Tag: weather

d’Verse Haibun Monday- 3-28-22 Cherry Blossoms

On By Susan St.PierreIn Words 'n' such Poetry21 Comments

New to haibun? The form consists of one to a few paragraphs of prose—usually written in the present tense—that evoke an experience and are often non-fictional/autobiographical. They may be preceded or followed by one or more haiku—nature-based, using a seasonal image—that complement without directly repeating what the prose stated.


Cherry trees struggle around my New England home as dynamic weather fronts roll in and out. Last week, we enjoyed 70 degrees F and today a bitter wind blows arctic temperatures around. A ‘wicked’ development according to local slang. So, to those plants and people not yet acclimated to our “on again, off again” ‘teasery’, there’s a danger of overcommitment and casual disregard for “what ifs”. A ‘shock and awe’ challenge to their comfortable existence often arises to their peril. Only the steady and sturdy can prevail in such uncertain weather. People would be wise to claim those same attributes in our uncertain world.

Cynical blossom
Springs from exile cautiously
A fruitful future

https://dversepoets.com/2022/03/28/haibun-monday-3-28-22-cherry-blossoms/

MLMM- Tale Weaver- True Story

On By Susan St.PierreIn Writing Prompts5 Comments

Our prompt is to write about an abrupt change in climate. Truth is ALWAYS stranger than fiction.

See the source image

It was Mother’s Day and we were camping.
May was the beginning of our seasonal camping and we brought shorts, hot dogs, marshmallows, and of course, cold beer on ice!
The morning awakened us to a bone chilling drizzle and temperatures in the upper 40’s F.
Mid morning brought winds and an arctic blast turning the drizzle to snow!
Our disappointment could not be hidden as we added layers to our clothing for warmth. No one thought to bring mittens and scarves.
We warmed soup, and coffee, and discussed heading for home when a midday sun broke through the clouds and blue skies lined the horizon.
We shed layer after layer as the day moved along.
By 4:00 pm, all the campers were wearing shorts and sandals under a bright sun that wasn’t done with us yet. It was 75 degrees F. and still warming!
The breeze finally died away leaving us in a humid 88 degree swelter by 6:00 pm.
That night, we ran fans and slept in t-shirts.
This is a true story. We live in New England, U.S.A. where we have a saying: “This is New England. If you don’t like the weather, wait a few minutes… it will change.”

https://mindlovemiserysmenagerie.wordpress.com/2021/09/16/tale-weaver-16-09-21-climate-change/

Six Sentence Story~ Improvise~ Yankee Ingenuity

On By Susan St.PierreIn 6 Sentence Stories24 Comments

PROMPT WORD:  IMPROVISE

Yankee ingenuity
Improvisational design or problem-solving, dealing with low availability of replacement parts and materials.

American farmers have a long, well deserved, reputation for ‘thinking outside of the box’ in order to independently, and innovatively, solve their own problems as they would arise.

Liddy was only sixteen when she decided to keep and breed rabbits, mostly to prove to her Dad, that she’d, one day, be a responsible heir to the family farm so, just before Thanksgiving, when Liddy woke up to a sudden dramatically unseasonable temperature change-dropping quickly and sharply-she freaked out realizing that her rabbits had yet to have fully winterized hutches!

Up to this point, the rabbits had clean bedding, frequent watering, and food, but their hutch windows were just screen and the forecast was for 5 below zero F, so she raced outside in 8 above F temperatures determined to cover those windows and protect her rabbits who had yet to acclimate to frigid winter weather.

Her hands grew instantly numb as she fumbled with plexiglass and screws and the monumental mistake of being unprepared for New England weather changes created strings of tears that froze instantly to her cheeks.

Feeling defeated and ashamed, she considered calling her Dad for a rescue when she got an idea how to improvise a barrier to the Arctic winds and after gathering a stack of newspapers, and a bucket of warm water, she covered all those windows with soaked paper layers that froze tightly in place in mere seconds.

Her Dad had been waiting for a panicked call, and when he didn’t get one, he rushed to find Liddy already inside and the most clever application of good ole Yankee ingenuity he’d seen in a long time, so he hugged her pronouncing, “You’re one fine farmer, young lady, and I’m one proud Dad!”.


Sunday’s Six Sentence Story Word Prompt! – GirlieOnTheEdge’s Blog (wordpress.com)
It’s Six Sentence Story Thursday Link Up! – GirlieOnTheEdge’s Blog (wordpress.com)

My Favorite Month…My Favorite Place

On By Susan St.PierreIn Sideshows2 Comments

See you in September…

“I puzzled and puzzled ’til my puzzler was sore.”

I always proclaim that June and September are my favorite months because those months usually have my idea of perfect weather. After having to come up with a favorite month, I realized that I (almost)couldn’t. They all have special traits and I love them for what they are. Holidays,activities,birthdays,playing in the snow,seeing the first crocus, how could anyone choose?

What I DO choose is to spend them all in the Northeastern US…rich in US history, Yankee ingenuity, and seasons.

My choice is September.

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Weather Prediction

On By Susan St.PierreIn Sideshows8 Comments

Berkshire County Massachusetts

Since I am outdoors every weekend, I pay attention to the weather.
Farmers do too. It can make or break them.
Every year, I am able to compare the seasons. This year, everything was almost two weeks earlier than last. I have photo records to substantiate my claims but my memory suits me fine, especially when things are a bit “off”. Some of the things that I noticed were:

  • Lilacs bloomed in early May. They were gone before Memorial Day.
  • Salamanders came to our pond in April to lay eggs.
  • The Eastern Phoebes had nested before we put our awning out.(this is a first)
  • Blueberries were out in May. Raspberries too.
  • Blackberries ripened in mid-July.
  • The wood frog tadpoles have grown and gone. (I usually still find some.)
  • The katydids started singing in the last days of July. (usually it is around the 14th of August.)
  • The maple trees have begun turning colors at a quicker pace.

I don’t know what this means but I’m curious to watch as Autumn sets in. At this pace, we may have an early winter. Mother Nature just may be allowing everything more time to prepare.

The only thing I can say for sure is last winter was on schedule. Cardinals start singing a mating song in January and the last two years I’ve heard it one day apart Jan.25 and 24. I documented that phenomenon.

I predict the Fall foliage will peak before October…I’ll guess the 22nd of September. Let’s see if my observations are correct 🙂