There is less ice on the Great Lakes this year than there has been for many years. And that's changing the way people who live on the Lakes' islands live.

Many traditional features of winter for residents of small island and coastal communities are absent this year, according to this interesting article in the New York Times. Ice fishing and driving across the ice to visit other communities are just a few of the activities that are not possible this year. Global warming or weather cycles? Different people disagree, but no one argues that things are different this year.