Memories of Snow Days

It was snowing heavily when I went to bed last night...and still snowing when I awoke around 8:30 this morning. It would seem that yes, we and most of the East Coast got more than a foot of snow overnight and throughout the day. In fact, it was the sound of my neighbor shoveling my steps that finally got me out of bed. All schools in the Philadelphia and South Jersey area were closed (including Rutgers, Jessa's Catholic high school, and Lower Cape May Regional, where Keefe goes).

I called Mom shortly after I hopped out of bed. Yes, they got it too...worse than we did, for once. Mom was inside, doing some chores around the house. Dad and Keefe had gone to buy snow shovels. Apparently, their old shovels were in the last load of things from the garage in the old house that Daddy didn't feel like going back for.

My stepfather's always loved the snow. He'd be the first one up and out in it...and not just because he'd have to shovel his way out to go to work in the morning, either. Mom hates snow. She wouldn't go out in it unless Dad talked her into a sledding trip...and forget driving! Anny just doesn't like the outdoors, period. She'd never want to stay out for very long. Rose and Keefe, however, had no problems with jumping out of bed the moment Scott Waul said "Lower Cape May Regional School District closed" on the radio.

Mom would make us all eat breakfast, of course, no matter who was going out, probably big bowls of oatmeal or cream of wheat, or maybe scrambled eggs and cinnamon toast and orange slices. Then, it would be into layers - snow pants over tights, socks over tights, sweaters over turtlenecks, jackets over sweaters, plastic bags over socks to keep them dry, boots over plastic bags. Hats or earmuffs on heads - and don't forget your scarves!

Then, it would be out to the backyard for a snowball fight, or maybe to try to build a snowman or a snow fort, or even to just chase each other around the yard. We might pretend to be James Bond chasing bad-guys in the snow, or Han Solo and Luke Skywalker looking for Imperial spies on Hoth, or Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny eluding Elmer Fudd's gun.

When Dad came home from work, Mom would stick her head out and tell us it's the perfect time to shovel the sidewalk - if it's in North Cape May, we'd probably have to shovel the walk for our elderly neighbor Miss Ida, too. Not that we actually did a lot of shoveling. For every scoop that was actually removed from the sidewalk, another two would be thrown in someone's direction. Mom would come out to sweep the front stoop...and cluck at her husband and children and try to get them to do some real shoveling.

Then, we'd all bundle into the car - even Mom - and would go to the West Cape May Bridge to go sledding. The right side West Cape May Bridge going into Cape May borders a field, and it's one of the few places in flat Cape May County that anyone can go sledding. A dense crust of brush and trees keeps sledders out of the Cape May Canal. We'd all go down several times, sharing the long old plastic orange and blue sleds that we'd had for years. It was always mandatory that someone older had to go down with little Anny, and later Keefe - they were too young to go down on their own.

After we'd all gotten good and tired from sledding, it was home for lunch. Dad would go back to work, or if he didn't, he'd plop in front of the TV, snoring over soaps and re-runs for the rest of the afternoon. Us kids would enjoy a hot lunch, maybe grilled cheese heavy with butter and cheddar, or Mom's home-made chicken or potato and cheese soup. If we were up for it, we'd get back into our boots and go right back out again. I liked to go for walks up to WaWa on Bayshore when we lived in North Cape May and buy a soda or an Icee. When we lived in West Cape May, it might be a trip to 7-11 for an Chocolate Chip Ice Cream sandwich, maybe with Bridgitte, my best friend at the time, whose mother worked in 7-11 when we lived in West Cape May.

By the time dusk was spreading across the pearly skies over Cape May County, all six of us would be inside, playing a long board game like Life or Monopoly, or after about 1987, playing long fantasy RPG video games like "Final Fantasy" or "The Legend of Zelda." This would break up when Mom would say it was time for her to make dinner and Dad would want to go catch the news. If Anny or Keefe were still little, it would be time to put them down for a nap. Us older kids would go upstairs to play a shorter video game or a card game or play with toys until dinner.

I actually did get a nice walk in the snow in with Jessa this morning while my laundry was in the dryer. I really couldn't put off doing the laundry today. I desperately needed clean work clothes! My neighbor was nice enough to shovel my steps before he went to work, or I wouldn't have been going anywhere today at all.

Jess and I hiked through the ankle-deep snow drifts across the tracks to the park next-door to my apartment. It was really eerie and still. Few cars passed by. No trains chugged down the track between Hillcrest and Manor Avenues; no planes roared overhead. Most sounds were muffled, including our own voices. It was as if time had stopped. It was still snowing, too, quite heavily, and very windy. We walked the perimeter of the park, bouncing over snow that felt more like springy marshmallows in some places. When we got back to Dad's house, I walked down the steep hill in the backyard while Jessa went to get some heavier layers. I found a huge holly tree that had a nice little spot to sit down and watch the storm in. After Jessa came back out, we cleared the snow off her car, a huge old Buick, so she could go out sledding with a friend later.

When I got in from the laundry, I had lunch, cleaned off the snow that had accumulated on my steps since that morning, and added more salt. Dad drove me to work. I don't think I would have been able to get TO my bikes, much less ride on them today. It was still snowing and windy when we left, and I was worried about it getting cold and icing up later.

I was one of the only people who actually DID go to work. We had 18 call-outs today, mostly in the morning. By the time I went in, the kids who work late and were likely bored by this point were starting to trickle in. We ending up needing their help. It was surprisingly steady today, not insanely busy like yesterday, but not really dead, either.