This morning when I opened the garage door I was greeted by this site. I had already given my daughter my ice scraper and snow brush last week so she’d be prepared for the elements. Then of course I forgot to purchase a new one for my car. I started the car and let it warm a bit, used our push broom to remove much of the snow from the windows and then drove to work. The chill wind and snow reminds us all that winter is quickly approaching. Tomorrow the weather is going to moderate and all the snow will melt away.
My Friend
This picture of my wife conducting “Meet the Teacher” night at Franklinville Central School was one of the highlights of my day. Diane loves frogs and her room was decorated with a frog motif and on the door of her classroom hung a sign that said, “we are hoppy to see you.”
I’ve been blessed to share my life with Diane for almost twenty-seven years now. God really smiled at me the day she came into my life. I cannot tell you how long she’s been teaching because I’ll be in real trouble. This year she moved to fifth grade and she’s very excited about that. When we met she was teaching third grade. In her career she’s taught third, first grade reading and now fifth grade. She’s happy to be back in her own classroom. She’s had opportunities to go into administrative roles, but really loves the interaction with students. She’s a born teacher and I love her.
Sugar Snow
As March winds down, daytime temperatures rise into the thirties and forties. The winter snows recede each year. The rising temperatures bring sweet sap flowing from our maple trees and producers large and small tap our trees to harvest maple syrup. Thursday night mother nature graced us with some sugar snow. That’s what my folks called the special wet heavy snow that came in late March. It’s really a herald of the approaching spring. The storm Thursday night brought over six inches of fresh snow to our area. About this time of year I’m tired of snow but this storm produced an picture postcard image of the wooded area behind our home. The forecast calls for rising temperatures over the next week, so our sugar snow will be short lived.
This year’s Maple Syrup crop has been bountiful and local producers our content with their production. My father-in-law has produced over 200 gallons and I know of another local producer who has produced in excess of 600 gallons. Prices for this years maple syrup range from $39 to $45 per gallon. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVh-pWVvM-w]
Alumni tournament
Both our children are home this weekend. It’s the Alumni Basketball Tournament at Franklinville Central School. This tradition which began perhaps twenty years ago draws alumni from all across the country back to our small town nestled in the foothills of the Allegany Mountains. Last night we went to watch the opening round as teams from this decade competed against teams made up of men who range in age from twenty-one to nearly sixty. Our son Devin’s team took the floor last night and it was good to see these young men reunited. Although I always love to watch Devin play, I was especially glad to see one of his teammates, Dustin Owen, recently returned from the U.S. Army and Iraq. Dustin finally got out after being stop-lossed. He joined in 2002 for what was supposed to be a four year hitch and finally got out just a couple of months ago. The young men triumphed last night. Today will bring more competition and camaraderie.
Franklinville is usually a sleepy little town, but on this weekend once a year it comes to life a bit as former school boy players and their families converge to reunite on the hardwood, the homes and restaurants of our village.