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Ruralite CafeBy Lisa Majors-DuffReflections on a snow day in WNC |
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This much snow and ice calls for creativity. Whether it's a new and ad-venturous way of driving on roads that suddenly lack the necessary amount of friction, finding a non-lethal way of heating the house or flushing the toilet when the power goes out, or keeping the kids happy by a means other than the television, creativity is a must.
There are those in this great country of ours who could give us in Western North Carolina a lesson or two in snow-inspired creativity. The Mid-West, North and South Dakota, really just about everyone west of the Mighty Mississippi River and to the north, publish dictionaries with entirely definitions for "winter," "snow" and "ice" than the ones found in this part of the country. Of course, those residents of Florida and the southern parts of the states that surround the Gulf of Mexico are, in general, aware of a version of the word "cold," but their dictionaries are slightly lighter with the omission of "winter," "snow" and "ice" in the forms being discussed here today. And don't even try to explain these words to those who live in the desert regions of the southwestern United States. While they may have some vague recollection of "winter" from childhoods spent "up north," most have replaced such thoughts with swaying palm trees, year-round swimming pools and green golf courses. Being on the fringe of winter weather presents some unique problems for residents of Western North Carolina. First, there's the eye/ear strain caused by being tuned to the television/radio for updated information about approaching storms. Travel just slightly northwest on the map and this problem disappears from the population because they know they're going to get hit; they don't need a guy in a tie to confirm it for them at noon and 6 p.m. Conversely, similar ailments are not found in Florida and the Gulf states until June, when the rates of these illnesses increase exponentially with the threat of hurricane season. The added stress of not knowing what tomorrow may bring weatherwise becomes a potentially dangerous situation when normal grocery-shopping patterns are disturbed by that guy in the tie, who must be getting some kind of kickbacks from the Dairy and Grain Producers of America when he utters the following: "Better make sure you're stocked up on milk and bread. Storm's a comin'." The shopping hysteria reaches its pinnacle when family members split up as they pass through the automatic doors of the store and begin to ferry back as much milk, bread and cat food as they can carry to the one weaving the cart up and down the crowded aisles. A more serious danger to life and limb arises when those, shall we say inexperienced in the art of snow driving, get behind the wheel. Residents of Western North Carolina come by this trait honestly since we are not exposed to this weather condition with any kind of regularity. And like I said before, we take friction for granted. As soon as we press the brake pedal, we expect the tires to grab hold of the road and stop the car. This, as a great many of us have learned (again) this week, is not always the case. Neither is the opposite of stopping. Just because we press the gas pedal doesn't mean we'll go forward. The ditch often becomes our unintended destination in this case. The remedy for this, I've found, is twofold: First, remember that Aesop said "slow and steady wins the race"; second, count on the true heroes of winter to come to the rescue. The 14th Division of the N.C. Department of Transportation and the Sylva Snow-removal Crew do an amazing job of clearing snow off the roads, allowing you the means to address the final hazard of winter - the dreaded Snow Day. All school-age children without exception will tell you the same thing about a snow day - it's fat. They may not use these exact words, but you get the idea right away that they love it. You'd think they just won the kid version of the lottery - a day at the mall with unlimited funds - when "Jackson County Schools Are Closed" is announced by any of the aforementioned media outlets. At least they love it at first, say between the hours of 7 and 9 a.m. This is when the younger ones watch cartoons, mindlessly shoveling bowls of cereal into their mouths, and the older ones have gone back to bed. The minutes between 9 and 9:22 a.m. are OK too, because sledding and snowman-making are going on. But beware 9:30 a.m., when the "I'm bored" and the "there's nothing to watch on TV" begin. Creativity, in almost any legal form, is called for, even if it's a quick trip to the grocery store. |
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