February 2026
On & Off Earth
Just as this column was beginning to take shape, a major winter storm was beginning to take shape far out in the Pacific, with dire warnings creeping into the daily weather news. Now, with the forecast snow, sleet and freezing rain done but the aftermath very much a frigid, frozen reality, I realize I must follow the first of my oft stated Earth rules: Adapt. (Migration is an impossible option at the moment and death…well, trying not to go there.)
Hidden beneath the layer of ice, likely not to be seen again until we are well into February, is the ugly topic that was to be a focus for this column: roadside litter, trash and garbage. In warmer months, the roadside debris is somewhat hidden by vegetation. Not so in the winter months when the rudeness of a few slobs detracts from the austere beauty of the cold, dormant world. Sadly, there will likely be more trash added on top of the snow before it even has a chance to melt.
An online search guesstimates as much as one piece of litter per foot along every American road, street and highway. Most of the waste is some version of plastic and/or a cigarette butt. I notice the bags and wrappers of recently purchased and consumed over salted, fast food a mile or two out of Louisa, in any direction. Drink bottles and cups dominate a little farther out; eat and toss. The culprits aren’t reading this column, were offended when I called them out in class (body language doesn’t lie..) and fast food and big beverage lobby hard against any mention of a deposit on their waste. Monetary pain on the source is the only real start on a solution and we know that isn’t going to happen.
Even sadder, here in Louisa, we have, in convenient locations all over the county, the finest trash and recycling centers I have ever seen. Fellow citizens also step up and help keep their section of roadway clean. Still the slobs toss their trash. Thank you for doing your part to keep our world litter free… and allowing me to vent!
In non-glacial times, this last week of January, with a waxing gibbous moon and highly reflective snow, would find me outside at dusk, basking in the moonlit beauty. Stepping on the icy crust outside today, breaking through, or not, coupled with cold we have not experienced since perhaps the mid-1990’s will limit my walks this week; safety first! February’s Full Snow (got it right this year) Moon is on the 1st. A wise groundhog, food cached underground, would stay hidden on his special day, the 2nd. I’m sure PA marketers will rouse Phil for his long term weather views.
February, always reluctant to give up its hold on winter, begins to lose that battle as our tilted planet’s solar journey adds 2 minutes of daylight every day of the shortest month. Sunrise gets back to 7am on Valentine’s Day. Sunset, by month’s end is after 6pm as we move within three weeks of Spring. I’d wager on early blooms and hints of green on fields and lawns as February wraps up; or more snow, stay informed.
When it is again safe to venture out and take a peek at the night sky, Jupiter still outshines all of the winter stars high in the southeast after dark. Saturn lingers in the southwest at sunset, joined by Mercury, cradled in the crescent moon on the 18th with Venus, returning as the Evening Star for much of 2026, beaming brightly below, just above the horizon. The sun moves, for astrology buffs, from Capricorn into Aquarius on the 17th. Stay warm, stay safe out there!
Today On Earth
More money for ICE...very sad, very fascist!! Way to have no spine, no balls Congress..You make jeezus so proud!!
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