I want my music

I am the kind of person who likes to listen to rock music. I like old rock, and new rock. I like metal and alternative. I do not care much for pop or country music. I also like to listen to the radio to hear the new music. Living in Northern Maine is difficult for me sometimes, because up here, there are no stations that play current rock or metal. Most of the radio stations up in Northern Maine are different. There is a station that plays classic rock, one that plays country music, one that plays smooth listening, and many that play pop music, but there is not one station that focuses on the new and harder rock. In the area that I used to live in, there is a plethora of music stations coming from Rochester and Buffalo, which I could tune into and almost immediately find a new song to my liking, or even an old song from the 90’s that I have forgotten about. There is though one thing that I have to say about one of the stations up here, every Thursday night from 6 to 7, the classic rock station plays music from local bands. They call the segment Back Yard Buzz. Any one who lives in Northern Maine and hasn’t heard it yet has to tune in on your FM dial to 101.9.

If you can't stand the heat, come to the north.

What is the one thing that is on most peoples’ minds, and I don’t mean what happens in the bedroom? I have to say that the one thing that I hear from most people, anywhere I go, is what you do think about this weather. I tend to think a lot of the differences in the winter weather between Northern Maine and New York. Though both places are extremely cold, and both places get snow, that is just about the extent of the similarities. When I was growing up in New York, I thought that there was no way that it could get any colder, but I was wrong. I now realize how warm it actually was down there and sincerely miss the 20 degrees F. weather, especially when it is -10. According to the weather channel, it was 3 degrees in Presque Isle, and 28 degrees in Western New York on 2-2-2010. As any person living in any of the northern states knows, 28 degrees in the winter is not too shabby compared to a frostbitten 3 degrees. It is often this cold in Northern Maine and very rarely in Western NY.

The temperature is not the only difference in the winter weather. You can not forget about snow when talking about northern states. People in Northern Maine often complain about the amount of snow that we get up here. Though Northern Maine may get a lot of snow compared to much of the country, when comparing Northern Maine with Western NY, the western part of NY has definitely got it in the bag. The truth is, the average snowfall for the winter season in Caribou Maine is about 120 inches according to visit Aroostook. It is true that 120 inches of snow is quite a bit, and up here where it is so cold, the snow hardly ever gets a chance to melt. According to Cornell University, the average amount of snow fall on the winter season for Western New York is anywhere from 120 inches to 180 inches. Why does the western part of New York get all of that snow? Well it is because of lake effect snow coming off of the great lakes. The weather channels definition of lake effect snow is when “a mass of sufficiently cold air moves over a body of warmer water, creating an unstable temperature profile in the atmosphere.” This results in a development of clouds that turn into snow showers and storms. The wind then pushes the clouds further into colder weather making the clouds rise higher and the snow to fall even more. Even with all of the snow that accumulates in Western NY, it does not stick around as long as the lesser snow in Northern Maine, because of the increased temps. The lack of snow in Northern Maine makes for nicer driving, but anyone knows that even though there might not be snow on the ground, you still have to be careful in the winter due to black ice. I love the temps and the snowfall in Western NY, when I do not have to go anywhere, but I would much rather drive on the almost bare roads of Northern Maine, than have to struggle to see the lines in Western NY.

My Two Homes

Hello everyone, my name is Mary. I am a liberal arts student at Northern Maine Community College. I consider myself to have two homes. I have found that I am like most people in the school in the sense that I am not originally from northern Maine. I was born and raised in the great state of New York, and though many of you reading this may see New York and think of a callused woman from the rough city streets, I will inform you now that you are thinking of the wrong part of the state. New York is actually a rather big state; in fact, it is almost 55,000 square miles, whereas New York City takes up only 305 of those square miles. New York State is set apart in three sections, Upstate, Western, and New York City. Most people immediately think of the city when they hear New York, but my home town is about a six hour drive from the city in Western New York.


Western New York is not much different from where I am currently living in Northern Maine. My two homes are similar in quite a few ways, but they also have minor differences. Both states are extremely beautiful and vast. I love them both, and miss each one when I am in the other. I often think about the little differences between
the two, the people, the food, the agriculture, the
landscape, and the subject that has been on the minds of the freezing people in Northern Maine, the weather. Since a blog is a place to explore what is on one’s mind, these are the topics that I will be exploring in upcoming entries.
This picture has been provided by google images