39 I never thought this day would come. The day I actually found out why all the grown-ups in my life hate snow. Don’t get me wrong, I still like the snow. It’s beautiful when it first falls, and it’s a once-a-year occurrence, which makes it feel all the more special. But when a town gets a foot of snow in a day and a half, things get messy. <br> <br> 
Maybe it’s because this is my first year as a licensed driver. Maybe it’s the fact that I commute 20 minutes to school. Or maybe it’s because, since I lost my winter gloves, my hands are as dry and scaly as the snow is freezing and numbing. Regardless of the reason, the snow has lost that certain “magic” it had when I was a kid. It’s still nice, and I don’t mind its presence within reason…I just wish I didn’t have to drive in it.<br> <br> For the most part, the roads are pretty clear. The city does a great job of keeping them plowed. But then we get a day like Sunday when the snow was falling faster than it could be plowed. In fact, weather.com reports that South Bend got 15.2 inches from our weekend visitor, Winter Storm Linus. Suffice it to say I was glad it was a weekend because there’s no way I’d be driving to school on roads that had a good inch and a half to two inches on them.<br> <br> Secondly, and this is straight out of the “No, really?!” files, the snow is cold. Of course, that’s not news. But regardless of how many years we get the puffy stuff, I just can’t learn my lesson of always wearing gloves outside. I think I was doing pretty well this year…until I lost my gloves. And I keep forgetting to get a new pair. So as if driving wasn’t hard enough, now I have to do it with either two numb hands, or one numb hand while my other is warming up in my pocket. Constantly switching hands may not sound bad, but being able to steer with both hands is something I have realized I take for granted.<br> <br> Getting on campus and seeing the snow drifts next to the parking lot just reminded of what a force of nature the snow is. It makes me wonder how much time resident students spend just bundling up for a cross campus walk, especially to morning chapel. And my gloveless hands, already half numb from tag-teaming during the drive, are rendered fully numb on my own walk to class.<br> <br> But the snow doesn’t just affect driving, since walking on the parking lot coated in black ice feels like playing Minesweeper. You have clues to where the dangerous spots are, but it all really breaks down to a huge guessing game. If I wasn’t 100 percent awake from driving, I got a second wake-up call a few times from a near wipeout in the parking lot.<br> <br> But despite all this, I actually still like the snow. Why? Because it reminds me of Christmas. (Okay…so we didn’t actually get any snow during Christmas, but I digress.) Also, it leads to snow days, which are a great thing either to go to bed with the knowledge of, or, better yet, to wake up to and go back to sleep. And finally, living at home and being able to romp around in the snow with my 6-year old brother and 10-year old sister like we used to…well, who said you ever had to leave all your childhood behind?<br> <br> So, yeah, I’ve discovered why virtually all the adults I’ve met hate the snow. And I must say, it’s not the same magical event that it once was. But despite the numbing cold, slippery roads and tricky black ice, I’m still a winter guy. It reminds me of the great Christmases I’ve had with my family, it reminds me of good times with my siblings sledding and tubing, and studying is a little bit more bearable with some hot chocolate looking out at freshly fallen snow. <br> <br> So…contrary to popular opinion, thanks, Linus, for letting us borrow your huge white blanket. Just make sure to take it back eventually so I can feel my hands again.
Maybe it’s because this is my first year as a licensed driver. Maybe it’s the fact that I commute 20 minutes to school. Or maybe it’s because, since I lost my winter gloves, my hands are as dry and scaly as the snow is freezing and numbing. Regardless of the reason, the snow has lost that certain “magic” it had when I was a kid. It’s still nice, and I don’t mind its presence within reason…I just wish I didn’t have to drive in it.<br> <br> For the most part, the roads are pretty clear. The city does a great job of keeping them plowed. But then we get a day like Sunday when the snow was falling faster than it could be plowed. In fact, weather.com reports that South Bend got 15.2 inches from our weekend visitor, Winter Storm Linus. Suffice it to say I was glad it was a weekend because there’s no way I’d be driving to school on roads that had a good inch and a half to two inches on them.<br> <br> Secondly, and this is straight out of the “No, really?!” files, the snow is cold. Of course, that’s not news. But regardless of how many years we get the puffy stuff, I just can’t learn my lesson of always wearing gloves outside. I think I was doing pretty well this year…until I lost my gloves. And I keep forgetting to get a new pair. So as if driving wasn’t hard enough, now I have to do it with either two numb hands, or one numb hand while my other is warming up in my pocket. Constantly switching hands may not sound bad, but being able to steer with both hands is something I have realized I take for granted.<br> <br> Getting on campus and seeing the snow drifts next to the parking lot just reminded of what a force of nature the snow is. It makes me wonder how much time resident students spend just bundling up for a cross campus walk, especially to morning chapel. And my gloveless hands, already half numb from tag-teaming during the drive, are rendered fully numb on my own walk to class.<br> <br> But the snow doesn’t just affect driving, since walking on the parking lot coated in black ice feels like playing Minesweeper. You have clues to where the dangerous spots are, but it all really breaks down to a huge guessing game. If I wasn’t 100 percent awake from driving, I got a second wake-up call a few times from a near wipeout in the parking lot.<br> <br> But despite all this, I actually still like the snow. Why? Because it reminds me of Christmas. (Okay…so we didn’t actually get any snow during Christmas, but I digress.) Also, it leads to snow days, which are a great thing either to go to bed with the knowledge of, or, better yet, to wake up to and go back to sleep. And finally, living at home and being able to romp around in the snow with my 6-year old brother and 10-year old sister like we used to…well, who said you ever had to leave all your childhood behind?<br> <br> So, yeah, I’ve discovered why virtually all the adults I’ve met hate the snow. And I must say, it’s not the same magical event that it once was. But despite the numbing cold, slippery roads and tricky black ice, I’m still a winter guy. It reminds me of the great Christmases I’ve had with my family, it reminds me of good times with my siblings sledding and tubing, and studying is a little bit more bearable with some hot chocolate looking out at freshly fallen snow. <br> <br> So…contrary to popular opinion, thanks, Linus, for letting us borrow your huge white blanket. Just make sure to take it back eventually so I can feel my hands again.
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