I did an illustration for The Public (Buffalo New York’s new alternative weekly paper). The piece depicts the massive lake effect snowstorm that delivered 6 feet of snow south of the city. It was dubbed “The Knife” by the county executive because the snow cleaved the county in half. The print is now available in a range of sizes from PrintCollection.com (they publish my other print series). See it here.
This was a long, weird week, particularly in terms of experiencing weather. I spent last Sunday riding my bike in near blizzard conditions, and shovelling snow, then Monday night I flew to St. Petersburg, Florida where my relatives gather for Christmas. The weather in St. Pete was in the 70s all week. When I returned to Buffalo last night (at Midnight) it was 60 degrees and almost all the snow was gone. This morning I was awakened by the house shaking from high winds. I always find this unnerving, I imagine the house moving and pulling away from the chimney. But then I remind my self that this structure has withstood this kind of treatment for 118 years, and that it's unlikely that this will be the straw that breaks the camel's back. The high winds also caused a seiche event, I haven't checked but it looks like the lake level was up by about seven feet. I went to photograph the lake around 11 am and it was violently frothing, images below.
Our car after the driveway dig out Monday, December 22
Peace River, Florida, December 26
Grapefruits from my Grandparents' backyard tree, the enormous one weighs 2.5 pounds!
View of the lake from LaSalle Park. The lake was up by about six feet when this photo was taken.
Wave spray in a restaurant parking lot on Lakeshore Road, Hamburg.
Wind blown powerlines
View of Buffalo and Lackawanna from Hamburg Town Park
Hamburg Town Park
It started to snow on Friday afternoon and did not stop until very early Sunday morning. The overall accumulation seems to be about 18 inches. I love winter weather, so I am always hoping for a snowstorm. Despite Buffalo's reputation for heavy snow, getting a foot or more all at once is a relatively rare event. In general I think people complain about snow too much. I realize that it is somewhat inconvenient, but the way that it can utterly transform the visual landscape in a matter of hours is a phenomenon that should be appreciated. What I find most irritating is that local newcasters constantly make value judgements about the weather. They generally seem to think that any rise in temperature is good and any drop is bad. I would rather have cold weather temperatures and crisp clean snow than have it be 37 degrees and slush.
The picture is of me, circa 1976, on Lake Mendota in Madison, Wisconsin. Photo Credit: John Montague. Contemporary frozen photos here.
It is a snowy ice-encrusted morning. Luckily the ice does not seem to have caused much damage. More record covers here.
Our car after the driveway dig out Monday, December 22
Peace River, Florida, December 26
Grapefruits from my Grandparents' backyard tree, the enormous one weighs 2.5 pounds!
View of the lake from LaSalle Park. The lake was up by about six feet when this photo was taken.
Wave spray in a restaurant parking lot on Lakeshore Road, Hamburg.
Wind blown powerlines
View of Buffalo and Lackawanna from Hamburg Town Park
Hamburg Town Park
I went for a bike ride in the snowstorm yesterday. While not the worst conditions I've ridden in, it was pretty close. The strong winds created white out conditions and a lot of drifting.
I recently needed to find a map of Lake Erie for something I was designing and I came across this incredible satellite photo of lake Erie partially covered in ice. For a closer view of the lake ice, check out my Flickr album, Seiche Damage. 
The view from my studio window this morning.
Snow covered spider web
It started to snow on Friday afternoon and did not stop until very early Sunday morning. The overall accumulation seems to be about 18 inches. I love winter weather, so I am always hoping for a snowstorm. Despite Buffalo's reputation for heavy snow, getting a foot or more all at once is a relatively rare event. In general I think people complain about snow too much. I realize that it is somewhat inconvenient, but the way that it can utterly transform the visual landscape in a matter of hours is a phenomenon that should be appreciated. What I find most irritating is that local newcasters constantly make value judgements about the weather. They generally seem to think that any rise in temperature is good and any drop is bad. I would rather have cold weather temperatures and crisp clean snow than have it be 37 degrees and slush.
It is a snowy ice-encrusted morning. Luckily the ice does not seem to have caused much damage. More record covers here.
