Going, Going, Gone - We Think!

The last 3 weeks have been crazy around here! I had a birthday (now halfway to 104), Steve had a birthday (now halfway to 120), we installed a sub pump in our Calumet basement, Steve made a 5-day trip to lower Michigan, we worked on construction "stuff," and I had a bad spell of migraines while trying to make some decisions on new chairs and blinds for our church.

We were concerned about the Saginaw area last month, as the frequent rains were bringing flooding to the region. Then, the U.P. underwent a rapid meltdown causing wet basements all over our area and a few flooded rivers and lakes. The locals tell us they have never seen anything like it before. The installation of a sub pump sounded like an excellent idea, as we don't want my mom to ever have a problem with this basement after she moves in. We heard the sub pump running a lot for about a week, so it was a wise decision.

To illustrate the meltdown, here's the backyard on April 23:

 

Ten days later on May 2:

Four days later on May 6:

Keep in mind, that's a fairly accurate picture of the snow depth on April 23rd. The piles created from shoveling and roof raking were much higher. In fact, the pile right in back of the house was still almost at the roof line on that date. Another amazing thing to consider is that we had additional 7" of snow during that 2-week timespan. Thus, we lost a lot of snow, and we lost it quickly!

Further proof - May 2:

May 6:

Yes, the fence project will get finished this year.

Here's Steve cleaning up Cocoa's winter "business" (revealed after the snow melted) on May 10. She looks embarrassed. (She should be!)

This was the snow remaining in the backyard that same day.

When we awoke the next morning on Saturday, the 11th, we saw this.

It melted by that afternoon, but the image was repeated on Sunday morning, as we had another inch or so. Again, it melted by Sunday afternoon. I checked the weather forecast for the next 2 weeks, and I think that will be the end of it for the season. Temperatures don't look favorable for more flakes, so I doubt I'll get any more shots of "roof eyelashes" for a while.

We've had lots of activity at the bird feeders lately. Along with a large assortment of sparrows and starlings and a woodpecker, we've had many visits from the Junco clan.

Mr. Robin finally put in his first appearance on May 1st. He showed up on April 1st last year.

We especially enjoyed our Purple Finch.

Well, that should catch you up on the Keweenaw climate. Our snow is gone - we think!

All is well in the Keweenaw.