winter

January 2025: Fire and Ice

/ Chris Thaiss / 1 Comment

Fire to the Ocean: Homeowner sifts through wreckage after the Palisades Fire, Jan. 13 (Brandon Bell/Getty Images). The Palisades Fire is still not fully contained two weeks after the blaze began, and more high winds occurred this week, but with some rain expected for the weekend.

In this month’s entry:

Apocalyptic Fires, Surprising Ice
Staying Warm with International Dishes
The January 2025 Photo/Video Gallery: Bird and Deer Resilience

Palisades Fire and Los Angeles city lights, from airplane (Reuters photo, January 8)

Our frozen lake, view toward downtown, windy morning, January 9

Apocalyptic Fires, Surprising Ice: Two Sides of the Same Oily Coin

Robert Frost, “Fire and Ice,” first published 1920

Chris:

It’s certainly common in this blog to talk about very different places and experiences, but this January seems to offer–I say “seems”–a brutally stark divide between the fires in Los Angeles and the snow and ice here in Northern Virginia and now through the Deep South. Sure, there’s a difference between the heat and sudden destructiveness of a fire and the combination of sudden danger and long-term deadening action of ice. But, as Frost’s poem makes clear, the contrasting forces both have the power to destroy the world–when weaponized by human desire and hate. So fire and ice, in their destructive power, have a lot in common.

Altadena, CA “neighborhood” after the Eaton Fire, Jan. 16 (Orange County Register); Almost 40,000 acres burned in the two fires; 12,000 homes, schools, libraries, and other structures were lost, and 60,000 or more people were left homeless–one of the worst disasters in California history

Indeed, the LA fires and the extreme “cold snap” now surprising the US South–snow fell in Tallahassee, FL, on Jan. 20, for example–both demonstrate the climate change that the unrestrained greed of the oil and gas cartel continues to bring to the planet and its inhabitants. The unprecedented fires in LA are the result of the rare–but increasing–confluence of a record drought afflicting Southern California and unusually strong Santa Ana winds producing gusts as high as 100 miles an hour. Together, the drought and the winds make wildfires in the parched chaparral landscape much more likely. Climate change science predicts that such a confluence of forces will become more common.

And not only in Southern California. The drought that stoked the fires there is stoking them across many states. According to the US Drought Monitor, as this blog reported in October, as much as 80% of the US is rated as from abnormally dry to being in moderate to severe to extreme to exceptional drought, as this December 2024 map shows:

US Drought Monitor, Christmas Day 2024 (https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/CurrentMap.aspx)

The Onslaught of Ice in the Deep South

Ice, snow, and states of emergency from Texas to Florida to the Carolinas, Winter Storm Enzo (Weather Channel, Jan. 21). David Goodman of the NY Times reports (Jan. 21): “For many Texans, the arrival of snow brought back memories of the devastating winter storm of 2021, which crippled the state’s independent power grid and killed more than 200 people. So far, the state’s electricity market operator has said it has plenty of power.”

Some are calling it a “once-in-a generation” winter storm along the Gulf Coast (CNN, January 22: https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/22/weather/winter-storm-south-wednesday-hnk/ ). So how is this icy, snowy Southern “Surprise” an effect of climate change? The steadily diminishing polar ice cap, perhaps the most dramatic effect of human-caused climate change over recent decades, is producing fluctuations in the “polar vortex” jet stream that are making seasonal weather forecasting more unpredictable across North America. So we shouldn’t be surprised that a sudden surge of very cold air is hitting the Deep South this January.  Again, what has been entirely predictable over the past 100 years or more is that the Earth is slowly heating. 

And so, the gradual heating produces

the polar ice cap melt that spawns

the fluctuations in the upper atmosphere that cause

the unexpected deep freeze and snows in the South.

In other words, it’s all part of a pattern brought about by our addiction to fossil fuels. That Northern Virginia is experiencing temps this week in the single digits (4 degrees Fahrenheit on the morning of 23rd) would not be surprising if Januaries in the past 20 years had been the typically cold winter months of years long past. But in January 2023 and January 2024, this blog described what amounted to early springs of budding trees–not a surprise, because gradual warming has been the trend, as the world and local temperature records demonstrate:

Hottest Year on Record in the DC region (National Weather Service) (Washington Post, Dec. 30): this map records “only” the last 145 years, but the trend is obvious

Heavy snowfall on our lake, view from south end park toward downtown buildings in distance, January 19, afternoon

Aftermath of one section of Palisades Fire in Malibu (photo Jan. 16, Orange County Register)

Is there anything we can do about this trend toward ever worsening destruction? Sure, but will U.S. society have the courage and even the awareness to really move steadily with determination away from oil and gas and toward clean energy? We have the technologies and the infrastructure–and the skilled workforce–to do so. But strong-arm politics is the stumbling block.

Just this Monday, January 20, the loudest mouthpiece for the oil and gas cartel was re-inaugurated as the President, and he has already nominated for his Cabinet men who are wedded to the cartel and dedicated to eliminating clean energy alternatives: solar power, wind power, and electric-powered vehicles. These people glory in the fact that the U.S. is already the world’s largest producer of fossil fuels, and they want that destructive leadership to intensify–to their benefit, but not to meet the needs of the people for a safe, productive environment.

According to the Energy Institute (Nov. 2024), the U.S. has been the world’s leading producer of oil and liquid gas since 2017, and further increased this lead under the Biden administration. Even oil companies see no need for this continued mining, as leases already approved go unpurchased. So why is further mining being pursued by the new President?

The result will be that in the next few years more and more events like the wildfires in California, the worsening hurricanes in Florida and the Gulf Coast, the extinction of fish species in the oceans, extreme drought in Texas, water shortages in more and more states, and many more climate-related disasters will occur. Costs already in the trillions have been racked up to repair and prepare for these events, with Americans paying for them in ever higher prices, in lost insurance, and in fear for their lives and homes. Politicians who don’t want to call these catastrophes what they are–“human caused”–will keep calling them “natural disasters,”  while nature and her creatures will suffer through our abuse.

A beautiful pair of Mallards push their way through the frozen lake, as snow falls, January 6

***************************************************************************

Jean’s green pepper enchiladas, January 18

Staying Warm with International Dishes

Jean:

As the temperatures have dipped down and stayed down over the past couple of weeks, I have been inspired to serve comfort foods, hot in both temperature and taste.  Furthermore, we’ve been staying inside more than any time since Covid, as ice has built up outside, so reusing and repurposing leftovers and pantry items has been a priority.

I started with chili, of course—a staple of cold weather comfort food.  I never make chili the same way twice, but this time I was inspired by a recipe by Molly Yeh on the Food Network, except I left out the cinnamon because Chris doesn’t like the taste of Cincinnati chili (but I do).  That chili had no beans, so on another day I added chunky tomatoes and pinto beans for a different look and taste.

Green Pepper Enchiladas

My next inspiration came from watching “Moira Rose” make enchiladas on Schitt’s Creek.  (Yes, there’s a lot of TV watching involved when holed up inside by the weather.)  I don’t know her recipe, so I just pulled something together with leftover bean and corn chili as the filling, spinach tortillas for color, sliced green peppers for crunch, and a canned cheese sauce. They turned out perfectly and were photogenic, too!

West African Peanut Stew

Because Black History month is upcoming in February and Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday is this week, I also made a West African peanut stew, which combined chard, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, and chicken with the peanuts in a savory sauce with peanut butter, cumin, garlic, ginger, and onion. The plentiful, colorful stew was good for several days of leftovers. Chris particularly liked the chopped chard and tomato flavors, and peanuts are favorites of ours in any form. (The peanut stew was also a tribute to my late older sister, whose birthday was the same as MLK’s.  She worked in Africa with the Peace Corps in her youth.)

Orange Chicken and Tempura Green Beans for Lunar New Year

For Lunar New Year, I also checked out Molly Yeh and came up with her orange chicken recipe.  I decided to opt for our favorite cut, whole chicken thighs, rather than go to the expense and trouble of using chunks of chicken breast.  The point of this recipe for me is the delicious orange sauce, although you can buy a similar preparation in the Asian food aisles at many grocery stores.  Here is her recipe:  https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/orange-chicken-12245113.  I substituted whole seared chicken thighs that I then baked for 45 minutes in the sauce.

The coating on her chicken nuggets, although I didn’t use it, inspired me to try tempura green beans as a side dish. I checked around on the Internet and looked at various recipes for the tempura batter and ended up using something that was half rice flour, half all-purpose flour, a little baking powder and salt, plus enough sparkling water to make a batter that was neither runny nor too thick but just the right consistency to adhere to green beans dipped in it.  Then about 4 minutes in piping hot oil and a sprinkle of salt when they come out to drain on paper towels.  Great when hot, but a fine snack when cooled or rewarmed briefly as well.

The key to tempura really is the batter, and there are lots of ways to make a good one. You just have to experiment. I remember eating tempura shrimp one time in the kitchen of a Japanese neighbor who said she used some pancake batter mix for a coating that was a little thicker, puffier and browner than the typical tempura batter.  That was so delicious I think we ate the family’s entire week’s supply of shrimp; I just kept asking for more.

And for dessert: Japanese Mochi Bars

I decided to turn part of the rice flour mixture into mochi bars for dessert as well, since this mixture is the starch that is used to create the dense texture of mochi. I chose bar form because it’s easier than making the batter into balls: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1022347-butter-mochi

I made these the afternoon after I made the tempura green beans, and they emerged from the oven just in time for an impromptu afternoon tea. Chris joined me after editing his new batch of bird photos. On a fifteen-degree January day, inside or outside activities can both be good choices. But tea and mochi bars back inside always work.

What can I say? If cold weather keeps me indoors, I turn to cooking. Let Chris go outside to commune with the birds. We both think I made the right choice.

**************************************************************************

The January 2025 Photo/Video Gallery: The Resilience of Birds and Our Other Citizens

Male Cardinal calls and listens in a Cherry tree in the Southeast cove, as a Tufted Titmouse and a Downy Woodpecker also call from the nearby woods, on a cold, windy morning, January 7

Chris: They are hanging in there, marvelous creatures that they are. This blog continues to celebrate avian courage, as we note that H5N1 “bird flu” is now making its presence felt in Virginia, at poultry farms (so far 7 of them) in the Delmarva (Delaware, Maryland, Virginia) region. And cranes have now died of the disease at the Richmond (VA) Zoo (Dana Hedgepeth, Washington Post, January 22). We are constantly inspired by these small bundles of energy as we hear them calling and watch them surviving and building lives amid the snow and ice this month.

150 yards away, a beautifully-antlered White-tailed Buck stares at me from the snowy field north of the Lake Cameron dam, January 17

Faithful flock of Rock Doves huddle in the cold of the power stanchion west of the frozen lake, January 16

Citizens leave distinctive tracks across the frozen lake from the west bank, January 16

The White-tailed Buck ambles toward the woods west of the field, eyes me, then moves on, January 17

Song Sparrow perches in Persimmon against a snow bank above the north shore, January 17

Panorama toward the west bank of the lake from the southeast side in snow and ice fall, January 19, afternoon

House Sparrow in winter plumage scans from Mulberry tree on the Northeast corner of the lake, January 17

Amid a chorus of other birds, House Sparrow flits in dry Blackberry canes by the frozen lake, along north shore, January 19

Eastern Bluebird atop Katsura tree, Southeast side of the lake, January 19

Mockingbird dances in the Greenbriar on the Southeast bank of the frozen lake, January 16

Dark-eyed Junco camouflaged in Serviceberry tree, East side, late PM, January 16

Male Cardinal hides in Japanese Honeysuckle along the Southeast cove by frozen lake, January 16

Female Cardinal calls, listens, flits in Cherry tree, Southeast side, January 19

American Robin in Serviceberry tree, East side, late afternoon, January 16

American Goldfinch in snowfall in Katsura tree, afternoon, January 19

Four Rock Doves on a wire watch the frozen lake from the West side, January 17

View of frozen lake to gazebo from the Northeast corner, January 9

Pair of Mourning Doves in a Tulip Tree, North end woods as snow falls, January 6

Our large flock of Canada Geese all along the North shore of the lake, January 7

Seven Mallards in our lake amid ice as snow falls, January 6

American Robin pair on roof, Southeast side of the lake, on a very cold and icy January 22

And on to the month of Valentines with hopes for our own resilience among challenges!

January 2024: Winter Actually Arrived! And Stayed for Ten Days

/ Chris Thaiss / Leave a comment

Our second snowfall of the week, a total of about 7 inches, Jan. 19. Our first real snow since our move from California in 2022.

Five Cedar Waxwings lit by sunrise in a red maple along the east side path, Jan. 17

In this month’s blog:

Beautiful Surprise: Snow to Start the New Year
Climate Log: As Bird Populations Plummet, How Can we Change Minds?
Potomac Valley Exploring: Great Falls Adventure
The January 2024 Photo/Video Gallery

Across the lake from the southeast cove to the dock and gazebo, during the latest snowfall, Jan. 19

“It’s so beautiful”–Snow comes to us in mid January

I didn’t realize how much I had missed snow until it arrived last week. In the almost 2 years since we returned from our 17-year sojourn in California, I thought I’d come to terms with the year-on-year lack of snow in Northern Virginia, a far cry from the sometimes deep snows of my youth and middle age in this Potomac region. But when the first wave of tiny crystals began sticking to the grass and pavement here on the 14th, I realized the old exhilaration of the icy wind and the soft prickle of ice on my face and hands. It was with glee that I donned my snug coat and hood, pulled the wooly hat over my ears and the gloves over my hands. I couldn’t wait to walk around the lake and witness the changes in light and color, the crackle of branches, the loud languages of intensity–“it has come!”–in the songbirds and waterfowl.

A male Cardinal amid greenbriar on the southeast bank of the lake confronts the blowing snow, Jan. 14

There of course had been the many years of my life when a forecast of snowfall had brought the fear of pipes bursting, power outages, traffic snarls during my incessant commutes to work, careening on black ice, hours of digging out from snowdrifts, my old car battery dying in the cold, and all the other hazards of carrying on what most Americans thought of as “normal” existence while Mother Nature was just being her cantankerous, always creative self.

But now, in my semi-retired old age, when driving is not a daily demand, I can glory in sharing a child’s joy in the white blanketing of gossamer fluff that makes the whole outside world different and new. Many of our neighbors shared this joy with me. When I met them this week on their own lake walks, most of these folks being walked by their dogs (!), they greeted me with “It’s so beautiful!” or at least with smiling eyes as they scanned the scenery.

First snowfall: bridge over the inlet stream, Jan. 16, 7 AM

I was even looking forward to the remembered exertion of cleaning the snow off my car, digging the stubborn ice-crust off the windshield, and taking tiny steps to avoid falling on the ice. The task was now a welcome challenge and a tasty bite of nostalgia, no longer a resented imposition on the carefully-timed daily work schedule that had governed most of my life.

Waterfowl Retreat and Songbird “Mega-Bird” Day. But most of all, as I looked out on how the white blanket changed the world of every day, I wondered how the snow and intense cold would change life for the animals I had come to know as my friends along the lake. Who and what would I see? Would what I was used to seeing now be hidden from me?

In new snow, a single waterfowl, a Cormorant, negotiates the lonely lake, Jan. 16

The Cormorant I videoed (above) on Jan. 16, after the first snowfall, was the last waterfowl I saw on the lake before it froze on the 17th, when temps fell to 11 degrees. The water was frozen solid in many places, but elsewhere it became a kind of hard slush that makes swimming impossible, while still allowing some animals, like squirrels, to walk or leap in the shallowest areas. The Mallards, who I saw most recently on the 15th, after the first snowfall, and who starred in this blog in December, are now off somewhere else. I await their return.

My favorite Mallard pair swim in a strong wind in the southeast cove on Jan. 13, just before the first snowfall.

Other waterfowl citizens, such as the usually exhibitionist Canada Geese and the usually steadfast Great Blue Herons, lasted until the hard freeze and second snowfall occurred, but they have now left (though I hear the Geese flock overhead most days late in the afternoon, and I spotted a Heron swooping overhead just at sunset on the 22nd).

The Blue Heron withstands the sharp wind of Jan. 13, the day before the first snowfall, but has not landed here since, as the lake has frozen.

In contrast, an array of songbirds–including an amazing flock of Cedar Waxwings and some very early American Robins–arrived here just before the first snowfall, and some have stayed around. In fact, Jan. 18, the day before the second snowfall, saw so many songbirds out flying, eating seeds, and singing that I called it in my notes “mega-bird day.” More sightings from that day are part of this month’s Photo/Video Gallery.

On a bitterly cold day, 2 European Starlings and an early visitor, an American Robin, atop a tree on the east bank, Jan. 18–“mega-bird day”

***********************************************************

Climate Log: As Birds Decline, How Can Changing Climate Change Minds?

Of course, not everyone enjoyed the snowfalls last week. Another neighbor cheerfully told me on the morning of the 22nd, “I’m glad the snow will be gone soon. Time for a change of scene.” For some outside our area, the cold snap and heavy snow were tragic. The blizzards across much of the country and temps as low as -40F, were a shocking surprise that became terrible because of the dozens of deaths across the continental U.S. caused by the sudden, extreme shift in the weather from an almost snowless December and early January. The sudden cold anomaly is also tragic because it reinforces the delusion of people who still remain unconvinced that the climate is dangerously warming through human causes. 

Yes, as the science predicts, our snow holiday was fleeting. For the 25th, the temperature forecast is 60F and we’ll have rain, not snow, from the 24th onward for 5 days–both signs of the “new normal” that is way warmer than the normal that used to be January. A dangerous “new normal” that is much more typical now for the entire world, including the U.S.  

Italy’s River Po is at a historic low amid drought (Photo by Flavio Lo)

Dramatic worldwide depletion of groundwater since 2000 (LA Times, Jan. 26)

Indeed, it would surprise no one if 2024 were at least as warm month-to-month as the record-setting 2023. But it remains difficult for many folks who live in the remaining parts of the U.S. still relatively unaffected by drought, groundwater depletion, chronic flooding, sea level rise, extreme heat and humidity, sudden extreme cold snaps, etc., to credit the overwhelming amount of scientific data that sounds the alarm for the need to move away from the fossil fuels that have steadily, even if gradually, endangered many forms of life on Earth, including humans. Climate change skepticism, and even outright denial, continue to plague the effort to save species, this denial fueled relentlessly by the fossil fuel industry’s evermore frantic efforts to maintain its obscenely vast revenues by deluding the public into believing that all is right with the status quo. That this industry bankrolls politicians and media outlets to keep spreading the soothing lie that everything is OK just makes the tragedy worse.

“New normal” quickly asserts itself. Steam rises from the thawing lake on Jan. 25, as all snow has already vanished

Bird Populations in Alarming Decline. Since most U.S. people are not enthusiasts, close observers, or feeders of birds, and so don’t pay close attention to our feathered friends except when they see bird poop on their cars, they don’t know that most bird species are in serious decline, and, like the proverbial “canary in the coal mine,” this is bad news for humans’ own survival. The Washington Post published last week a beautifully graphic map of how this decline is affecting all parts of the U.S.

3-bird drawings from the Washington Post infographic/video on bird decline, January 17; text by Harry Stevens

Will colorful graphics such as the birds map have any positive effect on the skeptics? Will the heart-rending stories from “Postcards from a World on Fire” ever reach viewers who have been so indoctrinated to hate/fear refugees from other countries that it is impossible for them to empathize with their suffering fellow humans?  No doubt some positive effect can occur, if people actually see these sites.  But it’s so easy nowadays to stay within your own partisan media bubble, so that crossover among viewpoints is minimal.

Sadly, the best chance to sway opinions may come from climate-caused damage itself.  The many U.S. communities and states now experiencing chronic flooding or the effects from drought and wildfires are realizing that the trend must be stopped. The Republican-voting fisherman who has seen his catch get smaller every year in a warming ocean may have a better chance to sway other Republicans than any graphic from the Washington Post. The same goes for residents of flood-prone and now wildfire-prone states like Louisiana (below). But will any climate-denying outlet like Fox News ever allow such a person to have a voice? Maybe yes, but only if enough people want their voices heard.

Wildfires covered much of usually flood-prone Louisiana this summer and fall, Sept. 2023. (AP photo by Gerald Herbert)

Fortunately, there are more and more politicians, local leaders, journalists, bloggers, and creative, determined companies that are fighting the good fight and showing people how we can still save a future for all creatures, including us humans. 

Logo from the New York Times infographic/video Postcards from a World on Fire, December 2023

***********************************

Potomac Valley Exploring: A Great Falls Park Adventure

On January 3, we visited Great Falls National Park, just 10 miles from our community, and on our list for visiting since we moved here. We were with one of our visiting daughters from California, and it was a beautiful afternoon, crisp and sunny. The park features stunning views of the roaring, tumbling rapids over a series of drops and between massive boulders through a narrow gorge. It also features the ruins of an early attempt, begun in 1784 by a consortium headed by George Washington, to build a canal around the falls on the Virginia side of the Potomac.

The Great Falls of the Potomac, as seen from the Virginia side of the river, Jan. 3

This bypass of the river was successful in transporting agricultural goods until 1802, when plans for a new canal on the Maryland side of the Potomac were created. A second part of the Park is on the Maryland side, where the much more successful canal was built early in the 1800s and flourished until the early 20th century.  Earlier blog entries have captured our visits to more upstream parts of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, in Williamsport, Maryland; Shepherdstown, West Virginia; and beside Fort Frederick near Clear Spring, Maryland. 

Great Falls provides thrilling views for visitors of all ages. A brisk, sunny day for our visit, Jan. 3

The Sheer Drama of Great Falls. No place on the Potomac provides more excitement for visitors. The overlooks high above the gorge give viewers a panoramic vantage point on the many torturous, dangerous passes amid the rocks, while the constant roar of the rushing waters warns onlookers of the danger threatening anyone who might want to attempt the passage. Nevertheless, on the day we visited, two intrepid kayakers took the plunge, and we had clifftop viewing, along with the many people of all ages also watching and cheering them on:

A pair of kayakers attempt the Falls, Jan. 3 

As the kayakers bravely made their way down the drops, we enjoyed the added thrill of seeing Park Rangers monitor the adventurers’ progress. 

Needless to say, Great Falls will stay on our list of Potomac sites to visit. Maybe next time, we’ll add the Visitors Center. We’ll probably not be planning our own plunge over the Falls.

*******************************************

The January 2024 Photo/Video Gallery

This month’s Gallery highlights snow, hawks, mega-bird day, and more.

A Mourning Dove rests high in a red maple above the south end of the lake, Jan. 22

A Blue Jay struggles in a windy, sunny, snowy day, Jan. 21

Mega-bird Day! 27 Rock Doves crowd their favorite perch, the power stanchion high above the west side of the lake, Jan. 18

 

After the second snowfall, the inlet stream by the bridge, southeast cove, Jan. 19

 

On Mega-Bird Day, grey squirrels like this one in a pignut hickory, southeast side, join the party on this very cold afternoon, Jan. 18

This young Cooper’s Hawk flew past me as I began my lake walk in the deep snow of Jan. 20 and landed in a tree outside our building. This young friend was remarkably patient as I took this video.

These brilliant American Goldfinches safely shared this feeder not long after the Cooper’s Hawk had flown off from this spot into the woods, Jan. 20.

 

This early arriving American Robin chose this very cold Mega-Bird Day for a first appearance, east bank dead tree, Jan. 18

 

Change of pace: This Mediterranean super-veggy omelet (with a bit of prosciutto) warmed us at breakfast on a very cold and snowy Jan. 19.

 

This wonderfully-colored Cedar Waxwing shone brightly in the greenbrier thicket at the northwest corner of the lake, Jan. 23

 

A Dark-Eyed Junco looks for seeds beneath the feeder on the east side, Mega-Bird Day, Jan. 18

 

A Downy Woodpecker at an east side feeder, 7 AM, Jan. 16. A hungry time.

 

Looking north across the lake at sunrise, 7 AM, 11 degrees F, Jan. 17

 

View across the frozen lake toward downtown at sunset, Jan. 22

In mid-walk, we spied this Red-Shouldered Hawk watching us from a small elm on the north end path, no more than twenty feet from us. This friend was patient for 10 seconds of my video before hopping down…

…stood magnificently in profile on the ground by the path, then launched past us and gone, Jan. 23. What an unforgettable gift to us!

Such a remarkable first month of 2024. On to Valentine’s Month!