March Weather Savage and Serene

We enter the month of March, that which draws us into spring. Poets had great emotions on the subject of March: December days were brief and chill, The winds of March were wild and drear, And, nearing and receding still, Spring never would, we thought, be here. ~Arthur Hugh Clough (1819–1861) It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade. ~Charles Dickens (1812–1870), Great Expectations These, marching softly, thus in order went, And after them, the Months all riding came; First, sturdy March, with Brows full sternly bent, And armed strongly, rode upon a Ram, The same which over Hellespontus swam: Yet in his Hand a Spade he also hent, And in a Bag all sorts of Seeds ysame, Which on the Earth he strowed as he went, And fill'd her Womb with fruitful Hope of Nourishment. ~Edmund Spenser, The Fairy-Queen, 1590s Today's pictures are "Blowing Off Steam" images from the Sandy River and Rangely Lakes Railroad trip in Maine last year.

The Flying Scotsman and the Steam Traction Museum

The news is producing some great stories - today it is the "Flying Scotsman' steam engine roars down rails once more.  It is here for you to read the article and see the video.  The quote of the day: “The smell of coal, oil and steam,” remarked one woman as it rolled past. “If you could bottle that in a perfume, I’d wear it.” In honour of steam, we head to Puslinch, Ontario where Wayne Fischer's Steam Traction Museum holds a wealth of treasurers.