The Shoveler

Here's something I never expected when I turned my life upside down, quit my job, moved 150 miles away and got married.

My new main purpose in life seems to be to shovel snow off the driveway.  I've become The Shoveler.  That's what I do. 

"Lucille, God gave me a gift. I shovel well. I shovel very well."

I remember when the snow started, back in December, I thought it was noteworthy that I had to shovel 5 times in two weeks.  Ah, I was so young and naive then.

I took pictures:

Standing proud with my shovel. I had no idea this was only the beginning.

Look how tiny those icicles are! At the time I thought they were big. (See below)

 But the Winter kept on coming.  And coming.  And coming.

Since 2014 began we have alternated between bitterly frigid temperatures and snow.  The only "snow days" that Katherine has had at the school where she teaches were not because of snow fall, but because of cold.  One day the HIGH for the day was -12 Fahrenheit (-24 C).  The other time she got off the low was -16 F (-26 C), but the high for that day was a balmy 0 F (-17C), which really didn't seem like it warranted a day off.

For the past 4-5 weeks, it's only gotten above freezing one time that I can remember, and that was in the low 30's.  Usually it gets into the 20's, which is warm enough for it to snow, and then Mother Nature takes a huge, wet, white dump all over us. Again.

I'm starting to feel like the guy in this funny old story.

I've lost count of the number of times I've shoveled this winter, but I can tell you that I've shoveled at least four times this week. (Twice on Wednesday.)   I'm getting really OCD about keeping my driveway clear.

Want to see what a month's worth of snow and frigid temperatures look like?

See those huge piles?  I'm running out of places to throw the snow.

You want icicles?  THOSE are icicles. If you cut them open you can count the ice rings.

Despite all my grumbling, I actually enjoy shoveling... when I have the time.  A few times I've had to get up at 5am or 6am so that I could shovel the freshly fallen night's deposit before I leave the house.  Those days suck.  But when I am blessed with a morning off work, and I'm caught up on all my other chores, it's kind of nice to bundle up, get out into the fresh air, get some physical exercise, and feel a sense of accomplishment when I'm done.  And to play with my new yellow shovel.

 I've moved mountains (of snow) with my new yellow shovel!