Pittsburgh Winter

It has been snowing since early morning today. It’s a light snow fall, not the heavy type that accumulates several inches within a few hours, as we had during Christmas and the first three weeks of January. This one is producing just a dusting on grassy areas. Phil the groundhog stuck his head out on the 2^nd of February as part of a much publicized yearly ritual, and saw his shadow. According to his handlers in Punxutuwney, Pennsylvania, this means we will have to endure six more weeks of winter, not welcome news for my wife Semahat. She hates the winter here. Every winter she declares that she is moving to Florida. I cannot really blame her. Having grown up with harsh winters during her childhood without central heating in a town in north central Turkey, she is traumatized at the very thought of cold, snowy winters. It does not help that the sky is generally grey during this time of year, and it is dark when she leaves for work at seven in the morning, and again when she returns home after five in the evening. She makes sure that every year I order more than enough cherry wood for the fireplace to last us through the whole winter. I on the other hand endured very hot and humid summers while growing up in India. That is probably why I prefer cold weather to summer heat, as long as I have warm clothes outside and central heating inside. The fact that I am retired, with no need to go out in the bone chilling cold early in the morning, makes it that much easier for me to enjoy the winter. It looks so beautiful looking out from inside a warm house, when the ground and the trees are covered with snow, creating picturesque scenery of a winter wonderland.

We have a bird feeder hanging from the cherry tree branch outside our kitchen window. I hung the feeder high enough to keep it out of reach of deer, but barely within my reach. I keep the feeder filled with gourmet bird food consisting of various types of grains and seeds. It has become a popular gathering and feeding spot for all kinds of backyard birds that decided to stay behind and brave the winter weather here. It is interesting to watch the feeding habits of these birds. I have noticed a distinct pecking order among them. At the top of the order is a lone red-bellied woodpecker. Everyone moves out of his way when he descends on the feeder. Next are the blue jays, followed by cardinals, tufted titmouse, slate colored juncos, and the chickadees. At the bottom are the wrens, sparrows and other small birds. Once in a while, we notice a group of deer foraging for food in our backyard, especially when the ground is covered with snow everywhere. They show up mostly at dusk or after dark. The other day, when I was washing dishes after dinner at the kitchen sink, I noticed a group of deer congregating under the feeder. Two of these were desperate enough to stand on their hind legs so that their mouths were just high enough to reach the bird feeder. However, they could not stay up more than a few seconds in that position, so they would take a quick bite, come down, and go up again. Semahat and I banged on the kitchen window, trying to scare them, but they just looked at us with their big eyes and continued feeding themselves until the feeder was empty. I had to stop restocking the feeder for a few days after that, hoping that the deer would forget about the place. I have started feeding the birds again, and so far, deer have indeed stayed away. We will see how long it lasts.

Well, only a few more weeks of winter. It will be spring weather in six weeks according to Phil. In fact, the daffodils have already started sprouting. Winter will just be a memory then, and my wife will be happy again, until next winter.

Picture shows Sinan trying out his bike on our street on a cold, snowy day in early January.