Enough is Enough: Conquering the Snowblower

Enough is enough, I decided: continuously I seem lecture people on accepting change, learning and growing and it was time to "put my money where my mouth was" and get to work. Tired of constant slushy snowbanks intruding our driveway I knew it was time I learned how to use the snowblower. A gift last summer from my father-in-law to my husband I yanked the sucker out of the garage (sending a pile of odds and ends scattering, breaking a porcelain toilet back in about 5 pieces - I don't even recall where it could have come from?) and read the instructions. I can operate the riding lawnmower (albeit dangerously by some standards: the neighbours, for some reason, move their van from the block to the driveway each and every time I get the riding lawnmower out). So I knew I had to be able to operate the snowblower.

Quickly I discovered why my husband is "addicted" to this "sport" (although he still often doesn't take the time to get our driveway cleaner than "GUN IT AND GET IT IN!"). A sense of accomplishment followed each dizzying circle around the lane. How could I do it more efficiently? Like a Zamboni driver I attempted to perfect the switchbacks and zones where blowing snow landed. Look how clean it is, I admired as the machine almost slipped from my grasp...but not clean enough. I need to see pavement...(though I never did today).

Yes, I quickly began understanding the addiction. Will the driveway be much cleaner in days to come? Well, I highly doubt that fact but now I have no excuse....

The first Day of Snow/School

Tromping to school, fluffy flakes poured down. "It looks like dust, Mom!" [which, of course, is worrisome and slightly horrifying because he knows what dust is from the hordes of it lining our shelves.]

"Stick out your tongue, Mom, " he excitedly demanded. "Stick it out and catch the snowflakes!"

And so I did. So we did. Marching along, tongues stuck way up and giving our hyoid bone a workout (check that out for terminology inserted into regular speak!), we made our way to school. Who can't be fascinated and grateful and overwhelmingly excited when huge nickel-sized flakes are tango-ing on to your cheeks, into your lashes, on to the bits of neck exposed despite scarf tie?

We were excited for another reason too. Other than Halloween festivities and spring water day, this was my first day of volunteering in the kindergarten class. Feeling almost nervous as I readied in the morning I wondered what it would be like, being back in my previous work-type environment? Had I crazily committed to help out weekly? Would I fall right back in love with a career I had been so passionate about? What would it be like???

Winter Once Again

Snow. Moving in...settling on the play set, back porch railing. Continually Jeff meanders to the patio door, stares out, and exclaims, "holy wow!" as though we had never had such invasion of white fluffy-ness in this region. Ironically our son, who has been praying for more snow since last it left, sleeps. Snow, sun, rain - it matters little to me which presents itself as there's beauty in it all. Although I secretly (or not so secretly now that I have written it here) wonder if the skiff of it would allow for absenteeism at work (I do have to drive about 10 minutes into rural abyss to get there after all)?