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Snow on the ski hills again

It's only fair to report that those same ski hills which lay bare last month are now getting piles of snowfall.

Does this invalidate my concerns about global warming? NO.

Does it mean that every little glitch in the climate can be attributed with certainty to global warming? NO.

But, there are too many little glitches to ignore. I am very glad to see snow falling around the Great Lakes, because snow is water, and water is the cure for drought. The water levels in the Great Lakes are down. The big dump of snow is what we need.

I know it's inconvenient for everyone living in the snow belt to deal with this, but I'm so relieved to see it.

In terms of what this means for global warming... it's one of many "maybe this was caused by" things. I don't dismiss it, not at all.

No skiing = no jobs in my old home

CBC reported that Blue Mountain, the big ski hill two hours north of Toronto, laid off 1,300 people due to lack of snow. No snow, no skiing. No skiing, no jobs.

Blue Mountain is just outside of Collingwood, Ontario. That's where I grew up. My grandfather and Dad were friends with Jozo Weider, the Czech visionary who started the ski industry there.

When Jozo was getting skiing going, the tourist industry didn't mean a lot to Collingwood. The shipyard was the big employer. I would guess that about 1 in 10 local people worked there at one time. The whistle used to blow at the end of the day and everyone from the yard went home for dinner.

During the 60s and 70s the demand for Great Lakes freighters and other ships of the size built at Collingwood dropped off. There were layoffs seasonally, and then the big one, for good.

If you visit Collingwood today you will not see any ships at the end of Hurontario Street. Now it's condos and concrete.

Although different industries have come to Collingwood, the ski hill's contribution to the local economy has grown to be important. Now with 1,300 people losing their jobs, at least for a few weeks, it's like the old days all over again. Layoffs. The tourist economy doesn't pay much to start with. To lose the part-time seasonal work is going to cause hardship to those workers, and in turn to all the merchants who rely on them.

A warm winter hits home.