Snow Day...

I do believe that one of God’s greatest creations is… the snowflake. I am mesmerized by how each one is completely different and how gentle they are even when being thrown by the angriest wind. Coming from Georgia, now residing in Chicago, snow is still a novel thing to me. I’ve even figured out what my favorite is, not realizing I would have an opinion about such things. I don’t like the really tiny flakes, or the flurries. The best ones to me are the giant fluffy ones that leisurely drift from the sky, slowly, tenderly accumulating on tree branches, cars, and pavement. I could stare out the window all day and watch them, or go for a long walk among them feeling them kiss my face.
Yesterday though, I got to experience an actual storm, complete with crazy wind, making it look as if it were snowing sideways, thunder, lighting and some serious accumulation. I went home from work early and was annihilated on my walk to the train station and on my walk home from there. I’ve never been assaulted quite like that by precipitation before. The wind moved my body as I trekked home in a sea of angry, blowing snowflakes that felt like tiny razors as they hit my cheeks. My glasses were completely covered by the time I walked into my apartment, the hair peeking out from may hat wet and my face red. A couple of hours later Jeff arrived looking about the same.
This morning we high stepped it down my street on our way downtown because Jeff had to work and I needed caffeine. My feet sank well into the piled up sparkling fluff and suddenly I was ten years old again desperately wanting to run through it giggling and pelting Jeff with snowballs.


It’s a lot of work traipsing through all of that. We made it to the train and to downtown, stopping to look around before heading into Intelligentsia where he worked and I admired him while glancing up from my writing every now and then.

Downtown is quiet. Most of the businesses were either closed or working shorter hours. I walked to Millennium Park to look around and take pictures. The snow had ceased fire at this point and people were out laughing and running around. It was nice to see and despite the frigid temperatures, nice to be outside. The sun even came through a teeny bit.


On my walk home people were everywhere, digging out their cars, drinking coffee, playing, snapping pictures and taking advantage of the day. It was really nice to see and made going home all the better.