Brewbeer

You know people are jonesing for snow when the Feb thread is at 77 pages and counting, and it's still January.

Slow, north of Whately.

Sleet starting to mix in with the rain here in downtown Springfield. 34F

@Fozz MRG is a blast. If you ski there you will learn to ski bumps. Also look at Magic near Mt. Snow. When the snow is deep in southern Vt., Magic has MRG-like goods (almost) and a similar throw-back vibe. Here is some mid-winter MRG stoke, just below the summit:

I never liked taking my skis off to board a gondi. Seems so much easier to keep them on your feet.

1. Octo snow bomb 2011. 98.5 hours with 3 kids and no power. Unbelievable tree and electric utility equipment damage. 2. Blizzard of '78. Lived in Natick, unbelievable snow and wind, also no power (but we had a wood stove) and extended no travel / no school. Honorable mention: Springfield tornado 2011. I wasn't in it but it went 1/2 mile south of my office. Did strip the trees along the river pretty good. But is was nothing like the life altering events of the first two, and nothing else I've experienced comes close.

Only one day over 80 and one night above 60 in the long range IMBY, looks pretty safe to uninstall today.

Cascade is a great flavor and aroma hop, and Centennial is a good bittering hop that really shines when used for flavor and aroma. When I was still brewing, these hops were the backbone of my "house" IPA recipe.

The glass jar over the yellow jacket nest is amazingly effective in today's testing at my hive-y hole. Even though there is a sizable gap at the base of the bowl, they don't seem to be able to find it:

Been having my own battle with yellow jackets who built a next in the ground next to my front walk. Have been hitting it repeatedly with foaming bee spray, at the nest's peak I counted 1-2 departures and arrival per second. I think I got the remainder of it last night, I was able to put the can of foaming spray at the hive opening and force it down into the hole:

Mowed last night: A little faded from the first mow of the season.

Another mow in the books last night. Faded a bit from the first mow glory, but still looking nice.

You can come get them from my yard, dozens of them here digging holes everywhere. Send me a PM if interested.

Thanks, I'm trying.

Third mow done, at least on this section, which is the fastest growing.

Took 3 hours for the first mow, needed to bag it since it was so high. If I don't bag it and just bang it out, it takes about 80-90 minutes.

First mow done yesterday, about 10 days later than normal due to all the rain. Some of the lawn was almost 8 inches high. Heavy moss is almost always due to insufficient direct sunshine. If the mossy areas are heavily shaded, thinning and/or removing trees will help.

Once you treat for crabgrass you shouldn’t disturb the ground, detaching will definitely reduce the effectiveness of the anti crab grass application.

Snizzle here in downtown Springfield. Roads are wet, about 2 inches on grassy surfaces. Looks to be just about over.

Heaviest of the day. Not even heavy enough to accumulate.

A little under 2 inches OTG here in downtown Springfield, where we have been between the two bands all day long.

How's it looking? Should I stay up?

Is it legal to drive up there? The view from the solar farm might be good, too.

Here is a link to a map which shows "dark sky" locations, which combined with a topo map, should be useful for finding good viewing spots: http://www.jshine.net/astronomy/dark_sky/ And another: http://darksitefinder.com/maps/unitedstates-15color.html Berkshire East Ski area is probably in one of the darker parts of Massachusetts, and it has a large treeless parking lot that has a good view to the north. In southern Vermont, check out the Green Mountain National Forest off Route 9 west of Brattleboro in the vicinity of the Deerfield River. About 5 or 6 miles west of Wilmington, turn right onto Forest Road 71, follow for 12-13 miles and turn right onto Somerset Road, and follow for a few more miles until you get to the Somerset Reservoir. There is plenty of parking and a great view to the north across the reservoir. Or, follow Forest Road 71 north and look of clearings. It's mostly wooded, but it promises to be very dark and there are some marshy clearings along it's length, including one at it's northerly terminus with Kelly Stand Road. Primitive camping is permitted along Forest Road 71.