Snow Day

January 07, 2004, 2:43 p.m.
Snow has been falling across the Pacific Northwest for the past three days. At first it was beautiful; J and I bundled up and took a long walk through the nature park adjacent to our house admiring the way the snow looked balanced on tree branches. But eventually the snowflakes turned to freezing rain and several accidents, power outages and inches of freezing rain have turned what was once a beautiful scene into chaos.

Portland is not equipped to deal with snow – there are not enough snow ploughs to clear the roads, native Oregonians aren’t sure how to drive in the snow (and those of us who grew up driving in the snow have forgotten how), and everyone is panicking, purchasing emergency supplies and preparing for the worst. And almost everything is shut down – schools, local businesses, public transportation – while the entire city huddles indoors waiting for the snow to melt.

While most people, including J, are celebrating a few “snow days,” I have numerous projects that need to be completed and no excuse for not making the long commute down the hallway to my home office. I’m sitting here writing and editing and watching cars slipping and sliding along the road outside my window, feeling very fortunate that I have nowhere to go.