Viel Schnee
Just last week I was going to do a post about how spring was almost in the air. The first crocuses started to bloom, I could hear songbirds in the morning when I was walking Grady, the nights were starting to get longer. Of course it was still cold, but the cold didn't feel as cold as it did before, if that makes sense. It's like, zero degrees last month felt chillier than zero degrees now. Well, it's a good thing I didn't post anything because I would have looked like a fool.
By and large, Basel doesn't tend to get very much snow, so this week has been strange because I think it has snowed every day. Like clockwork, I would wake up in the morning to an inch or two of fresh snow which would then melt as the day went on, only to wake up and repeat again the next morning (it's felt a bit like Groundhog Day). Each day the snow has been a little different: one day it was the light powdery type that I could just sweep off the sidewalk with a broom, the next day it was the sort where it melted and then froze so the pretty white flakes were covering up ice (great fun when cleaning off the car), another day was wet and slushy and already raining by morning so I figured it would melt quickly (which it did). Then yesterday it actually got warm (10 degrees, or 50F) and windy and rainy, so I figured we were moving into a more springlike phase.
Surprise! I woke up this morning to some of the heaviest snow I've seen since I've been in Basel, and it hasn't let up since (I'm not sure, but I think this article says it's a big ol' storm). At this point I'd say at least 6 inches has fallen (no clue what that is in centimeters). It's the sort of snow that, if it were falling in Washington, every news station would have their entire crew out reporting on it, traffic would be at a standstill, soccer moms would be fighting over the last bread and milk at the grocery store, general panic would ensue, etc (and you DCers know exactly what I mean), but even though it doesn't snow often here people seem to take it in stride, no one panics, trams and trains generally run on time, etc. It's really beautiful because it's the kind of snow that is clinging to all the trees and making it look like a winter wonderland...but, as I also discovered, because it was warm before it snowed the bottom layer is wet and heavy, so shoveling it was like shoveling wet cement. And did I mention that we live on a corner lot so we have to shovel two sidewalks? If I was pleasantly surprised that I wasn't sore after curling, I'm afraid I'm not going to be so lucky after this afternoon (and the way it's still coming down, I'll be at it again tomorrow morning)...
By and large, Basel doesn't tend to get very much snow, so this week has been strange because I think it has snowed every day. Like clockwork, I would wake up in the morning to an inch or two of fresh snow which would then melt as the day went on, only to wake up and repeat again the next morning (it's felt a bit like Groundhog Day). Each day the snow has been a little different: one day it was the light powdery type that I could just sweep off the sidewalk with a broom, the next day it was the sort where it melted and then froze so the pretty white flakes were covering up ice (great fun when cleaning off the car), another day was wet and slushy and already raining by morning so I figured it would melt quickly (which it did). Then yesterday it actually got warm (10 degrees, or 50F) and windy and rainy, so I figured we were moving into a more springlike phase.
Surprise! I woke up this morning to some of the heaviest snow I've seen since I've been in Basel, and it hasn't let up since (I'm not sure, but I think this article says it's a big ol' storm). At this point I'd say at least 6 inches has fallen (no clue what that is in centimeters). It's the sort of snow that, if it were falling in Washington, every news station would have their entire crew out reporting on it, traffic would be at a standstill, soccer moms would be fighting over the last bread and milk at the grocery store, general panic would ensue, etc (and you DCers know exactly what I mean), but even though it doesn't snow often here people seem to take it in stride, no one panics, trams and trains generally run on time, etc. It's really beautiful because it's the kind of snow that is clinging to all the trees and making it look like a winter wonderland...but, as I also discovered, because it was warm before it snowed the bottom layer is wet and heavy, so shoveling it was like shoveling wet cement. And did I mention that we live on a corner lot so we have to shovel two sidewalks? If I was pleasantly surprised that I wasn't sore after curling, I'm afraid I'm not going to be so lucky after this afternoon (and the way it's still coming down, I'll be at it again tomorrow morning)...
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