Five Blessings About Tonight's Winter Blast

For the record we've had quite a bit more cold than usual this year in Northern Minnesota. And, for the record, we've quite a bit of snow as well. It's been a while since I heard so many people complain about our winters here. Today we're being ravaged by yet another "snow event" and as I blew the snow off my drive tonight (knowing I would have to do it yet again tomorrow morning) my thoughts kept culling the positives from this current blast. Here are a few of them.

1) It's a wonderfully balmy 25 degrees and not 25 below with a wind chill of forty below. Sweet.

2) The fresh snow will look gorgeous when the clouds clear and we have sun again. It always does.

3) The forecast was for a wet, heavy snow. This snow was thin, lightweight and relatively pleasant to blow thus far.

4) The forecast was for 1-4 inches this afternoon and then an inch an hour for the next twelve. From what I could tell only a half inch fell in the hour I was clearing my 300 foot driveway and walkways.

5) The electric start on my snow blower failed earlier this winter. After trying to figure out how to fix it I learned that the electric start was a luxury and the pull cord would get the snow blower started even without it.

I don't know what we'll find tomorrow morning but so far it's just another snow event here. The roads get cleared and life goes on. In today's world even if you can't get to the office you can still do email there and interact, make progress on projects and meet deadlines. Alas.... it's a whole new world.

For closure, here's a poem rich with warmth by Percy Blythe Shelley about winter.