We’re expecting snow today so I thought I’d share a few photos of what it looks like when snow comes over the mountains and starts to blanket the town. It really is lovely.

After 6 years in Boulder I still get crazy excited about snowy days. I’m sure it has to do with living in the South and seeing snow maybe 4 times in my life, which, by the way, equates to exactly one day off from school in 12 years …a little jab at my father, the Superintendent of Decatur City Schools and his firm stance that students are always safer IN SCHOOL when it’s cold outside.

Oh how my sisters and I would moan when dad would answer the early morning calls from the local news stations looking for quotes about why he was sending poor inner-city kids to school in the face of the pending snowpocalypse. He had this certain tone, the same one he used when we were negotiating for allowance (which never happened…but would somehow turn into more chores) or answering student demands for longer lunch breaks.  It was a tone that implied serious consideration of all the points being made but then, when he decided the conversation was over, he’d simply say, “nope” or in the case of the the local meteorologists, “The buses can drive so the kids will be in school. I’ve got to hang up if I’m going to be in the office in an hour. Thanks for calling, goodbye!”  Then the reporters would go on the air and make snarky comments about how Decatur was the “ONLY school in Metro-Atlanta sending kids to school and putting their lives at risk”… needless to say, being the daughters of the only Superintendent in Georgia sending kids to school on the only snow day of the year, the only day kids could possibly use their rusty Christmas sleds, was yet another reason why my sisters and I were considered dorks by our peers.  You’ll hear plenty more gripes on being the Superintendent’s daughter as this blog unfolds.

But back to Boulder:

You can’t really hear the snow while you’re lying in bed, but you can just tell it’s coming down. I’ve resigned myself to the fact that my Southern roots will forever consider a snow day a free day so I’ve given up trying to get things done when snow is in the air. I usually end up outside for the better part of the morning, roaming around and taking photos while watching (in disbelief) as all the Coloradans make their way to work. After a good chill sets in I move myself inside to watch TBS movies and eat grilled cheese until I crash on the couch in a lactose coma. Shoveling snow for Ice-Busters, a volunteer organization that helps seniors clear their walks to avoid tickets, brings a little balance to these lazy days… but not very much.

When Chris is in town we throw tow straps in the truck and drive around helping Subarus that have slipped off the road… Boulder’s cries about gas guzzlers destroying the Earth definitely settle down on snowy days. Chris tries to leave me behind because I can’t resist pointing out to the stranded drivers how “the best snow drivers in the world” seem to be having an off day (Chris sighs) but I know what he’s up to when he says he’s just going to the bank so I usually come up with some grocery need that he can’t manage and hop in at the last minute.  He can’t deny that I have yet to be wrong about the Subaru drivers, even when their cars are being dragged out of the ditch they still refuse to admit there are times when the roads are just to snowy for the family Outback to manage. Hysterical!

Is it bad to admit that on days like today I’m especially grateful for no income and no kids?