It is 38C in the shade and I have been thinking about snow in July. Here in Italy we have a heatwave, drought and high temperatures. So it was a delight to find a bunch of old photographs hidden on an old computer that I had taken of our house here in Italy with snow.
Thinking About Snow in July
Fond Memories Of Snow
Before I bought my house here in Umbria, Italy, 25 years ago snow was a regular winter event up my mountain. I have heard tales of two meters of snow in places. One person tells a story of how only the top part of the roof of the car was visible after one bad winter.
Snow Delayed Our Wedding
The year BB and I got married was the last time we had really heavy snow. That was ten years ago. We were snowed in for two weeks and couldn’t get to our appointment in Milan for our wedding banns. That meant delaying the wedding of course. At the end of the two weeks we were mightily sick of being trapped in the house. We had run out of fruit and vegetables early on and everything else was getting a bit thin on the ground.
I rang the local police chief and asked if the snow plough that was working on the white top (unmade) road could be asked to clear our drive. He went into a bit of a strop. Well know, Dorothy, there are a lot of people worse of than you including old people and the disabled. Then he asked how long had we been snowed in and I said two weeks. Everything changed! Suddenly concerned, he wanted to know if we needed food, water etc. And within half an hour the driveway had been cleared and we could finally get out in the car and go to the supermarket.
The supermarket has a big mirror near the main entrance and we stood laughing at the way we looked. Standing there disheveled in more layers of clothing than you could count and our wellies!
Snow Is Now A Rare Event
These days, snow is a rare event and when it does happen it is light and doesn’t hang around long.
When I found my old photos it reminded me of times past, with the land covered in snow. I remember how lovely it was to walk in (carefully!) and how I got sunburn! I forgot the snow reflects the sunlight.
Sweltering in the heat, thinking about snow in July seemed like a good idea to me.
Snow Cat
Recently I was talking to some friends here about how bad the winter used to be and they were saying they couldn’t remember the last time they built a snowman. I said I could! A few years ago we had enough snow for me to scrape together a snow cat. As you do.
The images in my blog are available to purchase as fine art prints, just click on the image to be taken to a page with more information. You can see all of my snow scenes at my Pictorem and RedBubble stores.
Before you go
My name is Dorothy Berry-Lound an artist and writer. You can find out more about my art and writing at https://dorothyberryloundart.com.
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Thank you for reading!
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