When Snow Falls

I went out twice during Tuesday’s snow to shovel my sidewalk and clear off my car. I went out around 6 and then again around 10. I did so the second time because I knew I was leaving early for work the next morning and wouldn’t have time to do it in the morning. The other reason was Tuesday night was going to be much warmer than Wednesday morning.

A couple other people were out with me at 6. I helped clear their car off. When I was out at 10, I was the only one out. The snow was very easy to shovel. It was very light and fluffy. All you had to do was push the shovel down the side walk. It took next to no effort at all. I did more than my part of the sidewalk. I figured I could spend an extra ten minutes or so clearing the area. After all I would need to walk that same sidewalk the next morning to get to the subway to get to work.

I also cleaned off my car again.

I got up the next morning and headed out early. Here’s what I noticed on my walk to the subway. The majority of people had done some shoveling on the sidewalk. There was of course that no man land area between the end of the last house and the intersection which was untouched. That called for a quick detour into the street to get around that. Some cars were cleared off but not all. But it was still early. I set out a little before 6 so there was time for people to do something with their cars.

As to the cars actually being driven, some of them had been cleared and others well hardly at all. I have never understood why someone does not completely clear or as completely as possible clear off their car. You see people that clear just enough room for them to see out their side of the front windshield and just enough in the back to see out the back window. The hood of the car covered in snow. The top of the car covered in snow. The trunk covered in snow. All of that snow ready to fly off and land on the car behind. Posing a potential hazard to the car behind. All you would have to do is take an additional five minutes to clear off the car. That’s what I do. I can’t get all of the snow off the roof of the car but I try my best.

I remember in the big snow a few years back all sorts of cars were like this. Snow blowing off and hitting the car behind. Then at one intersection this SUV had to stop suddenly. The roof of the car must have had at least 5 or 6 inches of snow on it. For a change instead of falling off the back of the car, it fell forward on to the front windshield. It completely covered it. The driver could not see out at all. He got out and was less pleased at all. It took a great deal of effort on my part not to start laughing at the guy.

All I could think was served him right. And that’s why you clean your whole car off when snow falls.