Butjadingen in February

Winter still has a firm grip on us! Nobody wants to venture out unless absolutely necessary but prefers to stay inside all snug and safe. The Road Maintenance Department is struggling to keep the main roads reasonably clear. What has always been a mystery to me: Why do they throw tons of salt onto roads covered in inches of snow without plowing them beforehand? Instead of open roads, we have slush, which then freezes over and remains frozen for weeks. And everyone seemingly surprised that the salt supplies are getting low! But perhaps the  people themselves, who cheerfully sweep just in front of their own door - strictly adhering to the property line and shoveling snow into the gutter should heed the call! Is it really too much work to clear a few more metres to the mailbox to help out my postman or shovel that extra bit of snow in front of the bus stop so that neighbors and kids can reach it comfortably - without getting wet? In such adverse weather conditions it is often very obvious just how far charity goes! Despite the fact that helping out your neighbors can feel soooo good!

In this sense - a big "Thank You" to the "savior of the snow-covered roads and driveways" in Eckwarder-Altendeich, Henning Busch! He is always there bright and early with his snow plow hitched to the tractor to clear snow off the roads and driveways - not just for the older generation, but also for us. He does this whenever we have a lot of snow - for free -  and just a a friendly nod in passing!
So, folks - help each other out! You will see - a joint effort to clear the snow might actually be fun!!

And unlike many other areas, we got away easy with the ice and snow. The last 4 photos in our slideshow are from Michaels home state of Michigan, these are not photos from Butjadingen. So as they say, " coulda been worse." This is winter after all and we will just have to get through somehow! In return, we will soon enjoy warmer, longer days - surely ;-)
If you too know some good Samaritan, please send me a brief report with their name. Surely there are more such helpful friends and neighbors, who deserve our praise and if you want we will mention them here.

Greetings from the snowy Butjadingen ...

Your Stephanie
1.02.2010