As I ALWAYS said, the first skiff of snow that stays on the ground comes on October 11th. How do I know this? It is SR's birthday of course. The snow began falling late this afternoon. By tomorrow we should have 1 to 2 centimetres - that is a light dusting of snow - or, as we northerners say, a skiff. And, I do believe that the snow is here to stay. I went to the dictionary so I could prove to those that live in Ontario that SKIFF is an actual word, but what I found was:
"small boat" --- no mention of a "dusting" so I went to another dictionary, then another dictionary ... well, you get the picture. Then, thank you Bill Casselman for this: (and P.S., I love the title "rare and delightful"; oh and PPS: we northerners don't use that saying)
RARE and DELIGHTFUL SNOW WORDS
Skiff
Canadian Prairie Saying: Ain’t but a skiff of snow to dust a gopher’s arsehole.
A skiff of snow in Manitoba and the Canadian West is a light snowfall, a gentle powdery dusting of snow. It is probable that early Scottish immigrants to western Canada brought the word with them, for it is still a familiar dialect word in Scotland where it means a light wind, a misty rain or a modest flurry of snow.
1 comment:
Good one. I am just listening in the background to Joni singing Coming in from the Cold - from my pod on my blog and while doing that decided to look at your blog. Lovely moment. - now Emelia is playing - I am once AGAIN in Heaven. Love Joni - MJT
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