Please count your blessings on the Pacific Rim as far as Spring is concerned. Here in northern Scotland we have not seen black earth now for 13 weeks and are in the middle of another blizzard right now tonight. Snowdrops, Crocus and Narcissus are but a feint memory so please have some sensitivity and stop boasting about how well your flowers are looking, we don't even know under well over a metre of snow whether any of that stuff is even thinking of waking up and thats just at the bottom of the mountains behind us. Advice on Igloo construction would be considered a thoughtful gesture. We have been told we are under much more snow than at Vancouver's Winter Olympics and have more snow here than has been recorded in the past 150 years plus. Its all getting a bit boring now! Ce la vie, Iain