My honorary niece Natalia is now five years old! For her party she decided on a kitty theme. I was in charge of the fruit salad:

The kids had painted whiskers and felt ears. Though I really like the fairy princess set Tallie received:

I had a bad day, but watching these two made it better!

My sister’s getting married! Hurrah!

It’s balmy in Lake Wobegon.

I can hear the neighbor boys playing hockey in the backyard rink they poured in December. (It sits behind the inground pool and where the trampoline, hammock and volleyball/badminton net is in the summer–it’s a kiddie paradise!)

Not me, but same kind of sled

I remember being little and one of the neighbors poured a luge run in his backyard. It was sized for the red plastic toboggans everyone had. The run didn’t require steering or braking (which is good, since that’s impossible with those cheapy sleds) but still had two or three curves where you ended up riding kind of sideways. Very cool.

I try to appreciate these things about Minnesota when my feet are cold and I’m tired of snow.

60 above zero:
Floridians turn on the heat.
People in Minnesota plant gardens.

50 above zero:
Californians shiver uncontrollably.
People in Duluth sunbathe.

40 above zero:
Italian & English cars won’t start.
People in Minnesota drive with the windows down.

32 above zero:
Distilled water freezes.
The water in Bemidji gets thicker.

20 above zero:
Floridians don coats, thermal underwear, gloves, wool hats.
People in Minnesota throw on a flannel shirt.

15 above zero:
New York landlords finally turn up the heat.
People in Minnesota have the last cookout before it gets cold.

Zero:
People in Miami all die.
Minnesotans close the windows.

10 below zero:
Californians fly away to Mexico.
People in Minnesota get out their winter coats.

25 below zero:
Hollywood disintegrates.
The Girl Scouts in Minnesota are selling cookies door to door.

40 below zero:
Washington DC runs out of hot air.
People in Minnesota let the dogs sleep indoors.

100 below zero:
Santa Claus abandons the North Pole.
Minnesotans get upset because they can’t start the Mini-Van.

460 below zero:
ALL atomic motion stops (absolute zero on the Kelvin scale.)
People in Minnesota start saying…”Cold ’nuff fer ya?”

500 below zero:
Hell freezes over.
Minnesota public schools will open 2 hours late.

—Author Unknown

It’s winter in Minnesota
And the gentle breezes blow
Seventy miles an hour
At thirty-five below.

Oh, how I love Minnesota
When the snow’s up to your butt
You take a breath of winter
And your nose gets frozen shut.

Yes, the weather here is wonderful
So I guess I’ll hang around
I could never leave Minnesota
I’m frozen to the ground!

—Author Unknown

Thanks to Jennie for the tip!

It’s -9° F. That’s all I wanted to say.

Dawn French and Emma Chambers from The Vicar of Dibley.