I should have paid more attention to the news yesterday. I was driving through the city and realized that the color was all wrong. It was overcast, but everything was a white/grey blue haze. As there was almost no wind (rare in Kansas) the farmers and ranchers took advantage of it to do the annual controlled grassland burning. The problem was the tiny amount of moving air there was, carried all the smoke into the city.

Today the wind is back. No more smoke, definitely no fires! We may have some storms move in later this afternoon, we shall see.

March definitely came in as a lion and exited as a lion this year. Storms at both ends. Last weekend's storm was quite the snowfall, coating everything with a thick layer of white. We received just over 4"—so not a huge amount, but, boy, was it gorgeous, truly a winter wonderland! And because it stayed below freezing for a few days, all that beauty did not melt right away. It is mostly gone now—4 days later—except for the large banks and mounds that will take a whole lot longer to disappear, as well as areas of protected snow.

It's been great walking weather in the early morning hours. I start out between 6 and 6:15, when it is still dark, and then head into the dawn. The temp has been around -5C/23F to -8C/17F which is quite perfect (for me): invigorating, crisp, not sweat-inducing.

This coming weekend we are jumping up to double digits (in Celsius), then lowering somewhat for next week. Spring rain will be interspersed with sun throughout the coming 7 or 8 days. A few weeks ago, the farm vehicles began showing up along these country roads again—always fun to watch.

I think we may have seen the last of any significant snowfall, but we could have snow up to mid-May, which is why we are 'forbidden' to plant anything in the ground until near the end of May ... just in case. Frost is not uncommon in early-mid May.

We had a little bit of snow (3 inches?) here in Penrith area, jo, and knew that you would have liked it, even if no one else did. Our host's plum blossoms are out, and hopefully they will not be harmed; probably not, as snow is better than frost. Also scotched our plans for a mountain hike--maybe next week, if it clears off a bit.

the snow is mostly gone as stargazer said. Still hiding away in shadowed places,( just to tease us until the very last no doubt).
The sump pump has been running fairly steady every five minutes or so since last weekend. at least the pond in the front drive is gone.
Temps are climbing sloowwllyyy. We expect to reach 60F tomorrow through next Monday. Rain is expected as well this weekend. We are hoping that it's not an all day affair as the Mrs., and I are looking to catch some fish. ( Note to self. Buy licences )
The tulips are starting to poke out of the ground, and the locals are starting to tap the Maples for their sweet sap. If I have the chance, and time I might have a go at it this spring. But I have yet to make a tap, and plug. So little time, so much to do.

We had a little bit of snow (3 inches?) here in Penrith area, jo, and knew that you would have liked it, even if no one else did. Our host's plum blossoms are out, and hopefully they will not be harmed; probably not, as snow is better than frost. Also scotched our plans for a mountain hike--maybe next week, if it clears off a bit.

Penrith? Ah yes, you are in England, in the Lakes District then. Do enjoy! We went there in 1997. Don't forget to have a look at Katherine Parr's family castle which is quite near the station. Down south, in the other Penrith in the world, where it never snows, we did have a soggy end to March & start to April, but it is fine now, & temperatures are quite pleasant.

I *believe* it's the first day so far this year that the temperature broke 60F where I live!

The weather here has been wet with seasonal temperatures (highs around 50F/10C). Tomorrow we might rocket into the 70s (low 20s C) if the sun comes out - perfect for all the visitors here for the NCAA Final Four tournament (or perhaps for the season's first campfire).

Things will green up very quickly, and then it's off to the races with tree pollen allergies.

Still waiting on my fire pit to dry out a little more before using it stargazer. Not too long I hope.
The next few days will be good for little hiking with temps in the upper 50'sF.
there was some sprinkling today, and the weather people say possible rain again tonight. It would be nice to see some of the grey stuff get washed away, but with not enough to increase the saturation we already have. Trying to make the time to do some Maple tapping before the sap stops, but it seems time is not on my side this spring.
It also appears we shall have a downturn in temps again by the weekend with highs only in the 40F + range. Still early, so they could still change their mind. That does happen, right?

Yesterday was beautiful!!!!!! Sunny, light breeze, 72F. We did some gardening behind the house which wasn't much of a high priority project, we just needed an excuse to be outside.
Today is supposed to be borderline hot. Highs in the mid-80Fs. We have two or three days of this and then a pretty major cold front is coming through and the highs will be back in the 50Fs. There's even talk of snow on Saturday.

That cold front is the talk of the town here. It's 68F/20C here right now, the warmest so far this year, but the 4 major models agree we're going to get piles of snow later this week.

(One hints at up to 40 inches/1016mm but that seems extreme. We've never received that in one storm, though the 1991 Halloween Blizzard comes close. But 12-18 inches (300-460mm) seems real likely).

We're hoping to get a campfire in this evening before the fun starts.

The Mrs., and I got home a little bit ago. I was looking longingly at the fire pit as we walked to the back door
The forecast looks dire.As stargazer stated, we are expected to receive a reminder that the weather is indeed a fickle creature. I have just taken the shovels out of the garage where I had just deposited them, safely I had so foolishly assumed< for the duration.
Wind gusts up to 25mph with wet sloppy snow blowing, and freezing to everything. Haul out the cold climate gear dear humans, and talking beasts.

The weather this time of year amuses me.

Sunday A 30 percent chance of snow before 7am. Mostly sunny, with a high near 61F.

I hope all of you Northerners are doing ok with that blizzard! I've been watching the radar for most of the day.

Did you all see the pictures of the pollen haboob? Talk about an allergy sufferer's worst nightmare.

Yesterday was 73F. Today 34F. Why are we being tortured so?!

I hope all of you Northerners are doing ok with that blizzard! I've been watching the radar for most of the day.

Not a tremendous amount of snow (thankfully!), but the roads are really messy! I drove to a doctor's appointment this morning and noticed that people seem to be staying home if they didn't have a reason to be out and those who were out were actually driving with respect for the road conditions. Maybe it has something to do with hundreds of accidents on the interstate yesterday, which actually closed the road.

Work was closed for me this day, so I was allowed to stay home, and be lazy. Well, not so much. When the Mrs. had to go to work I shoveled out the back drive. While I was at the sidewalks needed clearing too.
Nice, heavy, and with the constant waves on the radar, it was a shovel, rest, repeat, most of the day. At least I remembered to throw with the wind.
We did have some excitment when thunder rolled a few times. A dash cam actually caught a lightning strike near Alexandria Mn.
One curiousity was the sleet that fell. It was a dark orange, or brown color. The evening news stated that it was elsewhere in the state as well. As it turns out, the front that pulled moisture from the Gulf of Mexico also pulled a lot of airborne dirt with it for the thousand miles all the way from Texas