Spring is on the way!!

[gjtoth]

This male goldfinch is starting to get his warm weather plumage. Notice how the bright yellow is starting to replace his brownish yellow? YAAAAAY!!

http://www.proudphotography.com/forum/gallery/files/5/2/3/spring_is_on_the_way.jpg

[daltoned]

Great capture, I'm sure all you folk in the USA will welcome spring, there seems to be an awful lot of snow over there this winter, something we in Ireland don't get too much of.

[jerryph]

Gary, I love the pick and REALLY want to share your enthusiasm... however, spring, though 15 days away for us, is not participating lately.

This is the scene outside my window today:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3139/2312737443_b140c5b5b1.jpg

Yes thats a 6 foot drift and snowbank accumulation in front of our home.

I came home and had to shovel and use the snowblower for 2 hours. The city plow just pushed it all back minutes after I finished... out again for another hour.

I am tired, sore and fed up of winter. Could you mail some of that sun this way? LOL

[gjtoth]

I am tired, sore and fed up of winter. Could you mail some of that sun this way? LOL

Would that I could, Jerry. Not 1/2 hour after I posted that shot, we got a winter storm warning. :mad: Perhaps the birds know something we don't.

[jerryph]

Its the thought that counts. :D

[gjtoth]

Its the thought that counts. :D

Until it comes to money. :D

[jerryph]

Warn a guy, will you? I almost spilled a mouth full of tea on my keyboard becuase I cracked up after reading your post! :D

[gjtoth]

Warn a guy, will you? I almost spilled a mouth full of tea on my keyboard becuase I cracked up after reading your post! :D

Then, my mission here is finished. Hi ho, Silver! Away!

I love a good spit-take.

[dkippen]

Jerry - You do know that snowplow drivers wait until you're done with your driveway so they can come by with the plow, don't you. At least that's what happens here, when it does snow. We've had more cold than snow lately.

Gary - Nice catch, can't wait to see goldfinches in my yard. I do get quite a few of those in the spring and summer.

[LensBaby]

Gary..nice photo, and that is something I have never noticed either. I told you I learn something new on here every single day from all of you. Thank you for that. I love it. What I don't love is that we are supposed to get 12 inches this Friday on top of this ice storm. UGH

[dkippen]

Sue - where do you live that you're getting so much snow?

[LensBaby]

Ohio...this is usually not the case. We usually have snow but nothing like this. It is just out of control this year. I am hoping the weather forecast is wrong.

[dkippen]

WOW - you're getting what we're supposed to be getting. MN is about 24"-30" below normal and February was one of the coldest on record. We got 2" this morning, but could use a whole lot more. For the season, we've only gotten about 24" total. My heart goes out to you.

[angierae]

You guys are getting an awful lot of snow south of us up here. We just keep getting little skiffs but more often rain lately. Big dumps of snow don't really bother me on the farm though cause we just use the tractor, much easier than shovelling :D

Our signs of spring are slowly arriving here too. I seen a pair of bald eagles today and the crows are starting to come back more as well. Now for the gophers.

I love the photo Gary. I've learnt more bird breeds from your photos than anywhere else. Now I can identify more than a chickadee and a swallow :D

[ladyups]

Once again, the bird man has enlightened me on something I had no idea happened...I did not know they changed colors over the winter. I thought they were always yellow. No wonder I don't see them in the winter time. They are camouflaged! :)

You got a great capture and preserving a bit of history too...now be sure and get his portrait again once he is back to all yellow.

And Debbie...I think your snow is dumping on us on its way north and it runs out of steam by the time it gets to you. We have had 36 inches here and on my route, they have had 56 inches. Our normal snowfall is 20 inches...right now, the bottoms have dropped out of our roads and we have 8 inches of mud. It's worse than snow!:mad:

[dkippen]

As much as I hate to say it, I would love to see a ton of anything wet. I was on the N. Shore this weekend and Lake Superior is down about 18", and of course the other lakes are suffering as well. And some people say there is no such thing as global warming. The weather MN is supposed to get moves just a little farther south every year. This is the 3rd year in a row where we've had less than half of an average snowfall.

[jerryph]

Our snowfalls this year are record setting. We would normally get about 200 centimeters a whole winter. This year we reached 250 centimeters by November 15, and had at least 50 major snowfalls and many severe snow storms after that.

Here, the snow is falling right to the very end of winter, and showing no signs of letting up.

Strange that though we are geographically on the same continent, how different our conditions are.

[LensBaby]

Jerry that is very strange that our weather is so different like that.

Debbie do you think that it will eventually move to Florida and then we will have the warm weather :D

I only remember snow like this when we had a blizzard in 1976 (I was 6 years old), and that was terrible enough. I never was one of the kids that wanted to go out and play in the snow, but of course now with my little ones I do!

[dkippen]

Sue -

A couple of years ago, I read an article that said that within the next 20-30 MN would have weather similar to Chicago, only without the lake effect snow. Kinda scary since many businesses "up north" depend on that snowmobile traffic.

[Snappers]

Excellent pic Gary. Glad to hear that nature thinks spring is on its way even if we dont!