We had a snow storm. You probably already knew that. It was a really, really big one. You probably already knew that too. But see, here's the thing - I wasn't too convinced all the fuss would amount to much at all because Boston has had quite a few false alarms the last little while. No false alarm here though. Nemo was definitely a persistent little guy.
It started gently enough, with pretty snow flakes Friday afternoon. I got to work from home because on Thursday the governor declared a ban on all driving and commuting after 4pm on Friday.
(My sister was asking me why that was. It's not due to a lack of snow clearing vehicles but rather because when you live in a city with narrow, twisting, one-way streets, it's impossible for snow trucks, ambulances, and other critical vehicles to do what they need to do if commuters are clogging the roads. It is a hot mess when all the commuters try to beat the storm at the exact same time others are trying to deal with the storm so it was a smart move on the governor's part.)
Will came home at his normal time. We ate, watched a movie, and by the time we went to bed at midnight the snow had already quietly settled into a relentless rhythm.
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| The view from our bedroom of our front lawn and the stairs leading up to our apartment at midnight on Friday. For context, there had been exactly 0 inches of snow on the ground at noon on Friday. |
By Saturday morning, Boston was muffled and softened by the aftermath of Nemo. When we woke, everything was quiet. We first heard the sound of our landlady exiting her apartment. She saw this:
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| Our front lawn around 9am Saturday morning. |
She's a good landlady who didn't go on her ski trip because she didn't want us to have to shovel the snow. We were grateful because there was indeed quite a lot of shoveling to do. Here's an image of my car:
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| Don't be deceived into thinking this is a little lump. My car is a RAV4, not a hip little European thing. |
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After 30 minutes of shoveling, I had achieved a small measure of of success (don't worry, I kept at it).
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| I've learned (the hard way) that when you shovel a car from lots of snow, you actually do need to clear out from under the carriage because cars will indeed high-center on snow. Also, clear out the snow from your tailpipe before starting it or you risk carbon monoxide poisoning. I didn't think about that two years ago when I was in a rush and forgot to clear my tailpipe. Luckily, I was actually driving not just warming up the car so it melted quickly enough there was no issue with carbon monoxide. However, I did get some funny feedback with my engine and a Check Engine light. Who do I decide to call? That's right, Will, my then ex-boyfriend who was sweet enough to come look at it for me. And I took him to lunch for payment (for real-this wasn't a way for me to make a move or something) and we had a great time together. It's no exaggeration to say that was the beginning of our reconciliation so sometimes good things come from snow storms and little mistakes. |
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Will went to work for most of the day, so I strapped on some snowshoes and walked him to work before exploring the rest of the snowy city. Here are a few shots from that trip.
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| The pretty park we get to walk through on the way to Will's lab. For a sense of depth, there are park benches between the lampposts and the trees. |
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| Bike rack at MIT. |
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| Sledding at the Stata Center. |
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| Skiing on Massachusetts Avenue. |
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| Some people really like to wear shorts, even in 2-3 feet of snow. |
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| Patriotism in Cambridge. |
