So now it’s February, or as I like to call it, the Halftime of Winter. Spring is still a ways off and Christmas is a distant memory. It’s halftime. This has been a particularly challenging winter here at the Hinzmann homestead, or maybe it just seems that way because the last few have been fairly easy. Maybe it just seems harsher because I’m not getting any younger. At any rate, I can see now why people head south in the winter. Just to escape the cruel clutches of sub-zero days and nights would be worth it at this point. What I wouldn’t give to go outside in a T-shirt right about now!

     Like any contest, halftime is a good time to take stock of the score and plan your strategy for the second half. Just for fun, I came up with a points system as a way of keeping score with Old Man Winter. For every difficulty that comes my way that is weather related, I give Winter a point. For every situation that causes me trouble that I actually overcome, I give myself a point. So here we go. The first point goes to Old Man Winter for causing us some angst when our “good” car acted up back in December, prompting a tow back to our place along with a hefty bill. Give me a point for getting the car running without spending any more money on the problem. Point number two also goes to Old Man Winter when the new furnace we had installed last summer quit working on the coldest night of the year. Give me a point for having our backup heating source (corn stove) running at the same time so at least we didn’t freeze to death or have frozen pipes.

Old Man Winter got an easy point when the slush that was on the road caused the Geo-trike I was driving to leave the roadway and roll, (see previous Answer Man column in the Post-Bulletin for all the details). Give me a point for driving the thing thirty miles back home with no drivers side window.

Old Man Winter gets another point for causing my tractor to break down right before extreme cold and blizzard conditions were predicted to hit the area back in January. Give me a point for getting the tractor fixed about four hours before the bad weather actually arrived.

     So at halftime it looks like the score is tied up, four-all. My strategy for the second half of winter will be about the same as the first; try to match Old Man Winter point for point until spring rolls around. Which, after this season, will be none too soon. What’s your half-time score?