hrerleGardeners know how cold it is by looking at rhododendron leaves. If they are tightly furled, you know it is cold. I have two bushes in front of the house and the leaves were tightly wound during the cold spell last week. I also had ice on the inside of the windows.

I checked the Farmer’s Almanac and enjoyed the prediction for Feb. 1-3: “Sun turns into clouds, downright balmy for midwinter.” We set some record low temperatures on those dates. From Feb. 12 to 15, a storm sweeps in from the Midwest bringing significant rain, according to the almanac. Let’s see if that is accurate.

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Saturday offers a choice of activities, including events that were postponed.

The Amherst Historical Society, of which I am a member, is having its annual meeting via Zoom at 2 p.m. The speaker is Catherine Allgor, president of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Cyndi Harbeson, former special collections curator at the Jones Library, will receive the Arthur Kinney Conch Shell Award. Visit the website for the link.

Also on Saturday is the Fire and Ice Fest on the Town Common from 2 to 5 p.m. with ice sculptures and activities followed by the luminaria, which was scheduled for last week. It’s free. The events are sponsored by the Business Improvement District and the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce.

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The Amherst League of Women voters, of which I am a member, continues its Judy Brooks Conversation Series on Feb. 14 at 7 p.m. via Zoom. UMass Professor Whitney Battle Baptiste, who is director of the W.E.B. DuBois Center, will speak on balancing data and democracy. The link is at lwvamherst.org.

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If you look at the proposed drawing of the pavilion to honor UMass front line employees, there is one thing missing: seating. There are no benches or chairs pictured.

If you want people to contemplate, as proposed, sitting down would be a good idea, especially if people have been working and would like to sit down.

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Condolences to the family and friends of John Dalton. He was a beloved principal at the Fort River Elementary School and I often interviewed him when I covered the schools for the paper. He was always gracious, kind and had a great sense of humor. He was also an Orchard Valley neighbor. He was a gentleman.

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