4.12.11 First snow of the winter.

Brrrrrrrr...... Scot. wrap up warm. x

Looks absolutely perishing - keep warm.

My thoughts exactly GM....It's pouring down and windy here.

Oh my goodness! I haven't even turned my heating on yet (apart from the room where the tortoises are living) and I am having trouble realising that Christmas is fast approaching. Your photo is a real wake up call for me - hope the snow soon disappears for you (for good).

You are lucky Gee. Ours has never been off. It has been a cold wet miserable year but it is nice to see that the garden has not suffered because of it. We had summer during 2 weeks in April and only odd days since when it was so hot we had to peel off as many clothes as possible. It has been working rather than sun bathing in the garden but we have managed to do quite a lot. I do hope the snow is far away from all of you. Thanks for your kind thoughts.

Eeeks!
Although I love to see the dogs playing in snow, always a good photo opportunity!

Oh Lord, Sg that's the last thing i want to see...at the mo we're getting one day Rain one day Sunshine...still mild though...

There was a lot about the pandas arriving in Edinburgh today on the TV news and what do you know they got a real welcome including some snow in their new enclosures. There was also an article about the dualling of the road from Aberdeen to Inverness and if the photo shown was taken today Mg and Bb would be laughing at my snow.

Those Pandas are now next-door neighbours for me, Sg (well, at least, when I am at work). The TV vans were still there when I drove by at 7pm. Looking forward to leaping the wall for a "free" view, in about 2 weeks! Just joking:-D)

BTW, think that winter has, now, arrived :-((

If I hear there has been an intruder with telephoto lens on the prowl in the Zoo I'll expect to see the pics on here then. I think they are expecting so many people turning up to see them that for the pandas sake they are asking members of the public to apply for tickets. My OH keeps saying all they do is eat and there was Sweetie when she was lowered to the tarmac totally not phased at all chewing on a bamboo shoot. The crowds who turned out to greet them as they arrived at the Zoo did not get to see them today because they travelled in closed lorries.

Sorry, Sg, but will not be using free corporate entry, hype, or otherwise, to get into Edinburgh Zoo in the foreseeable future, due to very bad press this year re those 2 delightful animals, and the fate of others. Victims , I think, of several political, nationalistic, and commercial, dealings. Read enough, tonight, in the online press. Will love visiting them, however, but only to see them being themselves. :-)) Hope that the wee darlings settle down, well!!

I would like to think that the £600,000 that Edinburgh Zoo is paying the Chinese Government will help save the wild habitat the loss of which is making them an endangered species. I am not a fan of Zoos but having witnessed the changes to the conditions and the kind of animals being kept it would seem that conservation is becoming more of a priority. I remember being appalled at the condition of the London Zoo Panda we saw about 40 years ago.

Snowing here at the moment....Brrrrrr

sleeting fast and heavy here with a driving wind...foul weather.

In spite of the snow almost disappearing yesterday afternoon with the watery sun on it, I could replicate that pic this am. Its back again. When I went to put the buckets out for the bin men a blackbird was yelling that the water had frozen over, so it was out with kettles of hot water to get rid of the ice then with cold water to refill them. It must have snowed early on and then frozen as the drive was like a skating rink so out came the salt to ensure the coalman and the postman don't come croppers on the ice. Take care and keep warm everybody.

Well this Postie came a cropper twice today...

I'm sorry to hear that Pimpernel. You will need to wrap up well to ensure you don't do serious damage to yourself in this horrible weather.

I slipped on one of those "Printed" Concrete Drives. They are terrible if wet. Then again on York stone flags

Our drive is smooth concrete because my older daughter had lots of ops on her knees and needed a decent surface to walk on but it does become a death trap if there is ice on it so we try to keep it ice free.

I hope it's cleared away by now.

After clearing up a bit yesterday we have a repeat performance this am again. My OH thought it would snow heavily last night because the sky was so overcast but it did not thank goodness. I am going to sow sweet peas today if I can get out to get some compost. I will keep them in a cool place around 10deg until the first one shows through the surface then put them out in the cold green house. A tip I picked up somewhere. I did not get any of my planned hardy annual sowing outside done because the weather has been so bad. They will need to wait till spring now because I don't have the time or patience to transplant seedlings.

Oops. meant only that I'll probably wait until the publicity dies down a bit b4 paying a visit. Don't mind paying for a more "intimate" encounter, rather than a crowded "freebie". :-))

Very heavy sleet showers all the way home tonight from work. By the time I got home, this was beginning to freeze over on the road and pavement. :-( Take care! X

I thought that was what you did mean David. With two children whose friends will all be going along I did not think you would be allowed to escape. We had sleet which I expected to turn to snow last night but then a howling gale came through and blew the lot away. Take care on the ice. We always tend to think that having zoos is a backward step but I was surprised to read of both pro's and con's of the system. http://www.ehow.com/info_8180423_effects-giant-panda-being-endangered.html

This is a good link, Sg. :-))

late wed evening, not a whiff of a breeze, and a "tropical" 3C. Very high winds and blizzards forecast for tomorrow (sounds bizarre) - but, I bet, will happen. Will be driving to and from work :-((

Don't think that I can escape visiting the pandas, Sg, but, so far, have not heard mention fo them from J and Es lips!! Ssssh...................:-))

You will David. We have just had a batten down the hatches time of it. We had gusts of up to 90 mph and we were lucky we only lost a few slates, OH mast lost 2 legs and the tv aerial turned itself right round. We were able to access the main 5 channels but nothing else. We did not lose electricity but the phones were off and on all day which meant we had no internet. As I drew our bedroom curtains I noticed that all the putty had been swept away from the bottom of the big lower glass pane. I was worried it would blow in but OH reckoned it would blow out the way and was not too concerned. It is old fashioned rolled glass, original to the house. Circa 1876 and is a big pane. The blue tits chip away at it and must have loosened it and the wind whipped it away. Today it was cold but no wind so we got the ladders out and he sorted the window and aerial. The slaters will sort the roof when they finish rescuing people with real problems. i'm so glad we got those trees near the house cut down. Did you have to go up to Kincardine to cross the Forth or were you across before they closed the bridge. They did say it would be back from the north west tonight but we have a full moon so I can't see the wind coming back yet.

Hi Scotsgran I love the snow but down here in Devon we dont get much. Our grandaughter lives in Scotland and she said the snow was coming down as big as 50 p piece's the other day:)

It is very cold here but no sign of any more snow. In fact the weather men are predicting 12C on Christmas Day. We won't escape the rain though. Nor the winds. We had horrific winds last week and there was quite a lot of structural damage to property from trees being blown over etc. I want to hibernate but no chance of that at the moment. The ski slopes are suffering from lack of snow this year too something they did not have to worry about last year. I hope it did not stay around long near your grand daughter. I hope her area was not where the electricity was off. Folk don't realise that no electricity means no heating for lots of people these days. Take care .

Scotsgran The snow has all gone now she said. No we havent had our electric cut of.Where do you live ? :)