There are far too many pictures of snow right now so I thought I'd put up a favorite from warmer times and climes. You'll see why if you keep reading.
Having lived on the west coast of the US for seventeen years we've found it impossible to keep our windows completely closed even during the worst of winter in Nova Scotia. The funny thing is that depending on how wide open that is, and the general wind speed and direction, there's a very interesting mix of sound effects in our apartment. Even when there are no storms bearing down, this is a very windy place year round but especially so in winter. When the temperature is in minus numbers, whether Farenheit or Celcius, we seem to get the best tones with the windows barely cracked. Then they howl, shriek, moan, bellow, wail and clamor in between almost quiet moments when we hear only the tiniest whimpers of noise. Briefly things will be so peaceful you could almost hear a pin drop, or maybe use that respite to fall asleep if you're lucky. Now there's a blizzard blowing in and since it's likely we won't be able to go far tomorrow, we're thinking of an experiment. We'll open and almost close our windows to see if we can make them sing 'In The Good Old Summertime'. If it works out I'll post the song for you.
Meanwhile, I found this amazing movie from 1923. Gladys Ingle, a member of a barnstorming troupe called the 13 Black Cats in the 1920s, was a wing walker. In this film, she shows her fearlessness in classic barnstorming fashion to save an airplane that has lost one of its main wheels. Carrying a replacement wheel on her back she climbs onto the wing of the rescue plane while the soundtrack plays an old song called 'Up She Goes'.
Ingle transfers herself from the rescue plane to the one missing the main landing gear tire. She then expertly works herself down to the undercarriage only a few feet from a spinning propeller and fixes the new wheel in place. I rarely post these kinds of videos but this one was so neat I had to show you. Apparently, she went on to live to be 84 but I'm guessing she gave up this kind of activity when jets were invented.
Stay cozy.
♡
This is SO WICKED COOL!
ReplyDelete.....in the good old summertime? .....may I suggest a scale first, just to tune up?
It really was too neat to miss.
DeleteYou can suggest one but I probably won't be able to hear it :-)
I didn't even mention your beautiful picture. I want Crow's seat when he's finished. Blogger is twitchy tonight and freezing up on me.... So must be brief. Happy spring
DeleteWhen it comes to balloon riding that's the seat I'd like too - and a pair of wings, just in case.
DeleteStill warming, thank goodness. Hope you are too.
susan, this is so amazing, i think i may have to onwardly share at my place....how amazing and did you notice all the men "helping" her with the wheel and such in the beginning? as if!! that's just amazing! and the song was great too...thanks for the giggle.
ReplyDeleteinteresting experiment you've got going there...i don't really like the moans of the wind and close up everything when it's howling like tonight. it howls enough as it is without inviting it in but maybe where i am it blows harder, like 60mph gusts or so...very drying, we need a bit of rain. i saw all that crazy snow back east and wondered what's up up your way? guessing more of the same. cold cold cold.
She was just so nonchalant about the whole exercise the mind boggles. Hope your friends like it too.
DeleteIt's not unusual at all for Halifax to have winds of 30mph with gusts much higher. One day last week I would have been blown in front of a truck if Jer hadn't held me back. I think he was holding onto a lamp post. I don't like the howls but even worse is getting too hot when you can't control the heat. I'm using body lotion by the gallon.
oh how could i forget to say anything about your lovely watercolor. always amazing...love the ladies decorating the plane's wings. :) and if i saw a hot air balloon overhead that looked like that, i would probably want a ride. yes, i am sure of it. did you put them out over the sea to be extra blue or crazy? balloons and wing-walking over the ocean just don't feel all that comfy! but makes for a great painting....another story?? xoxoxo
ReplyDeleteI'm delighted you like the picture. Yeah, I'd probably ride in one that looked like this too. Water, sea, blue sky and green islands just appeal to me. I have no idea why :-)
DeleteOh, you have to record those crazy sounds. There's a record contract in your future, which ought to be at least a smidgen safer than that wingwalking wheel woman. Yikes.
ReplyDeleteOops, recording device stopped working with power outage. Damn winter.
DeleteYour watercolor is wonderful! It has all the elements I love about your work. And doesn't Crow look well.
ReplyDeleteThe video is crazy cool. The very thought of wing walking makes me lightheaded, but I watched with rapt attention as the young woman moved around as though she were walking on the ground.
Crow likes nothing better than a stately ride.
DeleteShe was pretty amazing to watch, wasn't she? I get dizzy when standing on a kitchen chair hanging curtains.
Amazing, I could not believe my eyes watching that woman on the plane and without any safety belts or parachute! Your lovely watercolour depicts a dreamier gentler scene, and Crow looks positively twinkly and grandfatherly! Love that balloon and basket.
ReplyDeleteWow, that wind and snow in the northeast, imagine calling it Nemo! Hope it hasn't been bad for you. Your descriptions of those howls take me back to my growing up years in 'Windypeg' (Winnipeg). Good thing for Reg hanging on to you and pole.
Watching that made me think about just how safety conscious we've become these past few decades while so many of our ancestors were quite fearless. Yes, Crow's definitely enjoying his holiday.
DeleteThe name Nemo was coined by the Weather Channel not the Weather Service. Winter storms don't get named because they're usually a combination of several.
We're okay. There's more snow on the ground now than we've seen in previous winters but it wasn't a blizzard here.
What a brave woman! She has bigger ovaries than I do :)
ReplyDeleteStay warm.
I can't even imagine :-)
DeleteWimin's....there ain't nuthin' we can't do! Love the video, but it made my palms sweat. Sheesh.
ReplyDeleteEveryone is getting snow but us....we had a little, but then the rain and warm weather washed it away. I fear another draught this year. Sigh.
My daughter in Maine texted my husband that the bad news is they got three feet of snow, the good news is her and her fiance found their snowshoes and beer was 50 cents a glass at the neighborhood bar. You make the best of what ya got, I guess.
Nunly
Yeah, and that was before Wonder Woman underoos were invented too.
DeleteWe got a ton of snow - even more after the blizzard was done. Now it's melting and I needed hip waders to get across the street today.
Glad to know your daughter and her fiance found the snowshoes so they could go somewhere important.
nope nope nope....I wouldna walk out on a airplane wing even if there was free beer out there. Walking on ice is dangerous enough.
ReplyDeleteScary stuff. Right now I'd like to be walking in my bare feet on warm sand.
Delete