Punxsutawney Phil, the worldís most famous groundhog and weather forecaster, saw his shadow Feb. 2, which meant six more weeks of winter. Darn!Driving in Denver a week ago, I heard on a local radio station (as I drove in blizzard-like conditions) that February could break an all-time record for Denver for the amount of snow. On my way home that day, the roads were treacherous ó between 30 and 50 cars were piled up on I-70 eastbound at Lookout Mountain. I donít mind the snow falling if I am warm and safe at home, but driving in it can be so unnerving.As I drove back to Colorado Springs at a turtleís pace, I thought about a story my grandpa told regarding one of his experiences driving on snowy roads. When he was 17 years old, his family was moving from California to Nebraska. My grandpa drove his mom and 12-year-old brother in a vehicle that probably had no business being on the road. They had no wipers, no heater and they could see the road underneath their feet because the carís floor had been burned out. They averaged 32 mph in blinding snow, and to save the battery from dying they sometimes had to shut off their headlights. I guess I shouldn’t complain too loudly when my drive from Denver takes a little extra time!I think many of us are ready for spring, and I am just hoping we donít have to wait too long to see some green life and consecutive warm, sunny days.March is National Nutrition Month, and Jason Gray wrote about the city of Colorado Springs and the county planning a joint advisory board to improve supply and access to locally grown nutritious food in the area. The article mentions ìfood desertsî ó low income neighborhoods where the people donít have affordable access to whole foods. The American Nutrition Association says those food deserts drive people to fast food joints. I agree that we donít have as much access to fresh foods as we would like, but I keep thinking about the old adage, ìYou can lead a horse to water but you canít make him drink.îFor example, more than 10 billion donuts are consumed in the U.S. every year. Twenty percent of meals in America are consumed in the car. Those are habits unrelated to income and food deserts. And a July 2013 Gallup poll showed that income had little to do with fast food. Fifty-one percent of people with yearly incomes over $75,000 ate fast food once a week, compared to 42 percent in the $20,000 to $30,000 income range. Fifty-seven percent of weekly fast food junkies were between ages 18 and 29.Last year, fast food revenue was at $160 billion; in 1970, it was $6 billion.Maybe itís coincidental that this advisory board is being proposed at the same time a commercially sized greenhouse in the Black Forest area is stirring up a bit of controversy (read Lindsey Harrisonís article on the Minibelly project). But maybe this advisory board is all about property rights ó and that might not be a bad thing, either. Iím just saying ÖSpeaking of controversy, the wind farm issue is not going away just because the county commissioners approved it. Be sure to read Lindseyís article on the front page of the NFH.Letís hope that March is in and out like a gentle lion. Regardless of the weather, I will be heading to North Carolina to celebrate the anticipated arrival of my first grandchild. More on that in April!Have a great month!– Michelle
