Nope, this pic is not of me and my brother but this is showing what happened during the Blizzard of '77 which hit with a vengeance between January 28th to February 1st with hurricane force winds forcing people to stay in their cars, homes with no heat, or work and many people died. We lived in the heart of this storm but, thankfully, we never lost our power. I got home, by bus, just in time and my brother was home as well. Many kids were not so lucky and had to stay at the schools. My ex's brothers were out on snowmobiles trying to rescue people trapped in their cars and they had no clue if they were driving over a car, home or ready to plunge over a huge drift. The drifts were 30 to 40 ft and I had great fun, with a couple of friends, dipping below the hydro wires to slide down with my snowsuit on.
2 weeks ago we got hit with, almost, 2 feet of snow and, I know, many of you on the East Coast got blasted with snow, rain, ice or a mix...just lovely. We are supposed to get more snow this Wednesday but not near what we had 2 weeks back. So, in honour of the areas we live in, here are 3 songs to put a smile on your face or you can rant at what you will hear. Since we can't travel much, let's embrace where we live...
1. BLIZZARD OF '77 SUNG BY JOHN MCDERMOTT-1977
I like John McDermott who is just a great Canadian singer and I found out he sang this song written by Doug Wass & Michael P Lococo. Have any of you been in a horrible storm, snow or not? Let me know:)
2. LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW- SUNG BY VAUGHN MONROE-1945
Yes, we think of it as a Christmas song but, there is no mention of Christmas in this song written by Sammy Cahn (lyrics) and Jules Styne (composer) in 1945. There was a major heat wave going on in the summer of '45 so these 2 men decided to think of cooler temps and created this song. So many people have recorded this that it would be interesting to see how many are actually out there. Which ones, do you feel are the best and which are the worst, in your opinion?
3. SLEIGHRIDE BY ANDRE KOSTELANETZ-1959
I love this beautiful song written by Leroy Anderson back in 1946 during a heatwave (hmm...sounds familiar) and finally finished it in 1948. There are lyrics to this song but I prefer the one without lyrics. Again, this always comes on at Christmas, but it is just about having a joyous sleighride. I had one, once, when I was a kid, and it was not that snowy, quite mucky actually, and my feet were freezing. I prefer the memory my mom told me. Her grandfather (on her mom's side), would hook up the sleigh, add plenty of blankets plus warmed up bricks for the feet, and travel through the snowy wonderland while her grandfather would sing. That is a much nicer memory. Have any of you ever been on a sleighride?
So, I hope all of you are having a nice time, inside or out, maybe with a nice hot toddy or, my favourite, Feuerzangenbowle(I dare you to say this 10 times fast). If you want to know what this is read it here.
On a sombre but, hopefully, joyous note, there is a blogger that passed away at the beginning of January, from covid, sadly and his name is Jeremy Hawkins. I did not know him nearly as well as many of you did, but I always liked looking at his blog and he was a huge help with the Blogging A To Z and the IWSG site where he created logos, banners, t-shirts etc.. He loved some zany movies and heavy music which may not have always been my style but I appreciated his creativity. he will be missed by many. I hope you go and check out his blog to get a sense of the man. Enjoy all you can up in the heavens...
Stay Safe everyone and enjoy your day!
According to yesterday's Detroit Free Press we got 16.7 inches of snow on Feb 1-2 in 2015. Well, they are predicting 12" today, but that all depends on just exactly where you live. Sometimes it rains or snows here but not at my son's house two miles away. I've lived through some massive snow dumps in front of my garage just because of the configuration of the house and the way the wind blows.
ReplyDeleteNice post.
Right now, it is raining here. I know it will change to snow but I don't think we will get much here. You know, back then, we had a huge driveway that was always full of snow so the Michigan Loader would take care of it but in the Blizzard of '77 the winds blew it clear!
DeleteHi, Birgit!
ReplyDeleteI took German in high school and college, but was stumped by the word Feuerzangenbowle. I looked it up in my Funk & Wagnalls. Wiki sez it is: << a traditional German alcoholic drink for which a rum-soaked sugarloaf is set on fire and drips into mulled wine. >> I'll have you know that a rum-soaked Shady was once set on fire by a jealous husband.
I enjoyed your reminiscences about the great Blizzard of 1977. I was still living in PA at the time, but I honestly don't remember it. Central PA must not have been hit very hard by the snowmaking system. It's frightening to see those pictures and listen to the song about the disaster, knowing all the hardships that resulted including loss of life. Even child's play like sledding was dangerous in the wake of the storm because people, vehicles and rescue equipment could so easily be swallowed up by the deep drifts.
Yessum, it's an interesting fact that those famous songs about winter snow were actually composed in the heat of summer, and also interesting that they are usually played in the weeks leading up to Christmas rather than in the months of January and February when winter is at its worst and snow more likely. In my part of PA, we only ever had a 40% chance of getting a white Christmas, and so those songs would have made more sense playing in the first two or three months of the year instead of the last. I love Vaughan Monroe's deep, rich vocal on "Let It Snow." That might be my favorite version. "Sleigh Ride" is also one of my favorite oft recorded seasonal songs.
Thanks for joining a network of others in remembering a friend and influential blogger Jeremy Hawkins. I didn't know Jeremy, but have been reading many good things about him since his death, prompting me to visit his site recently. He will be missed in the blogging community but will continue to be an inspiration to many.
Have a wonderful Wednesday, dear friend BB. I'll see you tamale in the balcony "At The Movies!"
You would have enjoyed Jeremy's blog with his music and movies. I hope you enjoy reviewing his posts.
DeleteThe 2nd song is often overplayed but it does belong as a winter song not so much a Christmas song. I actually love his version very much and it is one of the best.
The '77 Blizzard was very centred in Buffalo and most of the Niagara region especially Wainfleet area (where I grew up ) and Lowbanks which is right on lake Erie. We took risks with sledding, for sure.
Hi Birgit - what 'a fun' post - remembrances ... we had a dreadful winter in 62/63 ... and have had bad ones since, but that was the worst. Love your choices - thanks for the cheerful aspect - cheers Hilary
ReplyDeleteWe can all remember some very frightful blizzard or ice storm. I am glad you liked my post.
DeleteThe movies and the music were things Jeremy and I had in common and discussed often.
ReplyDeleteThose were some tall snow drifts...
They were very tall and I was happy to be out of school for 2 weeks because my entire school was snow covered! Jeremy was blessed to have you as a blogger friend.
DeleteThirty or forty feet drifts. Oh my.
ReplyDeleteLots of mentions of Jeremy today. Well deserved for sure.
Take special care.
Yup, they were very high and I remember walking past some that were higher than some trees. He deserves to be remembered. Rainy right now and sore.
DeleteI always said that Winter Wonderland wasn't a Christmas song, but my parents strongly disagreed. They did not appreciate it when I sang it all through January and February.
ReplyDeleteYou are right and I am glad you sang it.:))
DeleteJeremy chatted with me about trek on my blog when he stopped over. He was always good spirted and generous. In 2018 we had Storm Emma in Ireland and I dutifully went to work, duh! What a dolt was I!!! The CEO was walking around the place with insurers which was locked up tight and I heard him talking worriedly about the "out buildings' which were in danger of eventual collapse. Snow drifts are heavy and flooding comes later. Thankfully everyone was inside the concrete hospital. Let it Snow has such a happy buzz to it, played in Diehard wasn't it? I'm going to watch that now I feel nostalgic heh. Be careful and mind yourselves.
ReplyDeleteYes, sometimes we think it will be aok to drive in very bad weather and find out otherwise. I am glad you enjoyed the banter of ST with Jeremy. Yes! This is the recording used in Die Hard 2. Enjoy the movie
DeleteI guess this has been a winter, but not like your blizzard of '77. Sending you warm thoughts and hope for an early spring. (And I will not be talking about my current weather. Nope. Not at all.)
ReplyDeleteSpring comes when it comes so we just enjoy the beauty the seasons give us. I bet it is warm where you are:))
DeleteDefine warm.
DeleteI have heard the first two songs, but not the third. I never heard of the Blizzard of 77, and feel bad that so many lost their lives.
ReplyDeleteRight out of high school, I used to haul mail from town to town. One year we had 17 inches of snow. However, the mail had to go through. At the edge of one county that had all but one post office I had to deliver to, the snow plow was waiting for me. They knew I would try to make it. They plowed in front of me, then waited while I left the bags, then plowed in front of me to the final post office. When I thanked the guys, they said the people didn't care about their mail, but they DID care about their newspapers. I will never forget that or what they did to help me out. BTW, this was before cell phones and home internet.
You had a tough job because you had to go no matter what. Yes, that was the time when a newspaper was not paper thin. people probably only got bills so they didn't care about that.
DeleteWe were right on the cusp of last week's storm and only got about 4 inches but I know many were slammed. The storm in '77 sounds like a childhood paradise (read nightmare for parents!), it's been a long, long time since we were hit with anything close to that!
ReplyDeleteI don't know your first song but LOVE the other two. Vaughn Monroe had such a rich beautiful voice and Sleighride is just such a jaunty tune that captures the real mood of riding through the snow.
There's "Winter Wonderland", "Snowfall" and just plain "Snow" from White Christmas of course!
It was a blast nice we could leave the house. I remember listening to the local radio station and looking out at just white. My dad told me to stop looking or I would get snow blindness and, since he was in many a storm, I behaved. Love Snow and the way they made the winter scene.
DeleteHi Birgit, as you know, this is my LEAST favourite time of year, but your fun post makes it more interesting, at least. I remember the blizzard of '77 - it was much worse in your area. I didn't know John McDermott recorded a song about it. Glad I don't live in Buffalo! We had the one in January 1999, when Toronto mayor Mel Lastman called in the army. Remember that? ☺
ReplyDeleteLet it Snow has been recorded by so many people. Dean Martin's version is my favourite overall, but Vaughn Monroe sounds good too. Sleighride is such a happy tune! Too bad you only ever hear it at Christmas time. Believe it or not, I've never had Feurzangenbowle, but there has been plenty of Glühwein.
How sad about Jeremy Hawkins! He was a talented artist, and I have one of his A to Z coffee mugs. May he R.I.P.
I know this is your least favourite season. I do remember the time Mel sent in the army...everyone was laughing at Toronto:)). Dean does a great version of this song but I do prefer Vaughn. Sleighride is a great tune. I'm surprised you never heard of this German drink. I have had it a few times and it is excellent. Jeremy was such a good artist.
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