I take it back. This winter is not as horrible as last year’s. We haven’t had any snow for almost 2 weeks now. That was unheard of last winter. In fact, a year ago this week we were dealing with a blizzard that stranded over 2000 vehicles on the interstate just outside of Madison.
The other rarity was any sort of warm spell. All we craved was just one or two days of temperatures above 32 degrees to help melt the 6-foot snow piles and give us even the smallest hint that spring would eventually arrive. With the exception of one day in January where we got a freak warm front that brought heavy rain for a day (and a rare tornado outbreak in southeast Wisconsin), we had to wait until April before the temperatures moderated and the snow piles began to shrink.
This morning when I woke up, the temperature was already 42 degrees. With all the freezing and thawing that occurred overnight, my walk to get the morning paper was dicey. I enjoyed every second of it. It’s amazing how something as simple as air can improve your mood.
Our temperatures are supposed to remain above 35 for the next 5 days, and the extended forecast discussion even hints that there’s a possibility we could hit the upper 50s by next Tuesday. I’ll believe it when I see it, but just knowing it’s a possibility puts an extra spring in my step.