Back to the "Frozen Tundra"

Or not.  Got back from the land of palm trees and illegal immigrants and was immediately  reminded of why I want to go back as soon as possible.  The roads were black ice from Montreal to the border as the temps hovered near the freezing mark.  Saturday was another story and Sunday was even nicer with sunshine and temps in the 40s.  Got some housekeeping work in the garden done, then harvested some fresh spinach in the cold frames.  Usually, even the protected greens are toast by the end of January, but I think these will even have a second cut by the end of Feb.  So far, this winter is more a rumor than reality here on the NCR.  They had to import ice to build a castle for the winter carnival at Lake George, since the lake has not frozen.  There are a few protected bays on Lake Champlain that have frozen enough so ice fisherman can try for pike and lake perch, but the main lake is quite open and when the wind blows out of the south it is quite rough.  At this point in the season, we would have to have several weeks of sub freezing temps to have a general freeze.  I am anticipating an early spring.  The USDA has reconfigured its hardiness zones, and most areas of the country are at least a half zone warmer than they were the last time the agency adjusted them in the mid  1990s.  Even if the politicians refuse to acknowledge what is happening, the legions of gardeners across the country are witnessing the changes on a daily basis.  We may not be planting palm trees in the Adirondacks anytime soon, but what is happening is not trivial and needs to be addressed without the ad hominem attacks on Al Gore.   It may seem counterintuitive to many people, but the facts do seem to have an undeniable liberal bias.