Good warning there Alice. Living in Minnesota (where we have barely a dusting of snow so far this year), we know better than to feel smug, because of the boomerang effect. We keep watching the weather in Buffalo, NY--that is who we are normally in competition with on the snow/cold front lines here.

This year, we finally bought a (used) snowblower. We're hoping it will innoculate us from a heavy snow year, such as the one Alice describes above. Thing is, that story is NO JOKE to some of us, despite our wicked smiles as we read it!

The thing I've decided is likely best (now that the last child is graduating high school this year) is to forget house living, and move to a condo/apt, where snow removal is someone else's headache, so we can continue to enjoy winter as we did in our younger years, when we did the insane things like commute 60+ miles a day in all sorts of weather. Now, I just refuse to go anywhere when we get 6-8 inches or more in one snowfall. Some years, that just means you miss a lot of work, which I for one have always considered A Good Thing. The bills are a lot like snow--some years, they just keep coming, no matter what you do. I've also learned over the years that if it's a choice between proving one's self worthy according to the Protestant Work Ethic Standard, or living with a bad credit rating, the latter is a often a much better lifestyle choice.