squirrels are black in Toronto, Ontario

fire hydrant

Icicles

Icicles are 'fingers' of ice that form when water is flowing at zero degrees Centigrade/Celsius.

present perfect tense

The Present Perfect tense is used for many reasons.
The most common reason is to show "accomplishment".
For example:

Have you played hockey?

Yes, I have played hockey.
(unspecified time before now)
[Maybe I still play hockey now, or maybe I don't play hockey any more.]

No, I haven't played hockey.

on the back burner

"on the back burner" is an expression which means: no one is paying close attention to it. For example: The unemployment problem is on the back burner.

"out of the frying pan and into the fire" is an expression that means: You lose one problem, but you gain another problem. For example: If you quit a bad job, you are out of the frying pan and into the fire, because now you're unemployed.

there is ... something ... somewhere

The expression 'there is' is used when talking about if something exists in a place.

For example:

There is snow on the ground.

or

There isn't any snow on the ground.

Simple 'is' is used if you want to know what is in a place.

Q. What is beside the barrels?

A. A sign is beside the barrels.

This flower is called "Pheasant's Eye". Here is a link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adonis_vernalis

Family Day

There is a new statutory holiday in Ontario, Canada.
The third Monday in February is "Family Day".
We don't have to go to work.
But it's snowing hard today.

good news, bad news

A "good news bad news" joke goes like this:

The good news is that the temperature will be above zero on Thursday and Friday.

The bad news is that it's going to rain both days.

-13

It's -13 degrees in my part of Canada today.

-

English Expression of the day: Blooper

'blooper' means a mistake.
This word is often used when talking about actors making a mistake when they are making a TV show or a movie. Here's a link to a YouTube blooper reel:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoRHoxN4KKo

I'm looking for ducks

I'm searching for ducks in the creek. A creek is a small river.

I found the ducks

The Chinese Mall

more snow today

SNOWPLOW

This is a pickup truck with a snowplow blade in front.

A lot of truck-owners make extra money by plowing streets and driveways.

It's -15 degrees this morning.

blah

Snow Day

On a "Snow Day", the schools are closed, so kids don't have to go to school; but businesses are still open, and we have to go to work.

blizzard coming

winter storm warning today and tomorrow

Expression of the Day: "lake-effect snow": when the wind blows across the lake, it picks up moisture (water), and then when it blows across land, we get heavy snow.