Pickled Ginger & the Weather - what the ...??

What's up with the prevalence of pickled ginger lately?

How does this happen? Two weeks ago, I had a bunch of ginger - okay, I bought it because I thought about pickling it since there isn't much going on in the pickle department this time of year. But instead, I ended up preserving it per Kitchen Quick Tips from Cook's Illustrated - one of my nifty Christmas presents from MotH. I've preserved it in sherry (p. 254-5). I tried the sherry before doing so ... the ginger is only going to make the sherry better. Not my thing and I wonder how all those little old ladies drink it -- maybe it's better cold... but - blech. I have recently found a couple of recipes using sherry and ginger so that should prove beneficial.
So yesterday -- I'm reading Fine Cooking (Feb/Mar 2010) and there is a great little article (page 18)  on pickled ginger....

and then today -- there's this...

So I guess I'll be buying some more ginger to try pickling. I do make sushi at home, so it won't just be for show, but how strange is this... anyway. Back to the store for more ginger. I wonder if I can grow some here that's edible. I'll have to find out...

So Friday, it snowed (if 5 flakes count - and I think they do) and was miserable and gray and in return we were rewarded with a BEAUTIFUL Saturday and Sunday. Sunday was windows open, short sleeved shirt, blue sky kind of perfect. Winter in North Gulf Coast Florida - that's how it should be.