snow daze

I used to get excited for snow

    All you teachers and former teachers will understand.
     A heavy snowfall meant no school.  A day to sit in, relax in front of the fire, read, snack at will.....
     But now, everyday is a snow day.
     One time, years ago, it had snowed and snowed a lot.  We lived on Skare Court and I always listened to WRHL when the first flakes hit.
     This was a morning that I might have needed to go in a little early to "finish up" lesson plans for the day.
     I waited until after 7, and no closing, so I drove in.
     This was in the pre cell phone days.
     It took my half an hour to get in....and when I got there, I was the only car in the lot!
     I went in and called home......the radio had announced no school just as I was pulling out of the driveway.
     So I sat there for a while, answering the phone and telling people there was no school.  I think the custodian eventually showed up.
     Years before I started teaching I worked at the newspaper.  I was in the Oregon office of The Life.       We didn't have a lot of money, and we needed two cars.
      So I bought a beater.  This car didn't have a heat, but the radio worked.
      It didn't have snow tires, but I bought some tire chains to put on for a heavy snow.
     The day finally came when I had to get to Oregon, there was a lot of snow, and I put on the chains.
     I had no idea how these were put on, but I put them on and started driving.
    There was a  "whump, whump, whump" noise all the way over.  I had to turn the radio up full blast  to drown out the noise.
     When I parked in Oregon, I got out and discovered I didn't have any wheel wells left....the chains had beaten the crap out of them.  I guess I was supposed to shorten them.
     Another time I made Jackie drive it and she came to the newspaper office and threw the keys at me.  We were living on Southview Drive, and she drove from there to the office at North Main and Fourth Avenue looking out the window in sub zero temps because not only did the heater not work, the defroster didn't either.  She wanted her car to drive instead, so she could see and be warm.
     Ah yes, snow brings back such fond memories.
     Glad I am retired.