I was enjoying a warm, comfy nap in my “Comfy Chair!” when I opened my eyes, looked out at the deck, and realized it had snowed again. This is turning out to be an authentic, old-fashioned Michigan winter! We have had enough ice to keep the Amish ice houses cold until 2028! When I take my dogs for a walk, I play Paul Simon’s “Slip Sliding Away!” I have worn my ice cleats so long that they are now permanently attached to my boots! I must remember not to walk on the hardwood floor with them on. I would make quite an impression!
Snow this year is like the movie “Never Ending Story!” It snows when predicted by the weather channels, and when it’s not predicted by the weather channels. Last week they predicted .15 of an inch, and my house was hit by 4 inches. It seems that every day I get up, let the dogs out, and look at the dog porch, and it’s covered with snow. Sometimes it’s a dusting of snow, other times it’s an inch of 5.
I truly get frustrated when the snow is too little for the snowblower and too much for my leaf blower.
Then I have to use one of my 5 snow shovels. I have a light red plastic snow shovel, a plastic-and-steel hybrid shovel, and a solid steel shovel. I keep it in the basement and use it for lifting like a weight bar, as it weighs 100 pounds, or it seems that way after ten minutes of shoveling. I have a snow shovel on wheels that is great after the snowplow guy drives by, leaving a one-foot-deep sign across the driveway to prove he came by. Finally, I use a square shovel when it is a snow/ice combination.
In Michigan, residents can expect to shovel between 37 and over 200 inches. I get the lake effect from the small inland lake I live on, although I’ve been told that is not possible. When the wind blows the snow off the ice onto my property, that seems to be lake effect! Several of my friends drive to town and work out at the gym. They have a service for snowplowing in the winter and a service for lawn maintenance in the summer. I do all the outdoor chores except I do not cut down trees; I hire that done. I figure I get exercise, don’t spend gas money driving to the gym, and don’t buy fast food or donuts on my way back from town. When I truly retire, and the house is paid off, I may just hire a service to handle the outside chores.
In Michigan, snow shoveling causes approximately 11,000 injuries and over 100 heart attack fatalities. That makes hiring a snow removal company look a little more attractive. Some days, it is very cold outside, making snow removal a bit brisk. There may be a positive to colder temperatures as the snow is often light and fluffy. When it snows, and it’s warmer outside, you may need to shovel the heavy, back-breaking snow that’s clogging the snowblower chute. Some people spray nonstick oils on their snow chute.
I have various outfits I shovel snow in, depending on the temperature and the weight of the snow. They range from a hooded sweatshirt to an all-out sub-zero multiple-layer outfit with foot and glove heaters and a heated vest. One redeeming feature of this time of year is that there are no mosquitoes or biting flies! Stay warm, my friends!
