Bare Handed Fall

The cold weather and heavy snow made a slippery obstacle course in our parking lot earlier this month. On my way to the car in the morning, I saw a patch of snow that looked walkable. I stepped on it and my foot instantly slipped and I began falling backwards. 

It felt like slow motion. I wore a book bag, but it started moving off my shoulders as I fell backwards. "That was really ice," I remember thinking. My right foot was up in the air, and my left foot soon followed it. My arms and hands started reaching behind me, ready to brace for the fall when I realized: "I'm not wearing my gloves!"

My hands hit the ground first. I was on my back, my book bag next to me. I rolled to my left, slowly stood up and gingerly stepped off the snow/ice. As I brushed away the dirt and snow on my coat and pants, I felt a sharpness in my hands. I looked and my right hand had several small cuts! It hurt a bit too.

I decided to go back inside and get my hand properly treated. Jenn patched up my hand, applying some expired bacitracin and covering my two larger cuts with bandages. Three weeks later, my hand is all healed up. I'm lucky the fall didn't cause any more damage. I think my heavy winter coat helped with that.

From that day though, I made sure to wear my gloves on the way to the car. I also avoided cutting across those snow patches. Taking a fall when you're older can be a big deal so I will be watching my step a little better!

Small number (7) of cuts on my hand

A California Christmas

On Christmas day this year, the temperature was nearly 70 degrees (Fahrenheit). It was an unusually warm day, capping off a series of warm weeks that Massachusetts hasn't experienced in quite some time. The warm weather so late into December seemed to be our consolation from last Winter's terrible storms. I joked that this is our California Christmas.

When I was in college, I did an internship in Pasadena, California. I lived there from June 1988 through December 1988. Being able to walk around in a light jacket during December felt like a miracle, and I loved every minute of it. "I could get used to this," I thought. I remember how sharp the cold felt when I returned home that Winter to New Jersey.

As I write this, Massachusetts is poised to have its first Winter event of the season. The predictions call for a light coating of snow which many hardy New Englanders will declare as "nothing." I count myself among those hardy people. I enjoyed our California Christmas, but I look forward to a classic New England Winter.

Winter Solstice

The winter solstice is the day with the least amount of light (for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere). This means that after the winter solstice, the days gradually begin to lengthen. This is a good thing. By now I've heard the mild complaints about how cold and dark it's been getting. One part of me wants to join in: yes, I hate that it's getting colder. Yes, I hate that it gets dark at 4PM. But more often than not, when I hear these complaints in the hallways, I usually put on a stoic face. Winter's coldness and darkness can only be endured. If you choose not to escape it, you have to accept it. Commiserating doesn't make it warmer or lighter.

The other name for the winter solstice is "midwinter". I like that too. The days are lengthening, and even though New England will remain "cold" for at least another few months, we're past the half-way point. The Earth will gradually tip its northern axis towards the sun again, and before you know it, we'll be mildly complaining about all the heat.

The Cold is All Relative

Today the temperature descended back to winter. It was quite chilly in the mid-20s (Fahrenheit), but it felt even colder because it "warmed up" to about the high-30s on Friday. I was beginning to think about March. Instead, January reminded me today that it's still the first month of 2009 here in New England.

Seasons get us prepared because of how slowly they turn. It's sudden change that gets us, I think. Indian Summer. Snow in April. New Englanders usually have a brisk Fall which puts us in "warmer" jackets, and the lighter sweaters and fleeces, before Winter comes in, forcing us into heavy jackets and boots. We get acclimated. I think this is natural.

So it's back to the cold weather. I'm not worried about it. We're all hunkered down anyway, so it's not too bad. Like I said, it's all relative.

Learning Snow Lessons

Today, all of Greater Boston and points West are bracing for the first Winter Storm of the year. And all forecasts seem to be pointing to a doozy. Last year, I was stuck in a snow storm trying to get home. A 30-40 minute commute became a four hour ordeal of frustration. When my wife announced to me yesterday that the snow storm would be just as bad as last year's, she looked at me expectantly. "I'm going to work from home," I said. Snow lesson learned.

Follow the storm by subscribing to my twitter feed.

Snow Snarl

It took me nearly four hours to drive the eight miles from my office to my home, thanks to the heavy snow storm that burst onto the scene with unrelenting force. Six to seven inches where laid down in the afternoon going into the evening, and car commuters like me were bearing the brunt of it.

I thought I'd be smart and take Route 93 home because I left during the day (this highway is typically backed up in the evening commute). Of course, that quickly became an exercise in frustration since I wasn't the only person leaving to get ahead of the storm. Doubling back, I decided to take to the city streets. Up Massachusetts Avenue, the traffic was moving at a snail's pace, and I settled in for what would be a long stretch of nightmare traffic. Intricate merges became nasty merges. Traffic lights blinked with feeble authority. I saw at least one car abandoned, blocking traffic until drivers noticed that there wasn't anyone inside. Me and several other drivers were popping out during the frequent stops to brush off our windshields.

It was a tough one out there. I'm glad I'm home.

It's December

In New England, where I live, December is the return to cold, and while it's been relatively mild the past few days, this weekend may not break 40 degrees. I haven't worn my heavy coat yet, nor have I had to use my ice scraper, but I have definitely turned on the seat warmers in my car.

I also get wistful at this time of the year. I get to thinking about all the things I haven't done. Where has the year gone? Have I squandered it? December adds weight to these questions, so I constantly have to remind myself of all the things I have done. Still, December marks the high season for these feelings.

I have to wait for January before I can get back to my usual optimistic self.

Shoveling

I shoveled for two hours today. And my kind neighbor used his snow blower on the heaviest accumulation in my driveway. Yeah, I'm eating my words.

More Snow

Last year, it was bitter bitter cold. This year, it's just bitter. But with more snow. AccuWeather's headline for tonight is "Winter at Its Worst". "A major storm swirling out of the north-central states will disrupt the lives of millions from the Midwest to the Northeast this weekend."

I've seen estimates as high as 18" of snow. I'll believe it when I'm shoveling it. (And yes, I'll be eating these words.)

Snow

It snowed a little today.

The brief snow shower ended a few hours ago, but roads had their first taste of slush, and trees were bent a bit by the little accumulation. I was chilled, not quite to the bone, but close enough. I may break down and put on the big coat, but temperatures are expected to be in the mid-40s next week.

As we say in New England: Aw, hell!

Minus Zero

Minus-eight Farenheit outside when I woke up. As I write this, it's warming up. The temperature is now minus-three.

I think nearly every school in Arlington is closed. My car hasn't started for the past two days. Even after a jump start, it remains inert (it can idle, provided I keep my foot on the gas to give it RPMs). It's betrayed me like this before. I'm now driving a rental. Thankfully, that started up this morning.

Minus Zero

-5.4. That's right. Minus-five-point-four Farenheit. Right after I took this snapshot, I stepped outside, and closed the door. For the first few seconds, I thought: It's not so bad. But after ten seconds (I was counting) the bitter brittle air started to tighten its cold group around my exposed hands and face. I stepped back inside.

As I write this, nearly thirty minutes later, the temperature on my outdoor thermometer is reading -6.3. Minus six-point-three. My hands are only now beginning to feel warm.

New England is in the midst of its coldest weather in years. It's the lead story in every media outlet. The weekend's forecast is going to be in the mid-thirties, and we're looking forward to it! Our only consolation: No snow. But the blustery wind is making up for that deficit.

Tweet

It's so cold that I can feel my nose hairs freeze when I breathe through my nose. They feel like tiny icicles.

The weather reports said that the sun would be ineffective today. Indeed.

Tweet

I made a small album of pictures that I took when I went outside to shovel. The plow didn't arrive until 7PM tonight. I missed my newspapers. I missed church. I missed take-out.

At least I got some exercise.

Tweet

I tried shoveling in the early evening. Unfortunately, snow continued to fall, covering up my efforts. We'll probably get outside as a group tomorrow (Jenn, Mia, and I). We'll try to tackle the shoveling together. The key is to get a break in the snowfall, but that probably won't happen until after lunch on Sunday.

Nor'easter

New England's first Nor'easter of the season is upon us. We live in Arlington, indicated by the red star. All the white stuff on the map is snow. It's been snowing steadily, at times furiously. The shoveling looks formidable. Our street is impassable, but we won't be venturing into our cars, except to grab shovels. No take-out today, it seems.

The snow is predicted to last until noon Sunday. It's a hunkering down time. It's winter time (two weeks ahead of winter's official start day).

Tweet

It was snowing this morning. No accumulation. Just a variety of snowfall (heavy, light, slushy, icy) for my commute into work. The snow persisted into the late morning, then petered away.

Maile Meloy

We're halfway through August.

In today's NY Times, I read a beautiful essay by Maile Meloy about summer in Montana. There, the brief summers are earned after nine long months of winter. It was a perfectly evocative article.

All winter, it had been below zero for weeks at a time. ... Windshields had to be scraped, and nothing in town was far enough away for the car's heater to warm up before you got there.

Flash Flooding

When I got home, the TV weather that I watched reported flash flooding in the town where I work. The meteorologist was saying something about three inches of rain in one hour. I can agree: it was torrential. On the way home, I had the wipers at its highest tempo. The area of torrential rain was very small; once I emerged from this weather cell, the air was quickly dry, and rain-free.

Tweet

It's pouring now. A heavy, dark rain. I have a window seat at work, and despite the awful looking weather, I wish I were out there now.