Snow day! Snow day! La la la la la la!!!!

[Haven]

Any other teachers out there enjoying a snow day? What are you going to do?

I''m going to go out to breakfast with my family (my sister is in town from college and both of my parents are educators so nobody''s working today!), and then I''m going to start grading the 120 papers that are sitting in my tote bag. Ugh. At least I have this extra time to grade today so I can actually enjoy the Superbowl.

 

[ang3199]

I work out of the central office so I usually have to go in when we are canceled, but today I don''t! Too icy! Yay!

I''m still in my robe drinking coffee.

Hooray for 3 day weekends!

 

[Angel7]

I''m "working" from home today!

Thank god for laptops!

 

[Lorelei]

do we have any pictures for the snow deprived?

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I''m happy to say that I teach 4 days a week and have every Friday off, but I KNOW that feeling of having an unexpected day off! Enjoy your long weekend!!!

 

[Sabine]

We had a 2-hour delay today for an ice storm that turned into rain, but I''m still enjoying it. Because we have block scheduling, I only had 2 25 minute classes this morning, and one regular 85 minute class this afternoon, and then I''m done! Plus, I know it''s not very nice of me to say, but my not very nice class was one of the shortened ones, so woohoo!!! Double plus! Since I teach English, we do FAB Friday, which is sustained silent reading on Friday, so basically I got to read "Atonement" all morning anyway! Hope you are enjoying your day off Haven! I''m jealous that you actually got snow, we still haven''t seen much of it here in PA.

 

[door knob solitaire]

I am so regretful I didn't snap some photos as the snow was falling yesterday. Hubby came running in from outside offered me his toasty coat and got me another...zipped me up to my neck and pushed me out the door (he had me looking like Ralphies' little brother in A Christmas story...too big of a coat...too big of gloves...waddle waddle waddle). Said I had to experience it...once in a lifetime...go!

You wouldn't believe what was out there...It was the most incredible snowfall I have ever seen. The flakes were as large as half dollars...light fluffy and falling at the rate of about an inch apart. Hubby said it was a Frank Capra moment. (I live for it's a wonderful life...so you have to know that was one of my buzz words) Oh my gosh was he right. It was sorta a ballet of nature. The snow was moving ...the sturdy magnificent oak trees were standing still, but your eyes played a trick on you...it appeared as if all were swaying and dancing in the snow fall. I walked for miles. The flakes would land on my lashes and it felt as if I were in costume wearing false eyelashes.

The beauty was something I had never experienced...I was in tears. Funny I know those of you who live with snow, or travel to ski or take it for granted. But some of use only get a taste of snow...and of course like SDL rarely even a glimpse. But I so wanted to share it...I shouldn't have been so selfish...could have should have come in for the camera. I did come in for the pups and they danced in it like sugar plum fairies. Ate snow like it was caviar.

Hope I painted a picture for you where a photo should have been.

 

[HollyS]

DKS, I know exactly what you experienced!!!

Last April, day before Easter, in Texas, we had snow!!!! Not just a little, either. We had big fluffy flakes that came down in a hurry in the late morning, and we thought "well, that was nice, but the show is over." Hah! About 6pm it started up again and snowed continuously for about 3-4 hours. We sat with our mouths open, just staring at it until we got smart enough to go play in it. Could not believe it!!! Central TX does NOT get snow accumulation to start with, and it was April!! Bluebonnets sticking out of snow drifts! It was weird, and wonderful!

 

[Mannequin]

I was really lucky to get a snow day today - the previously predicted snow totals for my area in Michigan were MUCH higher than what we actually got and will receive over the rest of the day.

I slept in WAY late, and will spend the rest of the day working on some grading, laundry, and cleaning to free up my weekend. Doing dinner tonight with BF and his mom, and I''ve already made a blackberry cobbler to take with me.

My cat loves snow days. He''s been following me all day like a little shadow - he''s so happy I am home.

 

[Dreamer_D]

I teach/do research at a university and we got the day off too! I spent the day taking pictures of my ring and my dogs!

haha, how great.

Just for you Lorelei I braved the elements to take some pictures of the snow on my street, and my dogs in the snow. Didn''t want to risk taking a picture of my ring in the snow, but that would have completed the theme for the day! haha

 

[somethingshiny]

There is a snow day here, too. Doesn''t really affect me, but boy are our neighbor kids having fun. I watched out the window while two boys shoveled their driveway right on top of their sister''s car! It took them all of ten minutes!! We''ve had snowmobiles going through our yard pretty much non-stop since daylight. So, of course, I''m planning on traveling. Because, if there''s a snow day, you have to go out and see how bad it really is....

 

[Dreamer_D]

Here''s my street, picture taken from the second floor balcony.

 

[Dreamer_D]

Tree on my street, I love snow on trees.

 

[Lorelei]

DKS, I know exactly what you mean about a Frank Capra moment, thanks for sharing that with me.

OMG Dreamer Dachsie, thanks so much for taking and posting a pic for me, the snow deprived!! Wow!! That is '' proper snow'' as my Hubby calls it, not the half hearted soggy grey flake, which flutters down pitifully then vanishes the minute it hits the ground, that we get on rare occasion here.

 

[Dreamer_D]

Tree in the back yard...

SDL: we don't have too much snow on the ground either, they are predicting about 8-10 inches total by the end of the day, but they are more worried about ice on the roads and freezing rain later. Oh well, it's nice to get a day off!

 

[Dreamer_D]

Snowy Seamus. He is only about 10" off the ground so me makes it look really deep! Tonight when DH gets home from work he will have to shovel out an area for them to pee in in the backyard! haha... Dachshunds crack me up.

 

[Dreamer_D]

Snowy Dreamer, she hates the snow. No walkies today!

 

[omieluv]

Though there is lots of snow in downtown Chicago now, no snow day for me!

There is this expectation that if you take the train, you should be at work. Ah well, at least it is Friday!!

 

[HollyS]

Date: 2/1/2008 3:04:19 PM
Author: dreamer_dachsie
Snowy Dreamer, she hates the snow. No walkies today!

She does look a little hurrumphed!!! The expression says "Oh geez, now my feet are wet. Yuck." LOL

 

[Haven]

Oh I love your dachsies, dreamer! They are adorable all covered in snow like that! Thanks for posting those pictures.

SDL--I''m in Chicago but I teach out in the northern burbs. Chicago and the burbs had a horrible winter storm, though they did get more snow north of the city. All of Chicago Public Schools stayed open today, so don''t get the wrong impression about the City of Big Shoulders--we can handle the snow! My parents got at least eight inches of snow up in the northern suburbs, it''s really bad up there.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Oh...snow days are so fun! Hope you all had a great day off!

 

[zoebartlett]

Haven,

I just saw this so I''m late to chime in. How many snow days have you had so far this year? We''ve had three snow days so far and either 2 or 3 two hour delays. One snow day began as a delay but they changed it 30 minutes later. We were actually dismissed at noon yesterday because of the bad weather (that''s happened one other time so far this year). That''s somewhat of a pain because then all the parents have to be called and we have to find out if they''re planning on picking their kids up.

Do you have snow days built into your school calendar? I wish we did. Right now it looks like we''re going to have to make up the three days we had off. There''s still the month of Feb. to deal with, not to mention flood days (we actually had three flood days last spring).

Of all years, this is the one year I REALLY don''t want to have to make up snow days. I''m sure you feel the same way, huh?

 

[perry]

Haven:

Glad to here that Chicago did not shut down on 4" of snow. It used to be that snow days were called at about 10" or more that fell fast - and with wind (according to some people I knew there). Since I grew up in Wisconsin we used to track stuff like that as kids. My home school - which was largely a rural area with 3/4 of the students bussed from up to 25 miles away (which could be a 75 minute bus ride depending on the bus route) tended to not declare a snow day unless we got about a foot of snow - or major ice.

Best snow storm I recall was 18" overnight, with wind, and 30 ft tall snowdrifts.... That turned into almost a full snow week...

It is nice that teachers get snowdays, and some other businesses too...

I work in a power plant that always runs.... (and is fully staffed by operators even when shutdown for maintenance). The roads to and from the plant are probably the best plowed and salted roads in the state as the power plant pays the entire operating budget for the local township (no property taxes, and tossed in cable TV for all the houses too).

I admit that I am not in operations and can take my time to get to work on most snow days. But I have been called in a time or two when the roads were really bad where I live up to about 3 miles from the plant where the township takes over care of the road.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy your days off, and the snow too.

Perry

ps: I spent most of yesturday driving to and from my parents on snow covered and slipery roads... Lots of cars in the ditch too.