Ok, who canceled spring?

The snowy weather just keeps on coming.  I have to admit, even though we need all the snow and rain we can get, I am tired of it.  Physically tired.  I am tired of being cold.  My dogs are tired of walking around on the snow and ice to go potty, my husband works outside mostly and he is tired of being cold and wet all day.  We are both tired of shoveling and tired of having snow piled up to our window sills.  I am tired of not being able to open the windows and I am tired of the ever white landscape. I am tired of all the extra coats, boots, sweaters, gloves and hats that are cluttering up my laundry room and snow shovels and snow blowers cluttering up my back porch.

 I think this is the time of the year when cabin fever really sets in .  In January and February, you can tell yourself it is winter and this is to be expected.  But, by the end of March, it is spring and I WANT spring weather.  We have done our time in winter and it is time to reap our reward for making it through yet another cold season.  I want to dig in the dirt, see some green and sit out in the sun without a heavy coat on.  I want daffodils and tulips and yard sales. I want to hang my sheets out on the line.  I want to be outside working in the garden for hours on end.  I want to swap out snow boots and Uggs, for Birkenstocks and Wellies.  I want to play my harp out in the garden on a warm afternoon. I want to  let the gentle breeze waft through the strings and just listen to the song Mother Nature creates.  So much to look forward to....I can hardly wait.

Unfortunately, I will have to wait, as they are calling for more snow tonight!  When will it end?  Too bad we can't bottle some of this cold weather up and use it in July or August when we are having a heat wave, dry spell and feel as if it will never, ever be cool or wet again.  One thing about the weather, it always gives us something to talk about, complain about or rave about.  Be it nice or nasty, we have to take it as it comes.  I guess that is what makes living her in Pine Cove so special.  While is is frustrating now, I know in a few weeks or so we will be rewarded with the most glorious sunny days and cool, crisp, star filled nights.  The trees will leaf out and the lilacs will bloom.  The smell of cedar and pine will perfume the early morning air and we will once again be sure that there is no better place on earth to live.  Our summer time activities will be in full swing and another glorious summer in the mountains will envelope us.  Soon, I hope!

Cal Fire News Release

In light of the recent events in Japan, Cal Fire has put out a news release about earthquake safety.  It is posted on our website at www.pcwd.org.  It might be a good idea to pop over and take a look at it.  It is easy to forget we need to be prepared as well.  Sometimes fire seems to be our main adversary, but we can't let our guard down when it comes to earthquake preparedness as well.  As for myself, I will be working on my to go box this week and making sure it is up to date and that everything that should be in there is.  Once the weather warms up, I will get out in the shed and make sure my other supplies are up to date as well.  It is easy to forget to replace the food in your emergency kit or make sure you have enough water stored and so on.  I guess the old saying, prepare for the worst and hope for the best, applies here. 

We see these disasters on TV and figure they will never happen to us, but they could.  We could easily be isolated should a major disaster happen and who knows how long it would be until help would arrive.  So it is best to prepare and hope it never comes to that.   I hope as a community, everyone here in Pine Cove would come together and help each other out in a time of disaster.  I know all of us here at the water district would do whatever we could to help out during an emergency situation such as an earthquake. 

Web Cam working

Great news!  The web cam is up and running again!  You can view it from our website at http://www.pcwd.org/.  There is also a link to our website on the right sidebar here on the blog.  It is kind of fun to watch it snowing up at Rocky Point.  Take a look for yourself.

Still Snowing!

Well, it doesn't look like we are going to get a break from winter any time soon.  At least not until Saturday by the looks of the weather forecast.  On the water front, this is good.  The more moisture the better.  While this type of weather does make life tougher, it is wonderful for our water situation.  Plus we were lucky that at least this recent storm held off until the snow from the previous storms melted off.  So at least it isnt' piled up over our windows or anything. 

So even though it says spring on the calendar, here in Pine Cove it is still winter for now.  It will make spring and summer all that much sweeter and hopefully give us another year where we don't have to move into a higher stage of water conservation.   While we aren't out of the woods drought wise just yet, having these wet winters is certainly a welcome relief.  It may not end the drought, but at least it keeps it from getting worse.  It is so easy to forget we are in a drought when we are sitting here with all this snow, but we have to remember that it isn't what is on the ground that counts, it is what percolates back down into the ground.

So don't put those boots and heavy coats away just yet.  Perhaps in a few weeks we can think about doing that, but for now keep your snow shovel and boots by the door and make sure you have an adequate supply of propane and/or wood so you can stay toasty warm. 

Spring has Sprung?

Not!  Yesterday may have been the first day of spring, but Old Man Winter isn't ready to leave just yet.  The weather reports I received over the weekend are predicting up to 31 inches of snow!  Yes, you read that right.  31 inches. 

This isn't all that unusual for the hill though.  Anyone who has lived here for any length of time can tell you all sorts of snow horror stories.  Just last year, we had snow in May.  So while it may be spring on the calendar, it is probably not spring here in Pine Cove just yet. 



Looking up Marion Ridge Road from the water district office.




Looking down Marion Ridge Road to Highway 243 from the water district office.




Pine trees outside the water district office covered in new snow.

It would be a good idea to stay inside if you don't absolutely have to go out anywhere.  The roads are fairly clear, but why take the chance?  Please be sure you have provided adequate shelter, food and water for outdoor animals.  If possible, bring your dog inside during this bad weather.  Remember, they get cold too!

Spring arrives with snow

Well, I knew the weather has been too good to be true.  As spring arrives this Sunday, they are calling for snow.    Up to 11 inches.  While the moisture is fabulous and we can certainly use all we can get, snow in the spring is just cruel and unusual punishment.   I would much prefer it to be in the form of rain, because after all April showers bring May flowers, right?  No where is there a saying about Spring Snow, but what can we do?  We just will have to deal with it and continue to suppress our urge to get outside in the garden.

I noticed some trees are flowering and budding up.  I hate to see this happen.  I always think these plants and trees will acclimate, but they never seem to.  Each year as soon as the weather gets nice, they start to grow or bloom, even if it is only February or March.  Then bam, it snows and they get frozen again.  They never seem to learn or get with the program.  The oak trees seem to be the only ones with enough sense to wait until the end of May before emerging from their long winter nap.  I don't even know if it is possible for other species of plants to acclimate to our climate.  They seem programed to spring to life after a few days of warm weather no matter when it arrives.

So, I guess all we can do is be thankful for the  moisture and take consolation in the fact that spring has to arrive sooner or later and when it does, we will be ever so grateful and excited!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

We just wanted to wish everyone here in Pine Cove a happy St. Patrick's Day.   From everyone here at the Pine Cove Water District to everyone in Pine Cove, here are some Irish blessings for you.

Wishing you always...

Walls for the wind,
A roof for the rain
And tea beside the fire.
Laughter to cheer you,
Those you love near you,
And all that your heart may desire.

An Old Irish Blessing
May love and laughter light your days,
and warm your heart and home.
May good and faithful friends be yours,
wherever you may roam.
May peace and plenty bless your world
with joy that long endures.
May all life's passing seasons
bring the best to you and yours!

And my favorite Irish Blessing of all time!


May those that love us, love us.
And those that don’t love us,
May God turn their hearts.
And if he doesn’t turn their hearts,
May he turn their ankles,
So we’ll know them by their limping.

So here's to a Happy St. Patrick's day to everyone here in Pine Cove, whether you are Irish or not!  I hope no one comes into the office and is limping!

Custom bills

Starting with our April billing, we will be using our custom billing program.  We used the new style of bills in our February billing, but that was just a generic form.  Becky has been working on getting the form customized to our specific needs and it is finally ready!  The new bill will break down your water usage tier by tier and we think the bills will be much clearer to read.  We have been getting a lot of positive comments on the new bills and we think that the customizing will make them even better.  Let us know what you think after you get yours next month.

Town Crier is here

The Town Crier installed a paper machine here at the Pine Cove Water District.  It is located right next to the blue mailbox on the covered porch in front of the office.   It is lite and we keep the parking lot plowed, so you should have easy access to the paper machine as well as the mail box.  We hope this helps the community out at least a little bit.

TaDa!

Newspaper shelter

Our newspaper shelter is complete and we are just waiting for one more paper machine from the Town Crier.  The boys even completed the whole thing with a nice gate.  They did a super job and we hope that this works out well for everyone.

The whole thing done!

Bird Houses replenished

The boys have been hard at work and our popular bird houses are back in stock.  These birdhouses are extremely popular and go quickly.  So if you don't have yours yet, stop by the office and pick one up.  They are absolutely FREE! 

The boys makes these out of old wooden fence boards, so they are very sustainable.  They are very rustic looking and make a great addition to your yard.  Did I mention that they are FREE?

Birdhouses

Close up of birdhouses

Birdhouse hanging in the office

Spring Ahead

So, did you all remember to turn your clocks forward on Saturday night?  It is always an adjustment, isn't it?  Whether going forward or backward, I find it disruptive to my internal clock.  And while I like the extra daylight at the end of the day, I do not like the dark mornings.  I love to get up early and take my dogs for a walk in the quiet, early hours.  It gives me a chance to think, pray and just listen to the sounds of nature while we are walking.  However, walking two dogs in the dark is not especially fun. 

I have tried doing this, but I am always afraid of what or who I might run into.  Since you can't see, it is very easy to trip and fall as well.  I tried taking a flash light, but my husband thinks that makes me look like I am doing something suspicious.  Since I have to be at work at 9 am, I cannot wait until 7 or 7:30 to walk the dogs unless I want to get to work all sweaty.  I doubt my co-workers would be in favor of that.  At my age, I need extra time in the morning to make myself presentable.

So for now, it is afternoon walks for us.  I don't enjoy them as much as there is more traffic, bright sunshine and more noise.  At 5 am, Pine Cove is fairly quiet and watching the sunrise as you walk is an invigorating way to start the day.  It kind of puts everything into perspective for the day.

How about you?  How has the time change affected your schedule?

Frugal Friday

As this latest batch of snow melts away, my thoughts are turning to spring.  Thinking of spring naturally makes one think of the garden.  An what does one need for a garden?  Seeds of course.  Well plants are nice, but they are expensive, so since we are being frugal here, seeds are the way to go. 

Now, I will admit I have not had as much success with starting seeds as I would like to have.  However, since they are so inexpensive, I feel it is an area I can afford to have failures and keep trying.  After all a $2 pack of seeds doesn't break the bank like a $50 plant would. 

My biggest problems is that I have no where to start seeds indoors.  So on a few select things, like tomatoes and basil, I will still by the plants.  However, I am going to do some early seed sowing in the garden and make some mini green houses to cover the seeds and see how that method works out.

If anyone out there is good at this, I, and many others, would appreciate any advice you can give us regarding starting seeds.  It all seems easy enough, but last year my morning glories never got past 2" tall.  That is correct.  2 inches tall.  How is that possible?  What am I doing wrong?  I see pictures of morning glories that grow like weeds and envelope a trellis or arbor with glorious green leaves and flowers.  Yet mine, after all summer never really grew at all. 

Hollyhocks are the other plant that elude me.  I see them growing practically wild up in Big Bear. They are in parking lots, coming up through sidewalk cracks and invading yards.   So of course I thought they would do well here and would  need a minimum of water and care.  Wrong.  I got 2 plants out of about 50 seeds I planted last year.   My friend, who lives in Big Bear, was good enough to go around one fall and harvest seeds for me from different hollyhocks and  I still do not have hollyhocks growing in my yard.

So as spring begins to come to Pine Cove, I will again attempt to plant seeds and get them to grow.  After all, spring is a time of renewal and who knows, perhaps one day I will get lucky and something will actually grow!

Newspapers are here!

The newspaper machine project is just about complete.  The Press Enterprise and the LA Times have arrived and we are just waiting on the Town Crier, which we expect sometime today.  The boys, Jerry and Jeremy, did a great job on constructing the shelter.  It came out very nicely and will be handy for those wishing to purchase a newspaper without running into town.  Stop by and take a look.

Sustainable Thursday

Today I was reading our latest copy of Waste Age Magazine.  I know, not exactly my first choice in reading materials, but you just never know when they are going to have an article that is pertinent to PCWD.  This time they had an article about composting and you know how we LOVE composting here at the water district.  Some of the statistics they quoted were kind of surprising to me. 

North America generates more than 80 million tons of organic waste each year, which includes food waste, yard waste and clean wood from forestry projects and the construction and demolition sector.  In the U.S., the EPA estimates that about 1/3 of municipal solid waste is organic.  While approximately 65% of yard wastes is being diverted for recycling, only around 2.5% of food was is currently being recycled. 
(courtesy of Waste Age Feb. 2011 issue)

I am kind of shocked that only 2.5% of food waste is being recycled or composted.  This is such a waste of resources, not to mention all the room it must be taking up in the land fills.  While new technologies are being developed to capture methane gas from landfills to generate electricity or provide fuel, I am not going to get into that here.  What I do want to discuss is composting.  Just think if each household composted their food waste, how much trash could be saved from the landfills.

While I do think it is important that schools, restaurants, hotels and so on get on board with composting as well, that is too big a subject for this little blog.  So we will keep it local and just think about what Pine Covians can do.   While cities like Seattle are miles ahead of us here in Riverside County when it comes to sustainable living, we can follow their lead and set a good example and hopefully push the powers that be in the right direction. 

Composting is an incredibly easy way to begin living sustainably.  It is easier than you think.  I know there is a lot of information out there on how to do it.  You need 3 bins or a spinning bin or one big bin.  You need to check the moisture content and temperature of your compost pile.  You need to constantly turn your pile. You need to layer the greens with the browns, etc., etc., etc.  Forget all that.  Yes you can do it that way, but here is how I do it.

This is for household food composting.  First, get a container for your kitchen counter or put it under your sink.  You can buy these online or you can do like I do and use an old stainless steel bowl.  What ever you decide to use, just make sure it is easy to clean and has a lid and don't get something so big that it will take 3 months to fill up.  Stainless steel or ceramic work really well.  I took an old lid from a stock pot and put it on top of my old bowl.  Not the most attractive of kitchen accessories, but it does the job and is easy to keep clean.

Step two.  Put all your scraps into this bowl.  I put in everything but meat.  That means veggies that have gone bad in your fridge, veggie peelings, tea bags, coffee grounds, scraps off your plate after a meal, egg shells, paper towel and toilet paper rolls and so on.  When your container is full, simply take it outside, dig a hole somewhere in your garden and bury the scraps.  That is it.  It takes about 10 minutes out of my day once every week or two.  I do this in my veggie garden in the off season and during the summer I put it around the yard near the trees and other plants.  The scraps will compost themselves and you don't have to worry about doing anything else.  Just make sure you dig down far enough that animals don't come buy and dig it back up.  And if they do happen to do that, no big deal, just re-bury everything.   Easy Peasy!

Compost is a wonderful addition to the garden.  It provides nutrients for plants and trees and amended soil has better water retention, thereby conserving water.  Add a layer of mulch to that and you are conserving even more water. Here on the hill it is important to conserve water no matter how wet of a winter we have had. Droughts are a fact of life and a few good years won't necessarily end the drought situation. Even if it does, we should always be conserving because you just never know when a drought will return. By making water conservation a way of life, we are caring for our resources and ensuring that we will have water for our future needs.