One snowstorm in and I’ve already had enough of winter.
As last week progressed, the forecast changed from calling for more than a foot of snow in Lynn to downgrading to only a few inches of snow with freezing rain, sleet and ice becoming the more pressing issue.
As someone who hates the cold weather and counts down the days each winter until spring arrives, neither one was welcome news.
With this storm, the hits kept coming.
Saturday brought a parking ban, so it was time to maneuver six cars into a narrow driveway with the other tenants at the house where my apartment is.
Sunday morning came and it was time to dig myself out of the driveway to go to work.
As I’m sure was the case for countless others, clearing off the car wasn’t just a matter of brushing snow off, but rather trying to remove and scrape heavy ice off while hoping the effort didn’t cause any damage.
It seemed to be a losing effort right off the bat when the driver’s side door of the car was frozen shut and it took substantial pulling while cursing the winter season to get it open.
One hour later and there was still ice on the car, but I had it. A quick shoveling out of the spot and I was off to start the day.
By nightfall, temperatures were down to a frigid 10 degrees Fahrenheit and an attempt to pop open the trunk of the car revealed that it was frozen shut.
It wasn’t until the following night on the way home from the gym (when it was even colder) that the trunk decided to finally pop open … as I was driving, confirming my suspicions that I was driving around for a day and a half with it open but frozen in place.
It was a small victory though as pulling over in a random parking lot and slamming it shut a couple of times finally broke up the sheet of ice on the back of the car.
Throw in the effort to park on the streets and in parking lots with spots covered in snow and that would make anyone long for sunny days and summer heat.
But as is the New England way, when temperatures are scorching in the summer, we’ll all be complaining about the heat and flocking inside where it’s air conditioned.
For others struggling through the frigid temperatures, here’s a welcome statistic. There’s less than two months until spring, or 55 days if you’re also counting.
In the meantime, I’ll be envisioning myself somewhere tropical.
