Many of you have asked where in the world I've been.

All I know is that after 7 plus years of blogging and a different lappy, which I don’t like, I seem to have lost my blogging fervor.

Someday, when you least expect it, I will post again.

For those of you still waiting I say thank you.

Meanwhile, I am rather prolific on twitter. Find me: @KeethaB
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The Eclectic Company - Waitin' on a New Adventure!!
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Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Hanging Sastrugi

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Which are NOT, of course, to be confused with hanging chads. So, if you are from Florida try not to get mixed up.

Yesterday while I was busy shoveling, at one point when I stopped to lean on my shovel handle and gulp air like a winded dog, I happened to look up. To my amazement, I saw a couple of hanging sastrugi!


Even being a science teacher, I cannot explain to you the physics or the molecular chemistry involved in snow being able to HANG off a cliff (in this case a roof) like this.

I can only stand and marvel.

I wondered why in the world I hadn't seen them SOONER.


So I ran around the garage to our side of the duplex and looked at OUR roof. Well, no WONDER - - - we only have a couple tiny sastrugi, and they are way down at the far end where I wasn't very likely to see them during my shoveling forays.


Some miracle of snow, wind, freezing and gravity causes these.


I'm pretty sure I couldn't form them on my own no matter how hard I tried.


Look closely and you can actually see the layers of how this formed. It's like a sedimentary stalagtite sastruga!!!

More evidence to me of a Master-Mind Designer

Simply amazing.

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14 comments:

Chari at Happy To Design said...

Hi Girlfriend...

Ohh..I love when the snow does this! I always thought these things were formed from some melting on the roof and that the snow would start to slide off? Hmmm...whatever or however it forms...it's awesome! You got some great pics, my friend! Wow...looks like you have been a busy little bee...doing all that snow shoveling! Great excersize...I should do it more often...of course, you have to have snow to do that and we have only had 2 this season.

Looks like Wisconsin is agreeing with you, Keetha! Have a great week, my friend!

Love ya,
Chari

Theresa said...

WOW, so many of my comments on your blogs start with WOW:) Those are some gorgeous sastrugi! You are having some really nice sastrugis up there! I can't believe that I have used that word twice and I didn't even know what it meant:)

Have a blessed day, HUGS!

Brenda said...

That is so cool! Wow, you really know your sastrugi!
I remember the hanging chad thing and hearing one instance, whether true or not I don't know, where someone was eating the chads? I just figured it'd come out in the end! BWWWAAAAAA! Seriously.

podso said...

Pretty cool pics ... never thought about these before but I think I've seen them.

grammy said...

Those snow formations are awesome, "and only God can make a tree" (scratch tree and insert sastruga). Have never seen anything like that. Just look at the layers in the peak of that last formation. Looks like rock layers. BEAUTIFUL!!!

lilmomma said...

Only you, Keetha! I appreciate seeing your snowy pictures while I'm cooped up in this tiny pink room and hooked up to all these monitors! Thanks again for the prayers! Everything went great! :)

Anonymous said...

Very pretty

Cindy (Applestone Cottage) said...

They are beautiful aren't they!
I am still laughing my head off from the post below. Please see comment below!
I am late getting over because I had to help daughter out today and I am pooped!
Hugs,
Cindy

Anonymous said...

I'm so glad I've learned that this is called sastruga! We've had it too and I always just thought it was a very cool thing. Now I can be all knowledgable and say look at the cool sastruga!BTW, JoEllen wasn't able to come to the cookie exchange today...boo.

Martin LaBar said...

Ah. Thanks. It's been a while since I saw these.

Kristin - The Goat said...

Oh my goodness, I have finally come up for some air and you have 10 new blog posts! You've been busy!

I love love love these hanging chads! They are some of the most wonderful things, don't you think?

It is so cool to see the layers - thanks for showing us that!

Kristin - The Goat

42N said...

Despite the cold those sastruga things are beautiful. As we finally get in to Winter on December 21st I hope all of this melts by Jan. 2.

Ann in the UP said...

Our sastrugi aren't nearly as amazing as yours. I don't think we had nearly as much snow as you did. Oh, well, better days are coming, unless as 42N says, everything will melt on Jan 2. Fat chance!

I just want the days to begin getting longer. It's -11 degrees here at the moment.

Debby@Just Breathe said...

Those are amazing. You would think they would just fall down.