Opinion : Explaining the late, warm, winter

It's time to put away the mitts, and get out the gloves.

Stocking caps -- if the weather folk are right -- will replace ball caps tonight as we finally have our first real taste of winter

I have heard maybe one person lament our non-white Christmas; the rest of us were too busy enjoying the warm weather. In addition to a few rounds of playing catch over the past few days, I spent much of November and December doing the stuff I usually do in the spring, clearing the brush and weeds from what I hope will be my native prairie/nature area, and working outside without a coat. The things I usually do in March or April are mostly done; this means I should be able to do some more fun things when the real spring arrives.

While the meteorologists may have some scientific theory to explain why this winter has been (up until now, at least) warm and dry, I have a more logical explanation: Mother Nature finally decided she owed us.

It's about time. In 2007, we had that crippling ice storm. In 2008, the flood (just a few days after the devastating Parkersburg tornado, and a few weeks before minor tornadoes in our area). In 2011, it was the wind storm. And in between, just about every winter has been full of snow-plowing and ditch-riding, from December through March.

So, Mother Nature either is too busy harassing people in our regions, or she has decided to give us a month or two of spring-like winter.

I hope you enjoyed it; winter's back.