The last time I was interviewed on location here in Morris was the fateful day that I was taped for a little movie that became Expelled…and we know how that turned out. It’s happening again, only this time it’s not some secretive intelligent design proponent coming in on false pretenses: it’s Josh Timonen of the Richard Dawkins Foundation stopping by. I think I’m fairly safe this time, and don’t expect to be turned into the villain of the documentary they’re putting together.

It takes some dedication to do this. We’re a long 3 hour drive from the nearest airport, reached by way of a notorious series of speed-traps, it’s -10°F, snow is piled high in deep drifts all around, and once you get here, well, you’re in the tiny town of Morris. It’s a pleasant place to live, but it isn’t exactly renowned for its tourist appeal. I think it’s easier to get to Ulan Bator than here.

The temperatures are soaring out here in Morris, Minnesota, rising to a balmy -9°F/-23°C today, after a miserable week in which both our cars show signs of failure (one is still dead in the driveway) and we discovered the limitations of our house heating systems and insulation — once Spring arrives, some lucky contractor in our neighborhood is going to pocket a bunch of our money to fix this place up. But today…woo hoo, gang, let’s get out on the deck and barbecue. Or not.

Now I’m wishing I could have made it to the Science Online ’09 conference, in tropical North Carolina. Unfortunately, uncertainties about money, the definite certainty that I will be scraping by on half pay next year, and the emerging certainty that we will face some serious home-owning expenses soon nixed that whole plan. I know, it’s so disillusioning — y’all think I’m living a life of glamor and luxury up here in the exotic northlands, but the truth is that I’m living on the average professorial salary, and the only way I can keep the luxurious Trophy Wife is by making sure she’s snowed in most of the time and can’t escape.

The blizzard is over, and now we’re just buried knee-high in snow. It’s also finals week at UMM, and we’ve just received a note from the administration that classes are not cancelled, but that “students, faculty, and staff should use their judgment when deciding whether or not travel to campus”. Nice way to dodge any responsibility at all!

Fortunately, the first final I have to give is tomorrow, so we may be dug out by then.

Our first blizzard of the season is hitting us right now: snow is pouring down, the wind is howling, temperatures are in the single digits °F and dropping, and we’re nearing white-out conditions. We’re staying indoors.

I don’t think our snowflakes look anything like the picture above (from this gallery of snowflake photomicrographs). They’re tiny and powdery, and flying by horizontally at 30 or 40 mph.

While I’m basking in the balmy warmth of Philadelphia, I get word from one of my homies that Morris temperatures dropped below 0°F for the first time this year. I’m sorry I’m not there to keep the Trophy Wife warm.

I just looked up all bleary-eyed from staring at papers all day to notice that we suddenly have an inch or so of snow piled up on the ground. I was wondering why my wife was so late getting home from work — she’s probably creeping along on slushy roads trying to make it home safely.

And—oh, no—I have to drive to Minneapolis tomorrow!