Yesterday afternoon just before 6:00 PM, I notice a weather alert on my phone. I open it up because it said “severe” with a big ole exclamation mark sign.
The National Weather Service obviously needs attention.
Here’s the alert…
Severity: Moderate Weather Event Onset: 3:45 PM (EDT), March 17, 2026 Action Recommended: Execute a pre-planned activity as instructed in the Description. Urgency: Take action within the next hour. Description: Less than 1 inch of snow starting after midnight. 🙄
It’s COLD — I’ll admit that.
I was freezing in the garage when the Pesky Neighbors came to give me a birthday present yesterday…
I invited them to come in — I would’ve put the hounds in a different room — but Mr. Pesky said they didn’t have time. Once they got here, I asked them where they were headed. “Home to take a nap!” was the reply.
They likely saw the same alert and are planning to take urgent action once they’re rested.
Funny memory spawned by seeing Mom sitting in the jeep with a cover over her legs…
My great Uncle Ted babied Aunt Lois to the umpteenth degree. I can remember him warming the car for her, walking her out to get in, and covering her legs with a blankie and tucking it in around her before leaving my Nanny & Pappa’s to head back home about an hour north of the Ville. Nanny told me, (and Mom later verified), that Ted also warmed the toilet seat for her. Yup. He would sit on the toilet to warm the seat up before Lois went in to do her business.
That’s a high bar, fellas. I’m willing to bet no one reading this can come close to that one.
Now you know: The last Blockbuster video store in Bend, Oregon hosted a school field trip in 2024 for first graders who were learning about what life was like when their grandparents and parents were growing up.
The snow was gone before 11:00 AM and the day just kept getting better and better.
By 6:00 PM, I had a visitor from the fine state of Tennessee who ate all my leftovers and then crashed on my couch. 😉
Katie left the barndo LATE with a new pair of shoes and an iPhone upgrade.
Although I miss her like crazy, I’m incredibly proud of her. Katie’s making her own way in a different state… a 4 1/2 mile drive from home where her family and friends still live. Going to be honest, that’s not something I would’ve had the guts to do. Heck, I hated my 10 years living in Seymour and that’s a 10 minute drive from home.
Her weekend is packed with things she needs to do — like taking her dogs to the vet because it’s less expensive and she loves the Seymour vet team, and going to her best friend’s party for the 1 year birthday of a baby Katie doesn’t get to spend enough time with. And while she may pop over here again before heading back, I understand if she doesn’t. It’s hard to visit everyone you care about when your time is limited.
Now you know: Iceland has never won a Winter Olympic medal.
We had 70° days earlier in the week. It was warm enough to sit outside in shorts and a long-sleeved t-shirt, relax and read a book. Want proof? The ole’ Wyze Cam captured it:
Now, it’s barely 20° and we have some kind of white precipitation falling here in southern Indiana. Here’s the same chair from last night…
The weather is bad but life here is still better than it is in Mexico.
I’m sure you’re following the news and certainly don’t need to hear anything about it here, so I’ll just say I’m pretty happy I’m NOT in Mexico right now, even though the weather there trumps what we have here.
I’ve been to destinations in Mexico several times — both by cruise ship and by flying in. YEARS ago, I flew in when they were still burning off the jungle for the airport. Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Tulum, and Cancún, Mexico City and more… I’ve hit them all.
Traveling to Cancún in the way back machine…
I haven’t flown into Mexico for several years, (only cruised), but back in the day, it was a totally different experience when you have a port of call in Mexico and when you arrive by plane.
On those earlier flights, I was surprised that when getting off the plane they just rolled a step platform up for you to walk down. It was basically a concrete pad in the middle of the jungle. If you were booked in a nice resort, a van was there to pick you up (with a cooler full of Dos Equis beer) to transport you to your hotel.
I remember jeeps with 4 or 5 military men in full camo gear standing in back with AK 47s zipping around in the area as we were heading out. The jeeps were in groups of 3 or 4. Crazy… when you’re on a cruise with a port in Mexico, you only see the tourist areas and none of that militia stuff.
My last trip to Mexico was via a cruise…
When you cruise, you don’t see the “real” grocery stores where meat hangs with flies swarming it, and you don’t eat authentic food where the decorations in the outdoor establishment are dusty plastic roses hanging in bunches on the walls.
I can’t imagine being there currently with what’s going on… and wonder how those on cruise ships are being routed to keep everyone safe.
Now you know: While Cancun proper has limited docking for large cruise ships, it is served by the nearby, bustling ports of Cozumel and Mahahual in Quintana Roo. In 2024, Mexico scheduled over 3,122 total cruise ship arrivals, with Cozumel alone accounting for 1,199 ships. Cozumel is one of the busiest, often welcoming over 3 million passengers annually.
I don’t know if y’all have been watching the news or reading social media about Savannah Guthrie’s Mom being abducted, but it’s the kind of thing that sticks in your head. Of course, everyone is an expert and there’s no shortage of potential scenarios.
I’ve put myself in the shoes of the family — and have also tried creeping inside the minds of those who allegedly are holding her. Of course, I THINK I know what I’d do in either position… but we don’t know what we don’t know.
It’s such a heavy, sad story.
I sure hope at some point in the near future we get to see the ole’ gal reunited with her family. Because the final deadline has come and gone — and we don’t know if the ransom was paid or not — the outcome is far from clear.
One other thing to note, you guys remember when Gabby Petino was missing only to find she’d been murdered by her boyfriend? The guy I liked best covering that story is also covering this one. If you want to follow along without watching one news story after another, check out Brian Entin — he’s on X and on youtube.
Locally: a warm up has started at least…
Katie sent me a photo of her dog running on straw beside her house in Tennessee. The straw was to help with the mud slop after their snow melted. But they didn’t have anything close to what we have here. It’s going to take a LOT of 44° days to get rid of the piles of snow at the barndo.
The sidewalk is mostly clear, but sheesh… there’s so much snow!
The good news? It’s predicted that the coldest weather of the season is behind us. Yippee!!
We’re still feeding the birds — and they still appreciate it. 😉
Even Perry’s gotten into the bird feeding activity. He trudges through the snow so I don’t have to. The birds and I thank you, Perry.
Now you know: The Pima County Medical Examiner’s Office (where Nancy Guthrie lives) has recorded over 4,000 cases of human remains found in the desert in their county since 2000.
My favorite brother sent me a meme that contained a statement as true as any I’ve ever read. It said:
“People don’t want to hear your opinion. They want to hear THEIR opinion come out of YOUR mouth.”
something we can ALL agree on
It’s a fact — not just an opinion — that you must pay attention to pricing. If you don’t, you’ll get taken advantage of in the worst ways possible.
Here’s just one example… I use Truvia sweetener in my coffee and always buy in bulk and infrequently. The image below is comprised of 2 honest to goodness screenshots of the exact same product being sold at the exact same time by 2 different companies. Both offer free shipping.
You guessed it! The one on the left is Amazon. The one on the right is Sam’s Club. A couple bucks here and there is one thing, but the 100+ people that fell for the Amazon pricing within the last month are so dumb I don’t care what their reviews claim. 🙄
wintertime dog problems: not much you can do about it
The cold days combined with snowfall has my three hounds wanting out millions of times per day. Of course, they don’t want to stay out long.
My floors are a mess with doggie footprints. Their skin is itchy so there’s that to contend with too. The out/in cycle is on constant repeat just like the movie, “Groundhog Day” with Bill Murray. And speaking of groundhogs… Punxsutawney Phil did see his shadow on Monday, Feb. 2, this year which means, according to the legend, six more weeks of winter are on the way.
I’m complaining now — just think what it will be like when all this stuff melts.
Now you know: Groundhog Day was first marked in the U.S. with a prediction by Punxsutawney Phil in 1886. He moved to Gobbler’s Knob in 1887.
