SNOWMAGEDDON 2016!!!

dun dun DUNNNNN....

So, yeah, it blizzarded (is that a word?) here in the great Commonwealth of Virginia.  And because we are south of the Mason-Dixon line, the department of transportation officially doesn't know how to deal with real winter weather.  As you've already seen from news reports, DC pretty much shut down for several days.  Schools were closed; the Federal Government was closed; the Metro was only open underground for a while.  It felt like a page from Katy and the Big Snow.

if only we had Katy to dig DC out!

Friday, 1pm: It Begins.

probably impossible to see, but there are teeny tiny flakes falling steadily.  for future reference, note size and locations of the two pots.

2 pm.

3 pm.

the snowflakes never got very large -- there were just a LOT of them.  it was fine, powdery snow.

4 pm.

this is the point at which all the attendees of the March for Life were trying to leave DC

5:30 pm

the street light is bleary b/c of all the snow falling in front of it

9:45 pm

there's no place like Narnia

Saturday, 8 am

still snowing.  just before this shot, a dwarf and a white witch drove by in a sleigh

11 am

my dryer was running ALL DAY

3 pm

it's a good thing they went out to play earlier -- this wasn't very fun to be out in. it was SERIOUSLY windy.

9 pm

can you see that giant hill on the deck?  it's higher than the seat of the patio chair. it was impossible to open the storm door more than a crack.

the snow FINALLY stopped.  it was so quiet.

Sunday, 9 am

isn't it pretty?  (so long as you don't actually HAVE to go out in it!)

now find the two pots!  also, we actually have 3 steps

Thank heaven for our snow blower.  Mr. Pickles worked hard digging us out, while I worried over all the reports I heard about people dropping dead from heart attacks while shoveling snow.  At least it was dry and powdery b/c it was so cold -- wet snow is definitely much more of a strain to shovel.  I helped a tiny bit -- pretty much only doing the front and side steps.  That was enough to wear me out, out-of-shape mama that I am!

ready to par-tay in some snow!  it was SO bright everyone wore sunglasses

The bishop pre-emptively gave the entire diocese a dispensation from Sunday Mass.  Our parish cancelled half their weekend Masses, and actually told people NOT to drive to the church, since the neighborhood and parking lot were such a mess.  If we'd had snowshoes, we could have hiked to the local parish that's only about 1.5 miles away, since driving was out of the question.

can anyone find the Dominator??  it's camouflaged!

3:45 pm

I love how blue it is.  I was admiring the subtle blueish-green tone of a snowbank in the shade... only to realize later that the turquoise snow shovel we were searching for was buried underneath

Mr. Pickles, good daddy that he is, took everyone sledding on Sunday.  There is an AWESOME sledding hill at the park across the street.  Someone had taken the time to make a couple different runs, one of which had a jump at the bottom.  Our neighbor had a thinnish plastic sled that was fast, but not as sturdy.  Her dad warned her that if she ran it over the bump too many times it was going to break.  That very next turn, when she hit the jump the sled dramatically snapped in half, and dumped her in the snowbank!

The best sled was actually a big waxed cardboard apple box from Costco -- that thing flew!  Joseph wants me to let you know that while riding it he got sprayed in the face two times, and didn't particularly appreciate it.  Daniel, however, after completing a run just gave two mittened thumbs up and said, "Woo-hoo!"


5:30 pm

so you can see just how high the snow was, compared to our small people.  I didn't measure, but the others estimate it was at least 2 feet, drifting up to 3 in places.

Monday, 10 am: The Aftermath.

not quite so pretty.  the snow plows kept blocking our driveway right after Mr. Pickles cleared it!  grrr.  one of the neighbors across the street had to go to work, I guess -- at one point they had at least 4 people shoveling the driveway to clear it

all the creatures finally came out of hiding

As of today, schools are STILL closed, the government opened with a 3-hour delay, and buses are still running on the Sunday schedule.  (Mr. Pickles went to work today, sad panda.  He was smart and drove the minivan to the metro station.)  The snow plows had sort of been half-heartedly plowing out one lane down our street during the storm, but didn't even spread any salt until Monday night.  It was much warmer yesterday and today, so the snow is settling and starting to melt.  Rain is predicted, too, sigh.  At least the streets are clear now so we can get to the grocery store!  (A friend said that the day before the blizzard hit, the grocery store was completely cleared out of milk, bread, hot chocolate, and refrigerated cookie dough.  She also witnessed someone checking out with a whole cart full of beer.)

Personally, I like interesting weather like this -- it adds spice to life.  Man against the elements!  I think if we had to live with this on a regular basis I would eventually get tired of it, but it's fun once in a while.  What makes a storm like this so difficult is that VA isn't properly equipped to deal with it.  Mr. Pickles went to the March for Life this year, and he fell into conversation with some marchers from Iowa.  They were wondering what all the fuss was about.  "It's just snow!" they said.  Mr. Pickles replied, "Oh, you have no idea."  It's just hard knowing I'm trapped in my house b/c the streets are an icy wreck and if I try to drive anywhere I'll most likely end up in a snowbank and die of exposure.  Now, if I had snow shoes, I would be INVINCIBLE.

During the blizzard I was also thinking about Inuit and Lapp mothers -- and how they cared for their babies in The Frozen North.  Imagine giving birth in an igloo! 

I guess It Could Always Be Worse.