Snow blog.

Big snow tonight. Not quite in the same league as the blizzard of January 2, 1999, or January 6, 1996, but the biggest in a while. And long lasting. It’s been snowing for about 24 hours now, steadily piling up, rather than dumping in a few hours. It’s predicted to last until morning. Shoveling is in my future.

Had a physical exam today, including my first-ever EKG, “to check the old ticker,” as my new doctor put it. Soon, he said that the EKG was “normal,” which means that my likelihood of dropping dead while shoveling snow tomorrow is fairly low. But this being the first big, heavy snow of the winter, there are a handful of older men out there that will probably meet that fate in the morning. It’s a fixture of Northern conurbation winters, and snow blowers are no guarantee against injury, either: a few digits might be lost tomorrow, too.

Not to dwell on the ill effects of big snow. Except when I’m driving, I don’t mind. Growing up without snow—it snowed twice when I was in elementary school, both times in early 1973—means that it still has a slight edge of novelty for me. Snow! Cold, fluffy white stuff from the sky! Piles up big, makes balls for throwing. I did that when I was 12, but other snow activities had to wait: sledding, till I was 22; snow angels, till I was 27; shoveling, till I was 37 and had my own property; downhill skiing, till never.