Snow Much for January!

So, to add to the…delight…of returning to the school/work/etc. routine after a long weekend, Team WestEnders hadn’t even settled in yet when the rumors of potential “impending snow” began to fly around. We approached this with our usual Northern…ish…cynicism, adopting our standard “Yeah, right, we’ll just see about that” outlook. But the forecast in this case continued to spiral downward into more and more dire territory…from 1-2 inches …to 2-4…3-6…and finally topping out at 4-8. Now, this is pretty serious for Chapel Hill, NC, y’all!

Therefore, it surprised exactly NO ONE when school was cancelled the night before there was even one glimpse of the white stuff, due to the anticipated timing of the storm--which was expected to bring precipitation all day, rather than the more considerate scenario of piling up while we slept. (You know, to add frosty insult to injury...or whatever...) And—wonder of wonders—that’s precisely what happened. It started out as gentle flurries early in the a.m. on Wednesday, but quickly gathered steam, and began accumulating before long. And for once, it was big, fat, fluffy flakes, rather than the dry pellets or sleet that usually come down from our skies.

In case you think I might be exaggerating (Moi? Okay, okay, your suspicions are justified…) let me put it to you this way: even I stayed home to work remotely in my pjs from the upstairs office, rather than brave the roads—even in the trusty Subaru! Good thing, too, since the weather—in contrast to its typical behavior—followed the script pretty much to the letter this time. The snow came down—and piled up--at a steady pace all day long, until I figured I’d better go out there and shovel some of it off the driveway, if I had any hope of making a break for it in my getaway car over the next couple of days.

That proved to be a wise decision, since pushing around and lifting 6 inches of that wet, heavy stuff was just about all I could handle, and our steep, 25-ish-yard driveway doesn’t exactly provide easy terrain. Fortunately, Riley was so bored by this time that he voluntarily came out to help, making the job both speedier and easier in the process…otherwise I might STILL be out there slogging away.

When all was said and done, and the comments started trickling in from friends in various parts of town (using the totally reliable, scientifically verified “yardstick method”) folks reported no fewer than 8 inches in their neighborhoods…with one person claiming an entire FOOT around her house. Sheesh! Did I go to sleep in North Carolina…and wake up in North Dakota?

Obviously, there was no doubt that the kids would be out of school on Thursday…and we assumed Friday was probably a wash as well. (Especially given the fact that a few weeks ago, when we recorded a HALF INCH of the slippery stuff, they were home for 2 days.) My limited experience with our own driveway clearly indicated that it would take time and man...er, "humanpower" to sweep the sidewalks and plow the roads and parking lots after this much accumulation—even WITH motorized equipment that I didn’t have at my disposal. The brilliant sunshine and rising temperatures helped to kick off the melting as well, but of course the battle reset to Square One every night, as whatever hadn’t completely dried during the daytime hours would refreeze all over again.

Not having found my experimental day at the Home Office to be terribly...productive...I ventured out into the frozen tundra on Thursday morning, to attempt navigating the 5 miles to my actual workplace. Aaannnnd, let’s just say it was…an adventure. I bypassed several side streets entirely, based on how dicey they looked while creeping by, and opted for the larger interstate-type road, rather than the hilly, winding route I normally take. Still…I was shocked to see that the entire surface, from one sideline all the way across to the other, was a solid sheet of crusty covering, without a single visible glimpse of black pavement whatsoever. Gulp. Suffice it to say, I gripped the wheel and drove like a little old lady, topping out at about 25 miles per hour and taking care to make no sudden moves.

So, it took quite a while, but I did arrive safely…to my building’s uncleared parking lot…where I was the only vehicle in sight. (Hmm, which spot should I take—oh, who cares, they’re all mine! Mwah hah hah!) However, it was actually super-fun to be the first one to make tracks through the snow, carving my path up to the door. Then I puttered around our suite—profoundly alone—for several hours, playing music as loudly as I wished, taking care of business…and, to be honest, occasionally talking out loud to myself, since it was so dang quiet.

At 2 p.m. when I was ready to head out the door, I was again startled—this time in a good way—by the changes brought about by the morning’s stretch of above-freezing temps and solar rays. Where there had been copious amounts of packed ice, there was now slush, or wet asphalt peeking through, or even dry patches, in some cases. Hallelujah! The ride home was therefore MUCH less stressful..not to mention significantly faster!

Well, there you have it: the (hopefully ONLY) major Winter Weather Event of 2018. The boys get to enjoy their outdoor time playing in it…it’s lovely to look at…and now it can go away, right? Looking ahead, the mercury is supposed to be climbing for the next several days, until it might hit 60 degrees on Sunday. Ah, now THAT’S more like it! After a frigid, (relatively) snowy January so far, I’ll take a hard-earned taste of early Spring, thankyouverymuch! In fact, it's projected to be so pleasant that all I have to do now is figure out a way to walk or run...around the remaining slick areas...and massive puddles. Great Outdoors, here we come!