How Much Did You Get?

Around here there's one question. "How much?"

I figured we all need a common scale for measuring. This is the table on my porch. It is sheltered to the north and to a certain extent to the west, so this is by no means the most snow we got here. But I think it makes it clear that the snow just kept on coming.

Each time snow falls, I trudge through the yard with a shovel, clearing a path to the barn. It still surprises me when I lift a shovel full and find grass beneath. The path gets a strong crosswind and I must clear it hourly when the lake effect blows. Since the hens' water freezes solid in these sub-20s temperatures, the path really must be kept open.

Lucky girl that I am, I escaped driveway shovelling this time around because Santy Claus brought me a new car. The Subaru Forester is as much a souped-up station wagon as it is SUV, with just enough clearance and power to get us out of the drive without me straining my back.

Even if I still had the VW, my shovelling would have been modest this time around. The forecast for Monday is 50 degrees.