So you are dreaming of a white Christmas! Well be careful because you might just get what you are wishing for! If you really need white for christmas, and the cost of a chalet at Whistler is just out of your reach I have the perfect optional vacation for you. Come and visit beautiful Minnedosa, Manitoba. Home to Just Jake and his ever increasing herd of critters.

Minnedosa is a pretty town nestled in a valley with a beautiful lake, good restaurants and lots of fluffy white snow. Hotel rooms are inexpensive and there is even a free community christmas dinner so that you will not go hungry.You can skidoo for miles on groomed trails, visit Riding Mountain National Park for cross country skiing and if you get lonely for the smell of a horse you can join me for chores. Im just a short 32 kilometres our of town as long as you can find the road in the blowing snow. Make sure you rent a truck or 4WD SUV because the drifts get a might deep this time of year.

Ah yes,the snow you are dreaming of. Today the forecast was for 5 to 10 centimetres of the fluffy stuff. Well don't rely on the weatherman. We got a fresh foot of the solid form of rain in the sheltered spots. Out in the open where the wind blows there are drifts 2 to 3 foot deep covering my driveway. Thank you to the man that designed my 72 inch blower and the warm cab on a 100 HP tractor.

While pretty to look at, snow is truly the proverbial PITA! It makes life miserable, even in the Fraser Valley where winter driving skills are few and far between. Even in Manitoba where we have the warm clothes, 4WD vehicles and big tractors with blowers to clear the way, each additional snowfall somehow diminishes ones poetic desire for a traditional white celebration.

 So yes, Jake is a grinch. It is still 6 days to winter and I have snow measured in feet not inches everywhere. It lost it's charm a few weeks ago. So be careful - I just may find a way to send it your way!

PS: If your wondering about the prairie valley paradise that Jake calls home visit www.discoverminnedosa.com Fed up with life in the fast lane - check out the new residents guide!