February 10, 2010

The Blizzard


Today Philadelphia was hit with a record-breaking snowstorm. There hasn't been a blizzard like this in the city for a million years.

I feel incredibly fortunate to be in the right place at the right time.

Our family's fun began when we woke up this morning to find snow up to our windows. Our elderly neighbor has a snow blower that was manufactured, we estimate, sometime during World War II. Tim offered to remove the snow from Darlene's driveway if she would let us use the contraption to remove the snow from ours as well.

To everyone's great joy and no one's surprise, the snow blower sputtered to a halt right after Tim finished clearing Darlene's driveway and right before he started on ours.

Darlene expressed her condolences by offering my husband a flag-shaped lollipop with the phrase "Happy 4th of July" printed on its wrapper.

36 comments

Annie B Larson said...

This is the reason I think we should always have some homemade cookies around. I have had several neighbors take pity on me when my husband can't get to the snow. They are so kind to go the extra mile.

Michelle said...

Sorry the snow blower bit the dust!

Here in Baltimore we are on the 3rd snow in a week, 2nd blizzard. Kids and I have been snowed in since Friday afternoon.

CountessLaurie said...

I am sorry for your loss of the "machine"!!

Hope you get unburied soon!

Mad Mrs. E said...

A flag shaped lollipop? That's kind of sweet! (pun possibly intended!)

we're feeling the same storm here in D.C.!

Confessions of a Mother, Lawyer & Crazy Woman said...

I am DC/Balt (in btw). Earlier this week we got 38 inches, now I am looking out the window at 20-30 MORE inches. June, I predict, we will dug out.

the thrifty ba said...

i didnt realize you lived in philly! i lived in south philly (10th and tree) most of my life, but i still have family in ridley park and right next to valley forge park (you can see that big flag from their home). (im in utah now)
my aunt said she has quite a bit-maybe 20" but still managed to get out and have lunch with a friend in center city.
best wishes! when stuck inside too long with family-it can be painful no matter how much you love them!

Sami said...

Well, I guess your husband is lucky he started with Darlene's driveway. After all, if he had started with yours, and then had the machine die, he may not have been rewarded in such a generous manner!

Angelica Bays, TygrLilies.blogspot.com said...

Guffaw!!
Oh! I scared the cat I laughed so loud!

Carrie said...

I am in Chester County PA- you know the area that was in that little circle that got the highest amount! They said it was 22, honestly it looked like more then Saturday's amounts. On the bright side I am a teacher so no school for me. On the bad side, my husband couldn't go to work and complained the entire day about all the work he missed. If the road's aren't passable tomorrow, I am personally dragging him in a sled the 20 miles to work.

Raelin said...

Does this mean you don't want to hear that it was sunny and 60 degrees today in Southern California??

Our state might be in th etoilet right now.. but hey the sun is free and we have it in abundance!

Elle said...

I'm also in Chester County and we had an insane amount of snow. I can't find my patio table that my husband didn't deem necessary to remove before the season hit! Guess who gets a new table this year!
Good luck digging out, I know what I'll be doing today!

Hildie said...

At least you got some snow. My kids pout all winter long about how unfair it is that we live in Texas and how they'll never see snow again as long as they live. I guess this makes me the worst mother ever.

Dumb kids.

Rayli said...

hope the lollipop is not as old as the snow blower... but it probably is.

j and s (but mainly s) said...

I have been watching the news and waiting for you to write about it. I'm sure the kids are finding interesting things to do in the snow/while cooped up.

brittany said...

I'm in Washington DC and it really is Snowmaggedon here. We've, fortunately, not lost power once. So we've been inside watching Netflix streaming and eating what little food I had stocked in the freezer and pantry.

Lauren Borquez said...

I hate to say I'm just a bit jealous only got one inch in Alabama!

The Four Week Vegan said...

That's a heck of a lot of snow!!! Stay warm.

Emmy said...

Well at least he got to serve :) And yes your snow is insane!!

Malea said...

I love your ironic sense of humor. And the bright 61 degree sun that is currently streaming through my window....

Emz said...

OMGosh - this is reason #474 why I live in ARIZONA!! ;)

Andrea said...

ah, I love presents from old people. My neighbor loves to give us bags of soaps from hotels and the various cruises she and her husband had gone in in the last 3 decades.

Mindy said...

My family is envious!! (No, not of the broken antique.. of the snow silly!) We haven't received snow in those amounts (yet) this winter, and we hope to see them, soon!

DiggyDaddy said...

Wow, now that's weather. I'm in LA where cold is anything under 70 degrees. We say snow and my two boys think Snowcone. Enjoy and be safe.

Laura said...

I know everyone is hating me right now, but I keep leaving comments about how I am just a wee bit jealous of you guys out there. Big snows like that remind me of my childhood. I would love nothing more than to be snowed in for a few days!

vanilla said...

That outcome was predictable-- except for the lollipop, of course.

May you get safely un-snowblocked.

Kelly said...

That is just too funny to be real! I 4th of July lollipop? What the? My husband and boys dug 4 people (including us) out of this blizzard. He broke our shovel. Too bad the other one is buried in the snow just where it ought to be right now huh?

The Novelist said...

Now your kids can tell their own kids stories of "the big storm of 2010" when they are older. They can herald them with things like: "It was so deep we had to dig a tunnel to get out of our house." or "We had to use candles for three days and 4 nights because the snow went over the roof and no light could penetrate." or "We were starving and the only thing we could eat was melted snow with one carrot in it for soup." That would be awesome.

Unknown said...

That's called Murphy's Law, right?!!

Geezees Custom Canvas Art said...

Love the Lollipop...we got a lot of snow here in PA too!

Anonymous said...

Crazy!! And here in warm, rainy south coast British Columbia, we are trying to host the Winter Olympics. I think it's spring already!! (Last year was our crazy snow year - we don't get much snow during the winter either - maybe a week or two)
Carmen

canadianmom said...

We got that same amount of snow in Southern Alberta (Canada for those who don't know their geography) back in December.. a huge blizzard hit the day after my 4th child was born. It was really depressing to watch the snow rise higher and higher and having to stay an extra day at the hospital because the roads were impassible. Finally my husband sized the opportunity a couple days later and started digging out the driveway to get me and my son home. My husband was shoveling snow that was high to his waist and my father who lives a couple blocks came to come help dig and watch the kids. Then neighbors came to help and between the 5 of them, it was 2 hours before the truck was out and the driveway was cleared. The highway conditions were so bad only 4 wheel vehicles were out and even that was dicey... after picking us up from the hospital the storm came back again making the visibility horrendous and we were at a snail's pace, the 1/2 hour drive took us nearly 2 hours because we couldn't even see the road sometimes. To top that off, I guess Canadians are used to this type of weather, school wasn't even cancelled!! Hah, and I so had planned to keep the kids in and drink hot chocolate all day.

Renate Hunter said...

Alberta person, we get your Alberta clippers in Iowa all the time....I have cousins in Edmonton--I love Canada!! Any how, welcome to our world in the midwest. We have had BIG snowfalls in Dec, Jan, Feb and have been out of school so much that we have over a week to tack at the end. Being a HS teacher, its like a snail moving trying to get though material. But it will be good stories for our children to tell their off spring.... :)I just enjoy it by cross country skiing.

Megan said...

that global warming is so tricky, isn't she?!

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