We live in an area of the country that rarely sees snow. What often passes for snowfall here could easily be mistaken for dandruff.

Of course, TV weather guys LOVE to PREDICT snow. If a local TV weatherman so much as mentions the FIRST SYLLABLE of the magic word, residents spring into action. Yes, with a mere rumor of “snnnn,” everyone races around to prepare for The Mother of All Winter Storms.

Ever watched one of those violent Discovery Channel nature shows? You know, the ones where swarms of piranha devour cows? Or a pack of wolves rip apart a sick moose? Then you can imagine the unfolding scene here as grocery stores are violently stripped of milk, bread, and canned food items.

But the big storm just never happens. Time and again, I’ve heard predictions of snow (or even “snnnn”) only to be disappointed. So I’ve learned to completely ignore the TV weathermen whenever they make their bold predictions. As they did a couple of days ago.

Well, imagine my surprise when I awoke this morning to discover a veritable BLIZZARD in our backyard! For once, the TV guys got it right.

I’m sure that to many of our friends up north, the sight of snow is hardly cause for celebration. But for us, it turned an otherwise ordinary day into an unplanned vacation. Like a couple of kids, we went outside to play in the snow.

We sometimes ponder how RV camping brings us in touch with the simple pleasures of life. Pleasure doesn’t get much more simple and fundamental than a fresh snowfall.

We have a hot tub at our house. The first action I took this morning (after snapping photos like a paparazzi) was to fire up the heat. Hot tubbing is always fun. But hot tubbing in winter weather is more fun! You feel a little like those Japanese Macque snow monkeys who like to sit in natural hot springs.

My Japanese snow monkey counterpart. The poor fellow needs a pith helmet.

I was also reminded of our recent winter camping experiences. Although we’ve camped in bone-chilling cold temperatures, we haven’t yet camped during a heavy snowfall. I look forward to doing so someday.

If I’d only believed those TV weather guys, we would’ve been Airstream camping this time…

—-

Some people have asked me about our next BIG RV trip…

We’re currently planning our spring travel itinerary. We tentatively plan to hitch the Airstream in April (dates yet to be determined) and head up the Eastern seaboard.

We’re going to visit a lot of states in which we’ve never camped. We’ll also be visiting some large cities in addition to the state and national parks.

But for now, we’re just letting things thaw out a bit. 😀