Friday, August 26, 2011

Predicting The Winter Weather...!


I know, I know! Seems a little early to start thinking about Winter weather, but is it really?

You know what they say, forewarned is forearmed! Besides, is it really ever to soon to plan for the future?

This article I picked up from the Old Farmer's Almanac is interesting, if nothing else! You have to wonder how many folks in time gone by actually used some of these methods!

Predicting Weather: The Ol' Goose Bone Method

Back around the turn of the last century, in the days before the National Weather Service, the so-called goose bone method was a famous weather-forecasting technique.

Here's how it worked:

Around Thanksgiving, Grandma would cook a freshly killed goose. She would roast it, carve it, and serve it, always being careful not to cut the breastbone from the carcass.

After the goose had been eaten, she would carefully remove the breastbone and cut away all the meat and fat left clinging to it. Grandpa would take the bone and put it on a shelf to dry, keeping an eye out for the coloration that would follow. If the bone turned blue, black, or purple, a cold winter lay ahead.

White indicated a mild winter.

Purple tips were a sure sign of a cold spring.

A blue color branching out toward the edge of the bone, meant open weather until New Year's Day.

If the bone was a dark color, or blue all over, the prediction was for a real bad winter.

That's it. And there was even an explanation. An overall dark color meant that the bird had absorbed a lot of oil, which acted as a natural protection against the cold. The darker the blue coloring, the tougher the winter ahead would probably be.

Like everything else you find in the almanac, you take it with a grain of salt! Still, you have to admit that it makes a lot of sense in a strange sort of way! Let me know if you decide to try it!

10 comments:

Gorges Smythe said...

We rarely eat goose, so I doubt if I try it. That's strange, considering how many times mine has been cooked!

Sixbears said...

It's not too early to think of winter. Yesterday I was piling firewood.

Ben in Texas said...

Shoot , my weather rock does as good a job as that.. It it's dry, no rain, if it's wet,,raining, if it's got ice on it,,cold. if it's gone, Tornado!!

Dizzy-Dick said...

The real question is; What mad the goose absorb the extra oil it the winter was to be a cold one?

Mechanic in Illinois said...

My son and I shoot enough geese to try this. Thanks for the story and have a great Friday.

Anonymous said...

C'mon Ol' Man Winter! Gonna be 108 this weekend, gimme us some love Bro'. :^)

Thanks HermitJim.

JoJo said...

Interesting but where would i find a fresh killed goose. Oh well I guess I will just have to feel it when it comes along. But the ole almanac if fun.

Bob from Athens said...

You got me to thinking, maybe I could apply for a government grant to study this. Maybe 10 years at $12,000 per year. After all they give grants for lots of other stuff.

TROUBLEnTX said...

Go for it, B from A. I, for one, think that's a great idea.
Always loved to read those.
After this summer, i WANT a cold winter.

Unknown said...

What a wonderful read! Love it. My daddy swore by the old Farmer's Almanac and I have to admit, it was usually correct in it's predictions. Daddy was from rural Arkansas, born in 1912 and he did a lot of gardening in his day. He would always say if the corn had a lot of shucks and silks the winter was going to be an extra cold one. He was ALWAYS correct. Of course it had to be corn that HE grew in HIS garden because he said getting some corn from Illinois would not predict Texas weather. LOL For real though, it was always right.

I'm like the other poster, I will take a cold, hard winter after this brutal summer we've had here in Texas. I just moved from Alvin (Houston area) back "home" to the Canton, Texas area and I'm ready to see the old winter again. I'm ready to bundle up. Of course going through menopause I would probably wear my bathing suit on the arctic tundra at any given time rather than deal with these hot flashes in the Texas heat. LOL

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!!!