was a toasty 40 degrees with the anticipation of 50 degrees in the immediate future. The next day the thermometer climbed up to a clammy 57 degrees. The weather people kept telling us records would have been broken if not for the melting snow cooling the air. We lost a lot of the snow cover and I could look out my window, over the vanishing snow banks and see the parking lot. Minnesotans were excited and outfitted in their Bermuda shirts, summer shorts and snow shoes. Spring was peeking around the corner!

Then something happened.

This morning, at 9am, it started snowing and snowing and snowing, it hasn’t stopped yet (10pm). The wind is gusting at 20 mph and creating a whiteout. I can no longer see the parking lot and not because of the blizzard. The previous retreating snowdrifts have crawled back to my window blocking the dull view. My poor truck is once more, one of many small mountains of snow rising up in the white landscape. The excessively jolly meteorologists are predicting 12 to 18 inches by tomorrow, THEN more snow Tuesday. It is a heavy snow, whatever that means. And what the HELL is thunder snow?

I am also hearing the familiar rumble of the Bobcat Loader in the parking lot, desperately trying to keep up with the rising snow. Behind the wheel is Jason,   the Bill Murray character out of Caddyshack. Whipping around the lot at breakneck speeds, creating bigger drifts and cussing when the Bobcat blade rips out another rising chunk of the weather-beaten asphalt lot. Occasionally he will slow down and stop near the trash bins to refuel the abused Bobcat and himself.

Earlier this winter, I had the pleasure of meeting Jason during one of his refueling stops. The Bobcat runs on diesel, Jason on “ Evan Williams”.   He owns six Bobcat Loaders and does snow removal in the winter, some construction during the summer. It is a family business because his two sons and wife also run the Bobcats. He won the Minnesota Lottery several years ago, quit his job and bought the Bobcats. He only does certain jobs for his friends and usually waits for the summer so he can launch his 36’ “Dream Weaver” boat and switch to “Captain Morgan’s”.   The guy is having fun and I was envious. We sit there topping off our antifreeze, his definition not mine, and talk about boating. It seems that “Dream Weaver is his pride and joy and loves Lake Minnetonka during the summer months. I asked him why he doesn’t head to Florida or Arizona during the winter. He took a nip for his bourbon, looked at me and stated he doesn’t   know anyone down there, what was the fun. He was born and raised in Mound/Spring Park, MN with no desire to change. His friends and family were here.

Now I am one of his friends with an invitation to spent a weekend (maybe two) on the “Dream Weaver” . I plan to introduce Jason to Bushmill and spend many weekends on the boat.

3 MORE WEEKS TIL FLORIDA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!