Snowmageddon

We survived the blizzard of 2015 on Long Island. That’s the good news. The bad news is that we will probably spend the next three days digging out from all of this snow. If you missed my post on Monday, you definitely needed a good pair of snow boots to deal with this storm.

On Monday morning the weather was fairly calm, although it did look like snow was coming our way. I decided to get to work early so that I could leave early and beat the traffic on what would probably be slick roads. It started flurrying on my way to work and continued throughout the morning. By 12:30 p.m. I called it quits and headed home. The snow had become heavier and more consistent. If there is one thing I hate more than the cold, it is driving in snow. To my surprise, my commute home was a breeze. I guess it was good that I left early. Anticipating the storm, I had done all of my grocery shopping on Sunday, so I was excited to jump back into my pajamas and relax for the afternoon.

After a quick bite to eat I thought a pre-blizzard hike through Connetquot State Park would be nice. I figured the snow would keep me indoors for a day or two so some exercise was in order. The snow was accumulating by the time I left the house, but there is something peaceful about being outside and hearing the snow and ice crunch under your feet. The hike took about two hours and on the way back I noticed my initial footprints were completely covered. Good thing I wasn’t depending on them to find my way! It was one of the first hikes where I didn’t see any wildlife. Usually I spot some deer, but on this day there were none. Perhaps they, too, were preparing for the storm!

By nightfall, Long Island had a travel ban requiring all cars to be off the roads by 11 p.m. so the snowplows could do their job undisturbed. It was a quiet night without the sound of cars and the reflections from their headlights. We were lucky and did not lose power despite the heavy snow and ice.

Thankfully, yesterday was a snow day and I fully embraced not having to go to work. I remained in my pajamas all day. The heaviest snow fell in the early morning hours of Tuesday and began to taper off around 11 a.m. The roads still looked completely covered and most neighbors had slowly begun the daunting task of digging themselves out. When the snow finally stopped it left more than twenty inches in some parts of the Island.