FRIDAY 13th: If you’re around tomorrow you may get to witness
first hand just what “squaw winter” is.

Snow. And, if everything goes according to plan, it will be
followed by a period of beautiful fall weather.

A reader had asked the other day if anyone could explain this
expression and indeed they could.

Jim Belardia provided an explanation we heard quite a few times
throughout the day: Squaw winter is a brief snowfall that must come
before we can have a true Indian summer.

The legend is “as old as the hills,” according to a couple of
our callers including Dorothy Shoff of Duke Center (who is a legend
in herself as one of the newsroom’s most veteran correspondents)
and Syd Stahlman. Beverly Holmes who grew up in Erie was also
familiar with the expression, having heard it from her mom and
dad.

One of the reports indicated the snow – to be “official” – must
lie on the ground at least overnight.

Richard Payne of Bradford phoned Wednesday to tell us the snow
cannot be “just a little slush” but rather several inches of the
white stuff. When we asked what a sufficient quantity might be, he
said “you’ll know when it’s enough.”

Let’s hope today’s Friday the 13th snowfall isn’t too bad. Not
only would that dampen our spirits but it would probably bring down
some of our gorgeous foliage. The trees are already starting to
have that skinny look and one of most “unbearable” parts of winter
is the “bare” trees.

LONG ARMS?: Speaking of foliage, a photo in Monday’s paper was
of the colorful trees at the Pine Acres Country Club – which,
according to the caption, was taken from Minard Run Road.

Era photographer Francie Long had taken the shot and one reader
called to inquire if she had “long” arms – something she would have
needed since Minard Run Road is a significant distance from Pine
Acres.

Actually, Francie does not write the captions in the paper. The
reporters do that. Francie, of course, would have known that Minard
Run is actually the road near the Pennhills Club. The reporter
obviously had a slight mental lapse.

AND ALSO: Forgive us. We have reverted today to the pun which,
with good reason, is called the lowest form of humor. Sometimes, we
just can’t resist.