Winter wonderland!

Sunday morning we awoke to find ourselves in a winter wonderland after the first significant snowfall of the season. Above is a picture of the canal, frozen in places, and covered with snow. It only took one day of temperatures around 17 F to freeze most of the canal! It isn't thick enough to skate on, obviously, but it did take a biggish rock to break a hole in the ice when we were testing it.
Just about four inches of snow in the yard, as you can see by this high tech measuring device. While Benjamin grew up in the frozen wilds of northern Idaho, I grew up in the more temperate suburbs of Seattle, and we almost never got this much snow at once. I think we did once when I was really little, and then I know we did when I was in 6th grade, but it happened while Mom, Dad and I were in New Zealand on vacation. Usually, that area gets about an inch a couple of times a winter, and the entire region goes into panic mode. The TV stations are all sending their poor reporters out to send live shots from "Winter Storm '07" or whatnot. Here, nothing, apart from the weather man saying we might get some more later. No reporters out getting frostbite in pursuit of the story, no crisis mode. It is refreshing.

Anyway, all that snow had to be shoveled. Guess who got to do most of that? Yup, Benjamin. He is, after all, the one with experience in the job. The walkway in front of the house wasn't too bad, but the driveway is largish, and there was a lot of snow on it.
I did lend a hand though, for a little bit. Shoveling snow is harder than raking leaves, that's for sure! I can see how someone with heart problems could end up with a heart attack! No worries for us though.And the snow plows were out all over town, clearing the roads. There is even a special little plow for the sidewalks! It is one of those mule/gator tractor things - they are like the love child of a gold cart and an ATV - with an enclosed cab and tracks, and a small snow plow.

Such fun! I love new-fallen snow, because the whiteness makes the winter gloom a little less, and it covers over the brown raggedyness of the end of fall. You can't see that everything is dead, all you see is a lovely fluffy blanket of white. Everything is transformed, and you can see things from a new perspective, notice things that escaped your notice before.