Snowpocalypse!

I really do love living where I live. I am within driving distance of five of the East Coast's best cities (Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Baltimore and Washington). I have access to arts communities and some unique shopping districts. I live close to a day job that I (mostly) love and I can drive to either the mountains or the shore in about the same time. There are plenty of cinemas and legitimate theatres nearby; there are several theme parks and other entertainment venues and the crime rate in my community is relatively low. I am connected to all of these things by easy access to Interstate 95, Route 1 and/or the Pennsylvania and New Jersey Turnpikes. 

There are, however, two things I really hate about living in the Delaware Valley - the summer's often oppressive humidity and the winter's even more oppressive snow storms.

Yesterday saw the fourth and fifth major storms since Christmas and I am beginning to believe that I won't see green on my front lawn anytime before June. In the early morning we were surprised to find 5 inches of snow (rain had been predicted), followed by another storm in the evening, which dumped an additional 11 inches of snow (along with a few inches of freezing rain and sleet). Pretty to look at, but annoying as hell when one has to get someplace other than home. And it didn't help that in the wee hours of this morning, Township snowplows piled a 30+ inch wall of ice at the bottom of my driveway, making it impossible for me to get to said day job, today.

"So, get a snow-blower," you all may be admonishing me. I had one. It lasted all of two seasons before breaking down into an irreparable pile of junk which still sits forlornly in my shed. "Then hire a local kid to shovel you out," you might be thinking. Good luck. The lazy louts in my neighborhood would rather play XBox games while home from school, than take the initiative to earn a few bucks on their day off. "Then move south," you're thinking now. Really? Have you spent any time south of the Mason Dixon line? Lovely places with delightful people, but moving to Florida (as my sister has done) means moving to a cultural wasteland filled with cartoon mice, bad-driving senior citizens and nerdy Canadians trying to escape their own winter hell. No, thank you.

And yes, a young man did finally show up to help me finish digging out (for a price, of course). And tomorrow I will brave the icy roads to get to the day job that I (mostly) love. Still, more snow is predicted for tomorrow, Saturday and next week. Personally, I'm tired of all he whiteness. Give me rainbows, unicorns and green, green fields of flowers any day...

The video below is from Cherry Hill, NJ, a community about an hour south of Uncle P, though my neighborhood looks very much the same.

More, anon.

Prospero

P.S. You may have noticed I have a new photo. No, that's not actually me (the old one was). I have no idea where that particular image came from, but I think it conveys my worldview quite nicely. If you're really interested in seeing what I actually look like, take some time to dig into past posts and you will find at least a few images of the 'real" me.

P.