New Speculation About the Tunguska Event

One good thing about this intrusion of arctic air that I feel when I go outside: most everyone else north of Mexico is feeling it, too. Sometimes the deep blue bulge of cold air only covers the Great Lakes and environs, plus other places where state law mandates subfreezing temps for months at a time, such as North Dakota. Sunday was rainy but in the 40s; yesterday was clear and down close to zero; today was a little warmer, but snow fell from noon till evening.

Lilly has taken to playing WLIT, the pro tem Christmas music station, from time to time again this year. At least they're playing Jimmy Durante's version of "Frosty the Snowman." Lilly asked who he was, with such a distinctive voice, and I told her.

During someone-or-other's version of "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer," I suggested to her that Santa was so touchy about flying blind because one year his sleigh had crashed with great force, like a meteor. After all, he's going pretty fast.

If I'd thought of it, I would a suggested it as an explanation for the Tunguska Event in 1908. That happened in summer, but maybe Kris was out on a test run. He managed to eject, but the sleigh went down in Siberia, taking out all his reindeer, millions of trees, and an unknown number of residents of the Russian Empire.