My first blog! Welcome to Pittsburgh!

My first blog!!!! Welcome to Pittsburgh!

Let stream of consciousness prevail!

From Florida to Pennsylvania

Long story short... I fell in love, got married, and moved to Pittsburgh to be with my new husband who had just started a new and career-changing job in western PA. We moved over the Thanksgiving weekend - just before the end of eight months of Florida summer and the beginning of Pittsburgh winter. 

Now don't get me wrong... I grew up in Maryland and the family went skiing every winter so I have experienced cold weather - sleet, snow, freezing rain - it is the reason I relocated to Florida after I graduated from UMCP (go Terrapins!). But I can tell you, after 20+ years in south Florida where sticking to your car seat and sweating in areas that cannot possibly have sweat glands, you forget how cold really feels. And I am not talking about the three weeks in south Florida (almost ten weeks in Tallahassee - I lived there for a couple of years) where it gets "cold enough" to break out the suede boots, leather jacket, and faux fur. But not turtlenecks...it never gets that cold in Florida and scarfs are a much more appealing fashion statement. 

Cold is Cold!

December proved predictable. I broke out my gear that I used the previous winter when my then-boyfriend and I hiked 40 miles on the Appalachian Trail - stayed in a three-sided shelter for three nights and hiked between 8-12 miles for four days. I had something to prove to the new boyfriend - if he can do it, I can do it! So I had some warm-weather gear. The house we purchased was built in 1920 and has been retrofitted with electric, plumbing, and central heat/air. It is a cute house but most importantly, it sits on half-acre and that was my one stipulation to move to Pittsburgh - it's all about the dog, right? More on this in a bit. But the yard was not fenced - no big deal - we signed a contract with a local fencing company and were ready to go right after New Year's. Except Mother Nature was not going to allow it...because in January, we averaged 2 degrees and it never stopped snowing (I had forgotten how the zero temperatures and wind can suck the breath right out of your lungs). I learned in February, after two months of below zero temperatures and endless snow, that our cute little house is in the mountains - foothills, whatever - we live way above sea level - and we got A LOT of snow. SO needless to say, the fence was on indefinite hold. 

Salt is Salt! Um, no it’s not!

We have a yellow Labrador retriever - he was born in north Florida and grew up in southwest Florida with a brief stint in north Florida and then back to south Florida. He has always had a fenced yard and independently determines when he needs to go outside and do his business. He had never seen snow. His coat grew in pretty quickly - I knew blowing coat was going to take on a whole new meaning in June but for the time being, he was adapting. I had a neoprene dog vest and booties - it took us 20+ minutes for each of us to gear up so we could head outside for 30 seconds to make yellow snow.  Needless to say, the dog booties were off in seconds - he hated them and for 30 seconds, I figured he could manage. But I was not prepared for the dog-dance that ensued every time we went outside: running on three legs, laying down in the snow and refusing to move, kicking his feet out behind him like he was trying to shake off the snow. If you have never seen this, you can Google "dog in booties in snow" and watch a video clip or two. So after two months of this, I mentioned this odd behavior to someone and they said, "are you using the dog-friendly salt?" Huh? 

Lesson Learned - chlorides in a nutshell (you knew there would be a science lesson)

For those of you who have never lived in the north where sidewalks and driveways become skating rinks of black ice, salt becomes your best friend. And you can buy it anywhere and in bulk. HOWEVER - there are different types of salt.

Chlorides (sodium, magnesium and calcium) is the salt used on the roads and will corrode the metal right off your car (self-serve car washes are very popular in PA in the winter). It is dangerous and when lodged in your dog’s pads can heat up to 170 degrees - I will have intense guilt over this forever. The pet-safe (and child-safe) salt is modified crystalline amide core infused with glycol admixture so always check the label! My plan is to buy it in bulk in September in anticipation of another snowy winter. And since we are adding a yellow, female Labrador puppy to our family this fall, it is important that I don't traumatize the newbie with burning paws! Like I said, guilt forever.... but none of my dogs will suffer from salt burns on their paws ever again!

Jackie Speake is an Independent Education Consultant and NSTA Author of Designing Meaningful STEM Lessons (NSTA Press).  
Jackie.Speake@DrScienceGeek.com
DrScienceGeek.com 
@JackieSpeake 
www.linkedin.com/in/jackiespeake