This is what it looked like about a week ago near my residence. A few days later, the 40 day pattern of frigid cold and frequent (if not terribly big) snowstorms finally broke. It was one of the coldest February’s on record, but the mild air found its way back to New Jersey and everything is changing. We still have some dirty old snow yet to melt before the flowers start poking through, but the long winter is becoming a fading memory.
But best not to let it fade completely. When the weather gets tough, the eternal student gets studying . . . learning more and more about what’s going on up in the skies. This past winter season I’ve learned even more than I picked up last winter about polar vortex’s and teleconnection patterns. And based on what I learned, I know that there are signs out there saying that winter has an encore performance coming up in about 10 days or so. (I.e., positive PNA, negative AO, NAO and EPO, and MJO going to zone 7). So, although we’re enjoying the early taste of April this week, we may have to wait until early April until it really settles in. For now . . . don’t put the gloves, caps, scarves and shovels away!
