What a Difference a Day can Make*

* I promise this is my last blizzard related post!

Blizzard Aftermath

What People Do When it Snows

Back in college I was a sociology major for a semester or two. If I remember correctly, sociology is the study of social behavior?

Today I woke up super early despite having the day off of school. I decided I should prepare for this mega storm and headed to the grocery store. Here is what I discovered...

With the impending storm, people exhibit certain habits. They run to the store and buy cans of tuna, baking supplies, prepared meals, packaged cold cuts, apples, and bread. I get it. You can make tuna or PB sandwiches, eat apples and cookies all with no power.

People also buy bags of candy, chicken, ice cream, frozen pizza, yogurt (especially Chobani) and cookie dough. I guess blizzard is code for binge-fest. With the exception of raw chicken and frozen pizza, you can just nom it all if the power goes out.

Also I found this:

I don't really know what to say about this.

I've never understood the whole buying milk thing. If the power goes out, it will be one of the first things to go bad. This guy really needed his milk and bread though.

Pretty much every New Englander.

I also don't really understand the gas thing...unless it's gas for a generator? Why gas up a car you won't be able to drive? The first gas station I drove by HAD NO GAS LEFT. It was like the f'ing apocalypse. Luckily I live in a tiny town and my local gas station had gas and looked like this:

So I now have a full tank of gas (for what I'm not sure), some cereal, Cheez-its, and Clif Bars. I'm excited about the prospect of thunder snow but I already have cabin fever. Let's just hope it's light, fluffy snow that is easy to shovel.

   

Live Action Blogging: BLIZZARD!!!

Thursday 6:00 pm - OMG why isn't school cancelled tomorrow??

Thursday 7:30 pm - Crisis averted, SNOW DAY! I'm going to sleep forever!

__________________________

Friday 6:30 am - I'm awake. Why am I awake?

Friday 8:20 am - Guess I better "prepare" for this storm somehow. What does that even mean? Gas up the car? Groceries? Take the snow brush out of the car?

Friday 8:45 am - Groceries...check. Gas...station EMPTY.

Friday 11:00 am - It's snowing....now what?

Friday 2:00 pm - Watching 4 episodes of The Bachelor seems like a great idea.

Friday 2:05 pm - GIRLS ARE CRAZY!

Friday 3:30 pm - Driving is BANNED in the state of Massachusetts. Guess I'm not going anywhere ever again.

Friday 4:00 pm - One of my third graders finds and follows my Instagram. DEFCON 5.

Friday 4:14 pm - Crisis averted.

Friday 5:00 pm - I should probably charge my phone or something.

Friday 6:00 pm - OMG SOOOOO ANTSY!

BLIZZARD!

And not the Dairy Queen kind.

Guess where I live?

I don't even know what to do with myself. Fill up the car that I won't be able to drive? Buy groceries I won't be able to cook if the power goes out?

And I was wide awake at 6:30 am on my snow day. Boo.

I bet the weathermen are regretting naming this storm Nemo. With the threat of thunder snow this storm deserves a name like Thor or Hulk.

Where Do Snowmen Come From?

Dear Local Church,

Although I am not a religious person, I look forward to reading your inspiring and uplifting messages each week. But I have to admit, this week you have me stumped.

I get the unassembled part...snowmen fall as snow. Everyone knows that snowmen are unassembled cloud babies. The whole heaven part has me confused. 

Now, my knowledge of churchy things is limited to an undergrad "Intro to World Religions" course and the movie Dogma, so correct me if I'm wrong. But isn't Lucifer/Satan the angel that fell from heaven? Does this mean that snowmen are actually unassembled devils? Snowdemons if you will? This has me concerned as my third graders are currently trying to build the largest possible snowman out of the pittance of snow that is still on the ground.

So will someone please explain this to me before I spend the next week dreaming about being attacked by an army of snowdemons!

This is What Happens...

When you go to school while basically EVERYONE else has a snow day.

• You check the news to make sure that school really isn't cancelled.
• You shuffle down the stairs through 5ish inches of snow.
• You thank Mother Nature for snowing light, fluffy snow while you brush off your car.

• You slip and slide and have trouble driving to school.

• You laugh when another teacher told you she took a sleeping pill at 1 am because she assumed it would be a snow day.
• You cringe when a different teacher tells you she spun her car into a stone wall on the way to work.
• You wonder why you didn't at least have a delay as a third grader tells you that her bus went over a curb today.
• You shake your head when your class is crazysauce because it's snowing.
• You take pictures of third graders making snow angels.

• You laugh when they tell you their butts are wet after making snow angels.
• You are glad that you FINALLY bought a real, grown up winter coat.
• You have sopping wet feet after recess in the slush.
• You ask the nurse if she has any dry socks.
• You wear little boys socks for the rest of the day. 
• You play geography games while running homework room at extended day.
• You get home and just want to snuggle forever and ever.

What a Wonderful First Day of December!

I woke up to flurries

And bundled up to brave the mall.

Where I bought out all of Target and Michaels so I could begin Christmas crafty projects.

And I may have impulse bought these:

And now I'm watching Elf...

SANTA!!! I KNOW HIM!

By colored twinkle light.

Perfect.

  

Time Flies

I can't believe it's the middle of November already!

It seems like we JUST went back to school. The fact that my class is crazy and has taken 50 school days to calm down hasn't helped matters.

And my gorgeous, sunny, brisk October was replaced by a warm and swampy month. We had a hurricane two days before Halloween followed up by the first snowstorm a week later. Pull your shit together Mother Nature!

But my real concern is that Christmas is being forced down my throat whether I want it or not. Target was decorated for Christmas BEFORE Halloween. That is UNACCEPTABLE! Why do we have to rush things? Can't we celebrate Christmas at Christmastime?

November has been surprisingly lovely weather-wise. I've done some crafting and visiting with friends and have tried to avoid anything Christmas. Now don't get me wrong, I can't wait to cut snowflakes and put up a tree and drink hot cocoa and decorate and watch Elf over and over again. BUT...this cannot begin until AFTER Thanksgiving. After the turkey is eaten and pie is consumed, give me a Christmas only radio station and a cookie baking party.

So for the next week, I will drag my heels and scrooge it up because IT IS NOT CHRISTMAS TIME YET!

Because Thanksgiving is so early this year, I'm mildly afraid I'll use all up of my holiday spirit before we even get to Christmas! So be prepared to sing fa-la-la's with me.

 

Wednesday Was...

• Awesome...because I got the BEST belated birthday present ever from my best red headed Michigander friend.

FYI: I have ZERO recollection of trying to climb that pole. I couldn't even tell you what country it was in.

There could not be a more perfect quote for me. This speaks to my souuuuul.

• Stuffy...because I have a cold and can barely breathe. But I did decide it was better to suffer through  the day with a cold then take nighttime cold medicine at work.
• Busy...because I covered for lots of different teachers during my down time and finished two kid books during the day.
• Snowy...because it snowed.

Guess who lives in that purple circle? #Please don't stalk me.

• Cozy...because I was wrapped up in a scarf all day.
• Festive...because I made heart shamrocks.
• Relieving...because I am no longer a slave to the unemployment Gods. (It went in my favor BTW.)

Leap Day (Leap Year Day?) is like a free space on the 2012 calendar; an extra day to do whatever your heart desires. So on that note, I will be using this extra day to snuggle on the couch, write to some friends, cook a delicious dinner and make the following wish:

I hope tomorrow is a snow day. 

I hope tomorrow is a snow day. 

I hope tomorrow is a snow day.

I hope tomorrow is a snow day.

*New list coming later tonight!

    

Three Day Weekend!

Let's discuss how many agencies contacted me about storm/school cancellations.

1. The police department of the town I live in called to say school was closed.
2. The town I used to work in left a voicemail that school was closed.
3. The town I worked in 2 jobs ago texted me to tell me that school was closed.
4. The superintendent called to tell me school was closed.
5. The next town over (they handle my electricity) called to let me know school was closed (and that trick or treating was rescheduled).

So...the moral of the story is:  SCHOOL IS CLOSED...oh...and don't go trick or treating tomorrow because Halloween is basically cancelled.

No worries...I didn't get to wear my costume and I never carved a pumpkin (because after last year's debacle I was exercising some patience which was interrupted by all the snow).

    

Dear Snow...WTF?

So when I said Happy Fall what I actually meant was Happy Winter?!?  My psyche is all confused because there are 5 inches of wet, wet snow on the ground (and on my car) before Halloween.

Currently, I am sitting in Barnes and Noble along with 300 of my closest friends strangers using their free wi-fi.  Although I have been warned that the tables, chairs, and plugs are reserved for paying customers. (But to be fair there are legitimately 60-70 people in line for coffee.)  I found a secret plug hidden around the corner from the cafe.  Two chairs later and voila I have my own internet station.  I think my ingenuity should be rewarded not punished.

Now...let's back up to Thursday.

Thursday

There was a rumor around school that it was going to snow.  I rolled my eyes at those silly people because it doesn't rarely snows in October...a dusting if anything.  I met some work friends for drinks on Thursday night and by the time we left I needed to dig my snow brush out of my trunk. 

Friday

I entertained the idea of calling in sick to work on my costume for Saturday's Halloween party but my guilt got the best of me.  I left work on Friday and hit up Target, Walmart, the mall, my parent's house, and Walmart again before heading home.  My first trip to Walmart I bought gold spray paint which turned out to be chrome (which P.S. is NOT gold).  But it had a GOLD cap.  On my second trip to Walmart I bought gold spray paint which ALSO had a gold cap.  I got home and spray painted a headband and some Old Navy 2 for $5 flip flops gold.

Saturday

I slept in.  Like a lot.  Then I watched some teenage soap operas.  When I finally got around to putting my costume together it started to snow...and snow and snow and snow.  I bailed on the party, wasted a fun costume and watched Hocus Pocus on ABC family.  Then the power went out.  Then the power came on.  Then the power went out.  Then my phone died.  Then I lit some candles and went to bed early.

Sunday

I drove over to my parent's house to use their computer and their laundry services.  Turns out...their yard looks like this:

so needless to say they have no power which is why I am at Barnes and Noble.

The leaves on these maples hadn't even turned yellow yet!  The weight of the wet snow on the leaves was just too much.  All over town there are limbs and powerlines down, entire trees uprooted or split in half.  It's pretty crazysauce.

Today I...

...lived in a snow globe.  Despite it being above freezing, there were flurries in the air all day (minus the two minute icy blizzard I drove through on the way to dinner!)  No actual snow landed on the ground.  Instead, flakes just floated around and around.



Yes, my eyelashes are almost as long as my four fingers.  What?


...eagerly accepted a dinner invite for grilled pizza at my parent's house.  The spring snow has me grasping at anything that hints towards warm weather.

...went to the gym.  I've stopped mooching off K's guest pass and officially joined to work towards #19 on The List.  K has also committed to running a 5K although, as a college athlete she should meet that goal much sooner than me (whose only claim to athleticism is Wii bowling.)  *Bonus:  I brought a book to the gym so I could multitask and work towards #2 and #19 simultaneously.

This Is NOT Okay!

Um...hello!  Yesterday I documented my excitement for the arrival of spring only to open my shades today to this!  Spring is a time for flip flops, walks outside and iced lattes...not for snow.

I'll make you a deal Mother Nature.  If I promise to get out of bed before 11 am tomorrow and wear matching socks will you promise to bring back the sun and 60 degree temps?

Happy Land-Beaver Day!

According to Wikipedia a groundhog is also called a land-beaver.  Seriously!

Let's hope that Land-Beaver Day 2011 is nothing like the Groundhog Day movie because shoveling snow over and over and over again is something I spent the entire month of January doing and I'm kind of over it.

Today the land-beaver is supposed to come out of his burrow.  If it is cloudy he tells the mayor in some type of beaver/human hybrid language that spring is coming.  If it is sunny, he seeks shelter in his bunker for six more weeks of winter.  Seems simple enough.

But let's discuss the validity of this seasonal prediction.

A.  It seems from this photo that the land-beaver doesn't have much say in retreating to his bunker as he is hoisted up to be photographed while having the life squeezed out of him by an old man in a top hat.

B.  Maybe the land-beaver is a party animal and the sun just messes with his hangover?

C.  Perhaps the land-beaver exits his bunker and thinks "fuck it's freezing" and doesn't care if it's sunny or not.

If I was a betting woman I would venture a guess that Phil the land-beaver will not see his shadow today.  If the weather is Pennsylvania is anything like the weather in Massachusetts today the poor fellow's bunker will probably look like this:

Bring on spring land-beaver!



Update:  The land-beaver sees no shadow.  Spring is imminent.

Dear Snow,

Do you remember when you were whimsical and picturesque?

Now you are just a pain in the ass. 

Please stop.  Otherwise I will have to shovel out my window as well as my car.



XOXO,

Amy

A BAD Idea

Waiting until the day after the storm to dig out your car is a BAD idea.

The Boxtown got 20 or so inches of snow.  That's a lot.  And yes, I know that it snows in New England and I shouldn't complain blah blah blah.  BUT it seems as if Bloomberg was directing the plowing of my apartment complex during this storm.

It was still snowing a bit as the sun was setting yesterday so I decided to wait until morning to dig out my car.  Again let me state that this was a BAD idea.  Everyone who had to be up and out for work early this morning got their cars out first...mostly by adding the snow blocking their vehicle to the snowbank in front of my vehicle. 

I know that it snowed a lot and that I was in for quite a bit of shoveling but I was completely unprepared for this:

 SERIOUSLY?

That SNOWBANK in front of my car was 3 feet high in places and a good 4 feet wide.  Thanks for the crappy plow job and to my crappy neighbors who helped make a sledding hill in front of my car!

One hour and a billion shovelfuls of snow later, I was able to extricate my car from its snowy sarcophagus but cutting a hard right around the third of the snowbank that I left for someone else to deal with.



So. Things we learned today:  dig your car out of the snow before your neighbors do.

Oh and another piece of advice I learned this week:  while you may think that parking your car in front of a church is a safe bet...parking in front of a church overnight in the city is a BAD idea.

A Snow Day Pictorial Equation

Plus

 Plus

Equals:
A less productive day than I was anticipating.

Snow and Movies

Mother Nature delivered.

During the blizzard I had a love affair with my Netflix Instant Queue.  I'm not about to reveal how many movies I actually watched in the last 48 hours but I did find time to dig my car out of a snow bank.  I watched some independent films (I'm Reed Fish) as well as some that I was unwilling to pay to see in a theater...coughthebountyhuntercough. 

The best movie I watched was Zombieland.  As a general rule, I steer clear of anything zombie related.  Zombies just don't do it for me.  But I had heard that the movie was good, so I sat down with some lunch and hit play...then I hit stop about 2 minutes in.  It is not a watch-while-eating movie (at least for me).  Later in the evening, I was ready to commit and I laughed out loud.  I hope that I am never faced with a zombie apocalypse but just incase, I think I should start working on my cardio.

Today I Almost Freaked Out in a Public Place

The weatherman promised me a blizzard today...so far I see only paper snow flakes.   

While waiting for my snow, I partook in the traditional pre-blizzard activities of shopping for groceries and parking my car to minimize my post-blizzard digging out time. 

It was in the parking lot of the grocery store where I almost freaked out.  After purchasing all of my blizzard essentials I walk back to my blue Corolla which was parked three cars from the end of the row.  I look up and someone is in my car stealing things from my backseat.  I have several thoughts at once.  Do I run up to my car and start shouting obscenities?  Did I leave anything of value in my backseat?  Seriously?  I've already had enough car trouble this week.

Then I realize that someone is putting things INTO my backseat...namely balloons.  Balloons that say "Happy Birthday" so I decide to kindly ask the person what they are doing instead of delivering the verbal assault that was on the tip of my tongue.  But...it's not my birthday.  So now I am confused.

I walk all the way up to my car and glance at the license plate which is in fact, not mine.  It turns out my blue Corolla was parked in the same spot in the NEXT row.  Oops!

Glad that I didn't embarrass myself in public, I drove home and assumed the correct parking position for an impending blizzard.  Back into the spot, windshield wipers up, and bring the snow brush in the house.  Last winter when I was an amateur apartment dweller, I spent many a frustrating hour shoveling out my car.  This year, I have gone pro...even the neighbors are copying my style!

So for now, I am tucked away in my apartment with all my single girl blizzard essentials:

comfy sweats

Spaghetti O's

chocolate chip cookies

Netflix Instant Queue

new nail polish

a bottle of wine

Here's hoping that it snows 12-18 inches of light fluffy snow and that the power remains on.