Snow

Finally, snow has fallen in Chicagoland. Nothing much the other day, but this weekend’s storm proved to be a strong start to winter. Several inches of snow predicted. Falling temperatures. Windy conditions. Blowing snow. Followed by very cold temperatures and low wind chills. This is winter in Illinois. [Note: actual snow fall amounted to a measly 3 inches, if that!]

Most recent winters, at least 5, have been mild. Yes, a few bouts of very cold temps, but quickly followed by warming. Snow falls of a few inches, heavy and gloppy. But then melting quickly with the warmer temps. Our winters have been mild and of little bother. Not like the winters of years past. You know the kind, so windy we hung onto railings and sign posts while navigating downtown streets. We wore heavy nylon parkas to ward off awful wind chills. We learned to see and breath through ‘snorkel’ hoods on those parkas. We wore boots that would take the cold snow, melting slush, and salt infested snow melt. We wore casual clothes so the good office wardrobe was not ruined by those winters.

And the previous paragraph describes Chicago winters over the past 56 years. I’m not going to include the 12 winters of Massachusetts and upstate New York. Central New York was and is brutal. 135 inches of snow in Syracuse on the average. You don’t want to know Buffalo’s average, it is scary!

Somehow, there and here, we learn to live with weather. It becomes just a part of our routine and landscape. We expect snow and cold in winter. Best we get on with it and welcome the old norms.

We have enough new norms to struggle with – pandemic infection rates, commuting patterns and routines, work from home or from the car, plan or train. Who needs an office when we have terrific adaptability and technology? And the economy? This too shall pass, whatever the conditions that challenge us.

We are free. We are prepared. We have the ability. All we need is confidence and patience. All else will fall into place.

Happy New Year! Here’s to the challenges that make us stronger!!

January 3, 2021

 

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