The birch tree collects the snow to enhance itself with frosting.  The lines of the bottom branches of a birch seem to always sway downward.  When you trim away some of the bottom branches of the tree, the branches above will grow or sag downward to fill the space, to again hit you in the face as you walk by the tree. The hoar frost on the branches blend in today with the snow that still clings from Saturday's snow.