Sissy Society!

I awoke this morning to the man on the radio announcing school closures, due to the horrible blizzard. At first it was just a few charter schools and small districts at the west end of the valley, where weather is often worse out there on the prairie. But by 7am, every school in the area had announced a "Snow Day."

Expecting grim road conditions, I decided to "chicken out" and ride the bus today.

(It's a matter of survival - the stakes are too high. Yesterday I bicycled to work; I was occupying the right-hand "tire lane" where the pavement could be seen. Totally legal, and I do fine there... except when an impatient motorist is tailgating me, five feet behind my back wheel. If I were to slip and fall, could the guy stop in time to avoid running over me? The law states that if he can't, he's following too close. But laws seem to go by the wayside when the snow falls.)

Imagine my surprise when I walked outside, and discovered that the snow is maybe two inches deep! WHAT?!!!? Not even enough to cover my low-top shoes!

Let me switch to Nostalgic Surly Old Man now...

Back when I was a kid, most of the kids walked or rode a bike to school... I did, most days. (No, I didn't walk uphill both ways!) I can remember shin-high rubber boots with little metal buckles, and the excitement of wearing those boots to walk through shin-deep snow! Stopping to "ice skate" on the frozen ditch, a couple blocks from the school. I can remember playing in that snow on the school playground. Nowadays most kids ride the bus or get dropped off by Mom at the front door... unless the snow is more than 2 inches deep. Sigh...