Wooly Bear Charge

While out in the yard this morning, I was charged by this menacing looking wooly bear.

This close encounter in which I narrowly escaped bodily harm, made me think how, in the past, I’ve always thought that wooly bears must not be a content community, rife with disagreement. Some wooly bears predict a long winter, some a short winter, some predict two springs.

My respect for these oracles dramatically increased recently as they seem to have come upon a consensus regarding the upcoming seasons: a long leisurely Autumn followed by a long Winter, punctuated by a short Spring.

In the interest of offering an absolutely accurate prediction, prudence compels me to reserve my personal opinion of what kind of Winter we will have until March.

However, faith in Mother Nature urges me to stock the pantry, purchase new warm long-johns, and clean the auto’s battery terminals.

Neither I, nor any of the folks I’ve asked can ever remember such a temperate, beautiful Autumn as we’ve been enjoying. Seems like Mother Nature is giving us ample opportunity to prepare in nice weather, for times upcoming that might require some serious hunkerin’ down…