'Volcanic' Winter

Blame Iceland. Yes, Iceland. To anyone experiencing crazy weather this winter there is a theory that it's all because of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano that erupted in Iceland last spring, spewing ash all over northern Europe and causing air travel to grind to a halt. While this eruption might not have been big enough to cause a true 'volcanic winter', our local weather guy reported the other day that the ash in the northern atmosphere pushes the cold air down from Canada giving us more snow.

Who knows if he's right but we sure have had A LOT of snow. Here in New England we have received almost record amounts (I think it was over 71" at last count by the Boston Globe) where a lot of that would have been rain if the temps would actually get out of the 20s.

A true volcanic winter is caused by a really really big eruption, where the ash in the atmosphere actually obscures the sun causing a global dip in temps. You can read a list of the past volcanic winters here, many of them causing famines that lasted up to three years.

Here's what got my attention today: latest news out of Iceland is another big volcano is acting up, and this one is big enough to cause a volcanic winter. The Telegraph reports that the Bárdarbunga volcano is showing signs of increased activity. This volcano dwarfs Eyjafjallajokull and what's really cool is this as reported by The Telegraph:

"The last recorded eruption of Bárdarbunga was in 1910, although volcanologists believe its last major eruption occurred in 1477 when it produced a large ash and pumice fallout. It also produced the largest known lava flow during the past 10,000 years on earth."

Wow, this news was cool enough to snap me out of my blogging break (caused by two very energetic little girls) and find the time to research this more. Hopefully if Bárdarbunga blows it won't cause a planetary mess, but it will at least remind us that humans are most definitely NOT in charge. I was planning a return visit to Iceland in the next year or so, perhaps I wait and see....in the meantime I think I'll work on expanding my garden and storing emergency "volcano food".

A quick thank you to all my followers who have contacted me to see how I'm doing since I've been "off the air". I'm doing very well, just busy with two kids that are a handful, luckily a very happy and giggly handful, but still a handful.

My love of extreme weather and my "Perfect Storm" wedding day

I have always been obsessed with foul weather. Being a born and raised New Englander must have something to do with it. I love terms like 'it blew a gale' and 'a nor'easter's moving in'. My old roommate, Dave, and I used to spend hours glued to the Weather Channel during a big hurricane. He's a middle school science teacher and just as obsessed with weather as I am. Their extreme weather correspondent Jim Cantore is our HERO. We loved to watch him put himself in the center of the storm, holding on to a sign post or palm tree, his snazzy custom L.L. Bean gear being practically blown off him.

The other day my coworkers and I were talking about all the weddings we have this season and it made me reflect on my own wedding. I was married in Gloucester, MA on October 28th, 2006, the weekend of 15th anniversary of the Perfect Storm. It was fitting weekend. A film crew from the Weather Channel, including our fearless Jim Cantore, was already in town giving live updates from the Crow's Nest, the infamous fisherman bar on the waterfront featured in the blockbuster movie.

A week before the wedding I said to my mother, "there's going to be weather that day." "Don't be ridiculous", she said, "It will be fine". I had envisioned photos on Good Harbor Beach, our favorite surfing spot, cocktails on the deck of the Tavern where the reception was to take place, a beautiful sunset reflected on the water.

Two days before the wedding the forecast called for rain. The night before the wedding the seagulls moved inshore. I switched on the Weather Channel from the B+B and there was Jim, telling me that the barometer could actually fall LOWER than the day of the Perfect Storm. Oh my God, my guests!

Had it not been my wedding weekend I would have been in weather-heaven, I might have even driven down to my old apartment in Arlington to watch the action with Dave. But I had 156 people coming into town the next morning.

Around 2 AM the wind picked up, lashing the shutters and keeping me awake. I turned on the Weather Channel from the sitting room. And there was Jim outside the Crow's Nest taped earlier that night. You could see him getting excited about the impending doom.

The next morning I looked out the window and across the street to the reception hall, there was the Weather Channel's van broadcasting from the parking lot of where 156 of my closest friends and family were supposed to be eating and dancing to our favorite Latin Band, Manguito, in about 10 hours!

Two hours later my hair dresser of 7 years, John from Fringe Salon in Salem, comes up the stairs into the suite. The first words out of his mouth are, "Well, if ANYONE should get married today it should be YOU." He knows I'm a science geek, and he was right, it was fitting. I actually felt better.

During the four hours my bridesmaids and I spent getting ready we watched endless waves come over the sea wall, hit our cars, hit the famous fisherman statue on the water front....it was so ugly, Jim all the time on the TV in the background getting more and more excited.

At some point I spoke with Dave who said he actually emailed Jim Cantore somehow through the Weather Channel's website to invite him and his crew to the wedding. How thoughtful of him!

In the end, no one will forget our wedding. In the end Jim didn't make it to the reception, he did send Dave a signed photograph a few weeks later with his apologies. Dave has it framed in his classroom. And the next morning when my new husband and I opened the blinds to an amazingly sunny day there was Jim and his film crew filming right in front of our B+B where a sailboat had beached during the reception. So we ran outside and met him. And he was the nicest guy I ever met, he congratulated us and posed for a few pictures.

So happy wedding season, happy hurricane season. I hope the weather is interesting where you are and if it rains on your wedding day (or even better, if you have a full blown nor'easter) then you will be blessed with the most luck anyone could have. My husband and I couldn't be happier.