Icy Pterodactyl

Another storm swept through the area this evening, 

coating everything with a mixture of snow, 

sleet, and ice. The ice frozen on a neighborhood 

shrub looks like some weird version of a pterodactyl. 

Rising from the snow to soar in the winter sky,

the long-gone dinosaur might also be the mythical 

phoenix, this time reborn from winter 

to bring us spring.

Changes

Other than my home or the buses, the warmest place 

I spend any of my time is at the Natatorium.

I sit on a bench sketching or taking pictures of the 

swimmers as I wait for my toes to warm.

Pennants are hanging over the pools marking the 

last few feet before the walls. Reflected off the surface 

of the water, they create a sort of checkered pattern, 

reminding me of flags at the finish of the Indy 500,

appropriate to this auto racing city.  

I've been having trouble with my swimming lately, 

and don't feel I've been making much improvement.

This is probably due to losing so much practice 

time because of weather related cancellations.

Another reason is my use of small fins intended to

help improve one's kick. I decided to put them aside

the other night, something I knew I would 

have to do anyway, and lost about seven seconds

per length of the pool. Yes, the fins have been that much

of a crutch. I will need to work harder to regain 

the lost time and to get into the range where I was earlier.

It will probably help to get my weight loss

program back on schedule, as well.

When It Was Pretty

Indy's first major snowfall of the year 

brought chilling temperatures the region 

hadn't encountered for many years, 

effectively closing down the city 

for all but essential services.

After the storm passed, there was some 

relief for the people of the community, then, 

a couple days ago, another wave 

of cold air swept into the area,

with wind chills of about -40 degrees.

Temperatures now are rising, creating the feeling

of a heat wave. Woo hoo! It's a torrid 16 degrees F

outside as I type this. While another snowfall is forecast 

for a couple days from now, I've missed 

my swimming sessions and will return 

to the pool later this afternoon.

For me, the cold has been an inconvenience

while for many others it has been a real

danger. So many have had their furnaces fail

while others have no furnace at all.

As I dress this afternoon, I will keep this in mind.

I am merely cold, while others are

literally freezing.

Too Cold

There's a wind chill warning over much of the country 

tonight, with temps expected to be the equivalent 

of -40 degrees F through early Wednesday. 

At 11:15 PM, the temperature is -2 degrees with 

wind temp of -20. While some people may 

scoff, this is unusual for us as most of us do not have

clothing appropriate for these conditions.

And I miss my swimming. I miss my coach and the

people who join me in the pool for our practice sessions

three or four times a week. My body has become 

accustomed to the exercise and needs to

be moving. Maybe Wednesday.

As police and other workers are patrolling 

the streets, looking for persons with stalled cars

and homeless people to get them to warm shelters,

I am fortunate to have my own warm apartment,

blankets, and food for myself, my cat, 

and my turtle and to only worry about missing
practices instead of lying in the cold streets. 

Murder

Earlier today, I stood on a spot near where I live.

The sun shown bright in a clear, blue sky as a 

strong wind blew snow across the landscape,

very much like sand across barren desert dunes.

Last winter, an entire section of townhomes was burned 

to the ground due to the carelessness of a tenant.

The remains were recently torn down, leaving

an empty scar in this poor neighborhood.

I've walked that stretch of the neighborhood 

too many times to count over the years and, 

seeing the chain link fence surrounding 

the site is disappointing, to say the least.

Most disheartening, though, was to know that 

on Wednesday night, a sixteen-year-old boy had been 

shot twice in the chest, and left to die in the dirty, 

frozen slush in the gutter across the street 

from the barren lot. Sayyid Abdul-Haqq was a

sophomore at Speedway High School. He took his 

schoolwork seriously and, when not in the

SHS library, could most often be found at the

town's library. His young nephew looked up to him,

saying he wanted to be like his uncle, to go to

school. Here was a boy with a goal, 

who inspired his family, but who met 

his death alone in the cold gutter.

He was on his way home from the store.

Given the weather, he was probably returning from 

the convenience store a couple blocks away.

This is a poor neighborhood, where people often 

have to juggle between which bills will be

paid - heat? Phone? Electric? Will there be money

for food? Gas for the car? If he went to the store

for milk, did the person who shot him see

he got change from a $10 bill?

Indeed, did he even have that much?

This is not a neighborhood of people who have

money, but one where a bit of small change

can seem like a windfall.

Nor is this a unique story, but it sure as hell

is new to Sayyid's family, whose hearts are broken.

The temperatures are dropping and it will be very cold

during the coming week, but right now

 the only colder place on Earth is the heart 

of whoever pulled the trigger.

***
Anyone with information related
to the murder of Sayyid Abdul-Haqq
can contact Crime Stoppers at 262-TIPS, 
or text INDYCS with their tip. 
You may also contact the 
Speedway Police Department 
directly at 246-4300. 
All information will remain anonymous.

Snow in Her Bedroom

I hate being cold. 

I grew up in a house that was never warm in winter. 

At night, I huddled under a blanket, 

waiting for my body heat to warm my little cocoon. 

In the mornings, I dreaded getting up for school because

there was that run between the cold air in my

bedroom to the aura of heat radiating from the coal

stove downstairs in our dining room.

School, the site of other tortures, was still a haven

from the cold. I shivered my way to school where 

I experienced warmth that was, at times, 

almost suffocating. My goal in life has never been to 

be famous or successful in the most commonly 

recognized meanings of the word; 

I've only wanted to be warm in winter.

On the edge of the recent cold wave, I was on my way 

to the Circle Theatre, huddled in my own misery,

when I was brought up short by the sight of a person 

curled up just a few feet away, asleep beneath a tan comforter.

I was afraid. Should I try to wake her, to see

whether she was OK, or leave her to sleep, without

bringing her into the reality of the cold -

the cold air, the cold concrete, the cold bricks?

Police were nearby, virtually always aware of the stress

around them, so I went on, ashamed of my fear.

I went back the next day and found the woman's pillow 

and the blanket on which she slept covered with snow. 

She had gone, but her possessions, the furnishings

that made up her sidewalk home, were piled nearby.

She expected to return. 

As I write this, the temperatures are again 

plummeting into the single digits and below zero. 

While I try to make sure I will be warm, 

there are so many who are not.

And, damn, I do not know how to end this,

just as I do not know how to fix 

the problem of homelessness.

Textured Tuesday: Wilted

A week ago, the entire country was under a severe freeze warning.

Snow covered the landscape for miles and miles.

Later, the temperatures warmed into the 40s-50s, bringing 

rain showers. The blanket of snow is practically gone, 

leaving only mountain ranges of snow heaped  

at curbsides and in parking lots. Remnants of those

will remain until spring. As the snow cover 

receded, plants that had been buried and ruined

revealed new colors, accented by the sparkle

 of decorations made from icy crystals

of melted snow.

At Some Point ...

... We must all walk the same path.

During the first couple days, the pale blanket of snow

was beautiful to look at. However frigid, it allowed

the sun to shine and gleam, giving a sparkle

to our everyday surroundings. Now, thankfully,

the temperatures have risen and the snow's filthy reality

leaves us masses of the stuff. It's stacked and piled

just about everywhere a shovel, snow-blower,

or plow could find. And it's dirty, making cold,

gray slush at curbs and corners that people must walk 

through as they cross intersections.

White on White

The snow fell all day, beginning in the morning in big, 
sloppy globs, then falling straight down in a shower 
of fine flakes. Frequently, the snow dropped off 
the trees onto my face as I looked upward .

Pale gray, almost white, the snow clung 

to dark brown branches, looking like 

a lovely ink drawing, creating a delicate balance 

against the sky, the snow, and the branches,

This beauty is deceptive.

Now, we are waiting for the freezing 

temperatures that will turn the lovely globs 

into weapons whose weight may cause power lines 

to break, leaving a great many people 

without electricity. The wind chill is expected 
to reach -40 degrees over the next two days.
I guess I won't be swimming 
much this week. :-b

Peppermint Fire

I had broken several slender candy canes into short pieces 

then eaten them from an old bowl as I sat at my computer.

It was then I noticed the scalloped sunlight

casting a little fire onto my note pad.

Folks in the Midwest are hunkered down

in expectation of a winter storm bringing heavy snow

and temperatures below zero degrees.

The lines at the grocery were long this afternoon

when I walked over to pick up a supply

of milk, bread and cereal. I also looked for some

post-Christmas peppermint sticks, but other 

people apparently had the same idea 

as there were no more to be had.

And on the Third Day ...

... It's a rose pansy, again.

Not really. They were quickly replanted. 

Other pansies still lay dead in their pots.

Back and Forth

When I left for work this morning, I decided to wear one of my baseball hats 

to help fend off the morning drizzle as I walked to the bus stop.

It felt liberating to be free of the snug, cocoon-like fleece ski hat.

Late this afternoon I was wishing for snug; the temperature had dropped

and the edges of a late winter snow squall blew over the city.

The picture above shows other commuters who, like me, quietly

waited for their ride home, resigned to the cold breezes slapping our

faces with big, sloppy flakes of snow.

The picture below was taken at about 8:15 a.m., as a woman

crossed the intersection on her way to her office.

Her long, blond hair was probably free of a hat for the

first time since last fall.

Keep Your Nuts Warm

The past couple days have been a respite from cold temperatures, 

but they will not last. Thunderstorms are expected overnight 

bringing temperatures below freezing. If you did not take the opportunity, 

like this squirrel, to gather additional provisions when we idled around, 

luxuriating in springlike breezes, then you will need to make certain 

to keep your nuts warm during the new onslaught

Exposed

Finding no room at the Speedway Inn, Joseph, Mary 

and their Baby were found, huddled in thin flannel blankets, 

frozen from exposure. 

Silver and Snow

We got a blizzard in our area this morning, 
about 8 to 10 inches of snow started falling before dawn.

This pales in comparison to the big snow storm our area 
experienced in 1978, with temperatures below zero 

and winds whipping drifts of snow through the abandoned streets. 

The city was virtually deserted, 

with everyone hunkered down inside their homes.

Today's snowfall is minor by comparison.

The overcast today flattened out the scenery.

I am hoping for clear skies tomorrow morning,

when pretty pictures may be made.

Sandy's Fringe

The weather maps shown on TV look as though almost 

the entire eastern half of the United States is somehow affected by 

this huge storm, a combination of hurricane meets nor'easter.

 Indianapolis is about 705 miles from 

Atlantic City, New Jersey. We were told to expect 

high winds beginning around 5 o'clock this afternoon. 

They came, almost as if scheduled,

with rain expected Tuesday morning.

I looked up to see a thin cover of clouds, moving

from the east, spreading in a sweeping arc towards

the setting sun. The light to the south reflected lavender

off the cloud cover, but burned like fire in the west

as the sun set.

It may have been just a coincidence, but there seemed 

to be more truck traffic than usual. Maybe a lot of the drivers

had left a little earlier than usual, trying to put as much

distance as possible between their trucks and the storm.