We knew it was coming… the weather man said it was… but still, we weren’t ready. And neither was Lucy. Well… last night, it came.
The white stuff
The cold, wet white stuff
S-N-O-W
On one hand, today marks the beginning of the most enjoyable yet aggravating season of the year. Winter provokes anxiety about driving conditions and delayed travel times. It means adding another 3 layers to every outfit and always trying to find that darn mysterious matching glove. And here, in Upstate NY… it means the typical overabundance of white stuff is on the way, and once it starts, it seems as if the end isn’t even in sight. In Syracuse, we average easily above a hundred inches of snow per year. That’s kind of a lot. As a matter of fact, according to City Top Lists, Syracuse is #1 for average annual snowfall. I’m not exactly sure if that is something to brag about or make me pack my bags and head south. Our winter usually lasts from Halloween to Easter (and sometimes until Mother’s Day… yeah… 2 years ago, we had snow on Mother’s Day… lots of snow). At first, the snow is usually very pretty on the ground and a welcome sight. After a month or two of hunting for your car in the grocery store parking lot every time you do your weekly shopping (because all car-size white blobs of snow look the same) and shoveling yourself out of your own house every morning when you are already running late for work… it gets old. Very… very old.
On the other hand, I do think that snow covered lawns and icicles on the bare tree branches are a beautiful sight. Growing up in Florida, we strung lights from palm trees and spent Christmas at the beach, anything below 55 degrees was considered “freezing” and people panicked at the thought of frost. I didn’t have a clue what I was missing. When I moved up to New York, I learned to truly appreciate the seasons… all of them… even winter. Having experienced a few “white” Christmases, I know I can never turn back. Winter just isn’t winter and Christmas just isn’t Christmas without the white fluffy stuff. I had an oncology patient tell me once that he enjoyed the snow because it “covered up all of the ugly in the world for a little while.” That sentiment really resounded with me and I try to think of that every time I want to gripe about shoveling and ice scraping.
Anyway… so today was the first noticeable snow fall… stick to the ground kind of snow fall. Our puppy, Lucy,
is only 6 months old, so she has never had the pleasure of playing in the snow. This morning, when Kevin let her out to do her business, we both watched from the door giggling as she tried to figure out what the heck was all over the ground. She walked very gingerly across the snow covered deck and paused for a minute or two before she went down the stairs. Then she paused again at the bottom of the stairs and investigated the strange white grass before prancing over to her favorite spot. She was hysterical to watch. I wish I would have caught it on video. Perhaps, when I get home, I will snap some pictures of my silly puppy in the snow.
I wonder what was going through her head.
