My friend Dave reports that the temperature was 84 in Brunswick, Georgia on Tuesday and he was having some difficulty with the pollen in the air.

Here in the North Country, we’ve been dazzled by nearly two feet of fresh powder this week. Even in the dead of night, there’s so much new snow around that the trees, the roads and even the clouds are glowing. And here in the North Country, madness is about to set in.

No, dear reader, this temporary insanity has nothing to do with the need to inch around intersections because the towering glacial walls prevent a clear look into oncoming traffic. It exists separate from the necessity of attaching crampons to our blizzard boots in order to retrieve mail from those boxes not taken out by overtired plow drivers. Full moon? Nope.

Tonight, the Vermont State Youth Hockey Championships begin.

We are a unique subset, we hockey parents. Since October, we have been chauffeuring our future Wayne Gretzkys and Sidney Crosbys to ice arenas all around the state. We share this task with others all across the northern border, Minnesotans and Michaganders and on a MUCH grander scale on their southern border, Albertans and New Brunswickers and just up the road, our Quebecois amigos. We speak in code, talking about poke checks and third lines and the top shelf. We know where to find every good cup of coffee on every winding Green Mountain road. We spend our winter weekends waking up at 5:00 am to make the a two hour trip for a one-hour game. We can get there from here.

We have known for some time that for our Bantam B boys, the tournament would take place across the state in St. Albans. While our thirteen and fourteen-year old future hall of famers are practicing breakouts and one-timers, we’re busy preparing by making banners and signs and hotel reservations. At 7:35 tonight, you will find us in the bleachers at the Collins Perley Arena, a hootin’ and a hollerin’ and rooting our boys onto victory. We have a terrific team that has really come together in the past month, unable to lose even when they were forced to play three games in a day and a half. And we Lyndonvillers are a loud bunch. Our home arena is one of the state’s coldest and even if we don’t howl to stay warm, we’re more passionate than most. It’s the Kingdom way. Hockey parents know of what I speak.

Back in the mid 1980′s, I had the good fortune to work for the Hartford Whalers. I was the arena announcer, that person charged with working the crowd into a frenzy, so that screams and applause would reverberate not only throughout the Civic Center, but would also spill out onto the streets of downtown. It was fun. Lots of fun. But this is more fun. Really. My excitement grows by the minute.

I will keep you updated, and if any Squirt & PeeWee parents are reading, let us know how your teams are doing. I’ve got the contract for the Bantams.

Let the games begin!!

–SN