Talking Ourselves Into Another War?

Today's Top Story:
At the time of this posting, 1485 US soldiers have died in Iraq.
Source: http://icasualties.org/oif/

(Why is this "The Top Story"?

1. Each of these soldiers died in a war that was initiated by a President who intentionally misled the American people about the reasons for war in Iraq, (and
2. Like Gen. Anthony Zinni, I believe that this has got to be more important than "American Idol").

Today's Feature: Talking Ourselves Into Another War?

It's been awhile since I did a posting. My last one did not include the casualty statistics. After the election in Iraq, I was cautiously hopeful. (Unlike my sense after the election in America...) I wanted to believe that progress was being made. That maybe a good end result was possible. I heard Bill Maher on NPR's "Fresh Air" on February 8 talking about how we react to news about Bush & Co. His point...and I'm going to butcher it...was that we cannot listen to any news about Iraq, the administration, etc. and immediately try to figure out why we disagree. Sometimes we have to recognize that there are good outcomes, and we need to support these. We have to be smart enough to separate the positive events in the world from the political agendas that might have influenced them.

A very challenging point of view, but one I'm trying to adopt.

Now tell that to Mary, who had to listen to one of the longest streams of profanity I have ever uttered as I listened to the NBC Nightly News tonight. The story centered on how Iran has become our "enemy" and how President Bush was in Europe rounding up support for this position.

Did I miss something important? When did Iran become our "enemy"? (I'm obviously ignoring the "Axis of Evil" comments from the past. This might be a big mistake.)

Are we at odds with Iran on a number of issues? Yes. Would we prefer that they do not develop nuclear weapons? Absolutely.

But the rhetoric being used today, even by Brian Williams on the Nightly News, suggests that we are about to repeat the collective rethinking we did before the invasion of Iraq. We literally talked ourselves into that war. The politicians drove it. The media bought it. Colin Powell sold it at the UN. "Weapons of mass destruction" became the mantra...and the justification...even though they didn't exist!

If you tell the lie enough times, people will believe it. The march to Iraq proved it. Maybe some good will become of that effort. I remain hopeful and optimistic. (Read "pollyanna"?) But I'm also suspicious of the political/media machine. We haven't yet absorbed the cost (financial and human) of our excursion into Iraq. Why do we need to pick the next fight already?

Pay close attention to the news reports for the next 3 months. I'll bet you twenty dollars that we'll hear more and more about what a "grave threat to the national security" Iran represents. We'll hear George Bush and Dick Cheney and Condoleeza Rice opine about the "moolahs" and the "nucular" weapons. I'll bet we'll see the national threat warning level (whatever it's called) raised and some more news about "non-specific Interet chatter" that implies an imminent threat to our national security.

Our national leaders will promote an invasion of Iran, and our media will fall in line, looking for headlines and an opportunity to score an exclusive interview.

Here's the only scenario I can imagine where I would support an invasion of Iran: The US military forces crossing the Iran border are led by new recruits Jenna and Barbara Bush (G-dub's twin daughters) and our forces follow the troops deployed by France and Germany.

The Tale of a New Sagamore

Dear Friends and Family,

This started out as a lengthy email. I decided to post it as a blog, so I could include some photos and links without overwhelming your inboxes.

Our daughter Sarah joined the staff of then Indiana governor Frank O'Bannon as a "Governor's Fellow" shortly after she graduated from Indiana University in 2003.


2003-2004 Governor's Fellows (L-R) Aaron Smith- Indiana Univeristy; Stacey Martindale, Indiana University; Sarah Johnston, Indiana University; Emily Jones, Purdue University and Matthew Ewing, Indiana University (from http://www.in.gov/gov/fellowship/snapshots.html )



Sarah and the other Fellows (and most of us Hoosiers) were shocked and saddened by Governor O'Bannon's untimely death in September, 2003. Joe Kernan, the Lieutenant Governor under Gov. O'Bannon, was sworn in as Governor, and the state moved forward under new leadership.


The Fellows with Governor Kernan.

Joe Kernan is a native of South Bend, Indiana. He was a Navy pilot in Viet Nam and was shot down in 1972 and spent 11 months in a POW camp. After repatriation, he completing his service and returned home. After several years in business, he entered public service as the controller of South Bend. He served three terms as mayor of South Bend before being elected Lt. Governor in 1996 alongside Frank O'Bannon. He is a man of tremendous character and integrity. I'm delighted that my daughter had the opportunity to serve under him.

A sidebar: One of Governor Kernan's first official acts was to nominate Kathy Davis as the new Lieutenant Governor. Lt. Gov. Davis had a degree in engineering from MIT and an MBA from Harvard. She originally came to Indiana to work at Columbus-based Cummins Engine Company in the 1980's and later gravitated to public service. We saw this as one more affirmation of the innate intelligence found in the midwest: In the same month that California elected a swaggering body-builder as their new governor, Indiana's General Assembly unanimously confirmed one of the most intelligent, articulate people you'd ever want to meet as Lieutenant Governor. Sorry, California. We got the better deal!

Governor Kernan initially said he would not seek reelection, but after several months in office, changed his mind and announced his candidacy. The Fellows cheered...along with a lot of Hoosiers. In her off-hours, Sarah was an active campaigner for the Kernan/Davis ticket. But during business hours, she was rigidly non-partisan. As interested bystanders, we were impressed by the message that was drilled into the consciousness of the state government staff by the Governor: "We are here to serve all citizens of Indiana, regardless of their political affiliation. Don't forget!" Our discussions with Sarah's friends and colleagues confirmed that this was part of their DNA. Even in the midst of a contentious election year, they embraced and lived out their mission to serve all Hoosiers.

Unfortunately, Joe lost the election, and this coming Sunday will be his last day in office.

For the past several months, Sarah has been working in the Governor's Residence, a beautiful home and meeting center in a fine old Indianapolis neighborhood. Her final assignment as a Fellow was as an assistant to Maggie Kernan, our First Lady. This past summer, after she completed her year as a Fellow, Sarah was selected to be the first Director of Mentor Indiana, a program initiated by Mrs. Kernan to recruit 1,000 adult volunteers to mentor disadvantaged middle school students. I had the privilege of meeting Mrs. Kernan when she and Sarah visited Columbus to recruit volunteers.


Sarah, Mrs. Kernan, and me in Columbus. 

I volunteered, of course.

Earlier this week, Sarah was working at home (her office in the residence was being transferred to a new building as part of the transition to a new governor, and her car was in the shop), when she got a phone call from the Governor's office asking her if she could come in, right now. This alarmed Sarah. She worried that, like many of her cohorts in government, she was about to get the axe as part of the regime change. She was quickly reassured -- "This is a good thing." When she said she'd have to take a cab, they replied, "We'll send a car for you". So she changed out of her jeans and waited for the ride...wondering what was going to happen next.

When she arrived at the Governor's residence, she was shown into one of the meeting rooms where the Governor, the First Lady, and a group of staff members had gathered. The governor called her to the front of the room and presented her with a certificate naming her a "Sagamore of the Wabash". The term "sagamore" was used by the American Indian Tribes of the northeastern United States to describe a lesser chief or a great man among the tribe to whom the true chief would look for wisdom and advice.


The official proclamation.


The text of the certificate reads as follows:

State of Indiana
Council of the Sagamores of the Wabash

Joseph E. Kernan
Governor of the State of Indiana
*******
Know All Men by These Presents:

WHEAREAS, the Greatness of the Sons and Daughters of Indiana derives, in part, from qualities possessed by the noble Chieftains of the Indiana Tribes which once roamed its domain; and

WHEREAS, it has been the immemorial custom of the State of Indiana to attract to its support those who have exhibited such qualities; and

WHEREAS, there has endeared herself to the Citizens of Indiana, one

Sarah Johnston

distinguished by her Humanity in Living, her Loyalty in Friendship, her
Wisdom in Council, and her Inspiration in Leadership:

NOW, THEREFORE, recognizing her greatness and desiring to avail myself of her counsel, I do hereby appoint her a Chieftain upon my Staff with the rank and title of

SAGAMORE of the WABASH

WITNESS my hand and Seal of the Council of the Sagamores, at Indianapolis, Indiana, this the Ninth day of January, in the Year of Our Lord, Two Thousand and Five.

Joseph E. Kernan
Governor of the State of Indiana

We just thought you'd like to know that we have a Chieftain in our family.

Congratulations, Sarah!


Mike/Pop & Mary/Mama

The Blizzard of "Ought-Four", Part 4.

Today's Top Story:
At the time of this posting, 1333 US soldiers have died in Iraq.
Source: http://icasualties.org/oif/

(Why is this "The Top Story"?

1. Each of these soldiers died in a war that was initiated by a President
who intentionally misled the American people about the reasons for war in Iraq, (and
2. Like Gen. Anthony Zinni, I believe that this has got to be more important than "American Idol").

Today's Feature: The Blizzard of "Ought-Four", Part 4.

Monday, December 27, 2004

7:30am: We awoke today to a cold, clear and brilliantly sunny morning. Outside the trees were coated with a shiny layer of hoarfrost. (While I had seen it before, I didn't know what hoarfrost was until I read about it in our local paper the next day. One more thing I've learned this week.)

I got outside quickly to get some pictures before it melted.


Hoarfroast on the Serenity Garden.



A brilliant view.


I walked down to the end of the street to get a shot of the early morning sun shining through the trees.


Sun through the trees.

As I walk back to the house, I feel invigorated by the cold and the sunshine. Maybe, I think, I can learn to like this winter thing.

11:00am: The street still hasn't been plowed, but we venture out anyway. The main streets are clear, but the stores are still packed. We buy our supplies and head back home.

5:00pm: Just at dusk the snowplow comes through the neighborhood. He works our streets for a couple of hours, methodically working back and forth.


Sunday, January 2, 2005

We've had 4 days of unseasonably warm weather. Today it was 55 degrees outside. The snow is almost completely melted. I even drug out the garden hose and washed the cars. Surprise - instead of two dull grey vehicles, we actually have a black one and a white one! Tomorrow the vacation ends and we go back to work. Life here is almost back to normal.

But we are very mindful that for hundreds of thousands of our neighbors on the other side of the planet, life will not be back to normal for years, if ever. An editorial page headline in our local paper this week put things in the proper context: "Tsunami makes our 'crisis' pale".

For a very immediate view of activities around the crisis - reported by a group of people close to the scene - see the South-East Asia Earthquake and Tsunami Blog. To make an online donation to one of the major relief agencies, visit http://www.google.com/tsunami_relief.html .

The Blizzard of "Ought-Four", Part 3.

Today's Top Story:
At the time of this posting, 1324 US soldiers have died in Iraq.
Source: http://icasualties.org/oif/ No change for the last 3 days. A very welcome development.

(Why is this "The Top Story"?

1. Each of these soldiers died in a war that was initiated by a President who intentionally misled the American people about the reasons for war in Iraq, (and
2. Like Gen. Anthony Zinni, I believe that this has got to be more important than "American Idol").

Today's Feature: The Blizzard of "Ought-Four", Part 3.


Friday, December 24, 2004

7:45 am: We get up for the pets and are discouraged to look out the front windows and see no change in the street. Mary sees our neighbor Bill outside shoveling the distance between the base of his driveway and the track in the middle of the street. A bit later, I call next door and ask Bill if he has heard when our street will be plowed. He replies that he saw a private vehicle with a plow go down our street the previous evening around 6:00pm. It cleared a single lane on our street only – did not touch the side streets. He’s not sure why this happened, but we agree that it’s probably the best we’re going to see for awhile. He has already dug out to the path. That will be my next task. We need to get out to buy a few groceries.

I spend an hour or so digging out the last 10 feet from the base of our driveway to the plowed track. It’s not very difficult since I’ve finally figured out which shovel to use when. We have an ergonomic snow shovel, with a curved handle and a deep bucket. It’s great for scooping the top layers. It allows you to lift and pitch the snow with your arms and shoulders – sparing your back – but isn’t much good down close to the pavement. The other snow shovel has a straight handle and shallow, flat blade – good for digging the last couple inches close to the ground. I also use a standard square-blade shovel from my garden tools – great for breaking up packed snow and ice.


The last 10 feet. 

It is a beautiful day, even if the temperature refuses to top 10 degrees. A sunny winter day in Indiana is rare!


Clear and cold. 

12:00noon: We head out to run errands. Our macro plan is to go to the grocery store across from the drug store with a good wine selection. Before or after, depending on traffic, we’ll also hit a bank to make a deposit. Once we’re out of our neighborhood, we find most streets plowed, packed, and passable – and being thoroughly tested by everybody else in town who’d been cooped up at home for a couple of days. We ditch the idea of going to the bank and head straight for the grocery. The parking lot is bounded by huge piles of plowed snow. (We’ve heard that the city is trucking snow out of the downtown area because there is no place let to park it. It’s later in the day before we get a newspaper delivered and can verify this story. It’s true.) The parking lot is bumper-to-bumper. We find a spot far away from both destinations and agree to split up. Mary will do the grocery shopping. I will go to the drug store and select the wine, then will catch up with Mary at the grocery check out.

We find long lines in both stores, and expect to encounter short tempers and rude clerks. Surprisingly, in both stores the cashiers are friendly and cheerful, almost amused by the scene unfolding before them.

1:00pm: We get home and put away the groceries, then lay out lunch. The girls arrive shortly after and report that they had no problem getting in from Indianapolis, except for a stretch around Whiteland where traffic slowed down to 20 to 25 mph. We have heard a report that traffic coming north on I-65 from Louisville is also limited to that speed. Imagine a 5 hour drive from Louisville to Indianapolis (100 miles).

Other news stories report on a number of people complaining that nobody rescued them when they were trapped in their cars in bumper-to-bumper stalled traffic during the blizzard. Given that the roads were impassable, and that ample warnings had been published telling people to stay home, I find it difficult to have much sympathy. I can, though, imagine how frightening it would have been, but remain dismayed by how irresponsible we can be…unable to take responsibility for our own actions, no matter how stupid. “C’mon kids, let’s ignore all the warnings, hop in the minivan and drive through blinding snow tonight.”

6:00pm: Katie makes a trip back to Greenwood (on the outskirts of Indy) for a party at the home of her boyfriend’s parents. She gets back home by 11, without incident. While she is gone, the rest of us enjoy a dinner of Steak Diane, mashed potatoes, and broccoli. Mary got the recipes from a new Cuisine magazine. It’s a tribute to Julia Child. Delicious! Bon appetit!


Steak Diane...prepared under the watchful eye of Chef Oscar 

10:30pm: The doorbell rings. It’s Will’s friend Max. When he got off work at the new Chili’s restaurant, he drove over to our neighborhood to see Will, but got his car stuck on a side street when he tried to turn around. We round up Will and several other friends and get Max unstuck, after helping another motorist who got stuck trying to avoid Max’ car. It’s nearly zero degrees outside. We work quickly. We need to get back inside before Santa comes….


Saturday, December 25, 2004 – Christmas Day.

No weather worries today. It was a day to stay indoors and celebrate with family.


What's better at Christmas than new slippers? 

Sunday, December, 26, 2004

7:30am: Will has to be at work at Fazoli’s this morning at 8:00am. Yesterday he dug a path to the street to get his car out. We hear him up and moving, and get up ourselves, expecting there might be a problem getting his car out of the driveway. Sure enough, he gets stuck in the middle of the street, blocking the exit of a couple of neighbors headed to early church services. They help us dig him out and get him back in the driveway. Two more tries later, and he is on his way to work and I’m headed back in for a first cup of coffee.

That sturdy old Mercedes Benz he bought is REALLY HEAVY!!

The local paper says that all street will be plowed by tomorrow morning. We’re hopeful it will happen during the day today so we can clean up after.

9:30pm: Street still has not been plowed. Guess we’ve got something to look forward to tomorrow.

The Blizzard of "Ought-Four", Part 2.

Today's Top Story:
At the time of this posting, 1324 US soldiers have died in Iraq.
Source: http://icasualties.org/oif/ No change from yesterday. A welcome development.

(Why is this "The Top Story"?

1. Each of these soldiers died in a war that was initiated by a President who intentionally misled the American people about the reasons for war in Iraq, (and
2. Like Gen. Anthony Zinni, I believe that this has got to be more important than "American Idol").

Today's Feature: The Blizzard of "Ought-Four", Part 2.

Thursday, December 23, 2004

7:00am: We woke up early (for a vacation day) this morning, but knew we would have a challenge taking care of the pets. Mary says the wind howled all night. It’s still dark, so we can’t tell how much snow fell overnight by looking out the upstairs window.

We head downstairs and let the pets out of their kennel. The morning routine for the dog is eat first, then go out. We set out the food and then open the front door to see how much snow we got. We are amazed to see a foot of snow packed up against the door and drifts shaped like gentle waves flowing across the front yard.

Mary says she’ll go out and dig out the crapatorium, but there is so much snow piled up against the door of the back porch that she can’t get out. She decides to go out through the side door of the garage and around the side of the house. A moment later she calls me – “Mike, come QUICK!” – and I find howling with laughter in the garage.

“Look at the imprint from the door!”


A big surprise at the garage door.

She steps over the packed snow and into the side yard. One step toward the back and she is in snow up to mid-thigh. Still laughing with amazement, she heads around to the back.


Mary getting in deep.

It takes several minutes for her to dig out a 5 foot round opening in the snow in the back yard. Then several more minutes to dig a path up to the porch door and get it to open. It’s almost too late: While I’m watching Mary’s progress through the back window, the dog squats next to me in the kitchen and prepares to relieve herself. I yell (which does no good – the old dog is deaf as a post) and poke her in the side (which gets her attention and stops nature in its tracks). Using dog sign language -- a combination of gestures: waving towards my chest, slapping my thigh – I manage to coax the dog out onto the back porch just as Mary gets the door freed. The dog is happy, as am I. We dodged a ..um… “bullet” that time….

Back inside, we flip on the tv and listen to the weathermen excitedly describe the overnight accumulation. Every few minutes they switch to some poor sucker who got the remote location assignment. They are set up at the outlet mall 5 miles from our house, right along I-65. It’s about 10 degrees outside. Traffic on the Interstate is reduced to a one-lane crawl. They say that Seymour, Indiana (25 miles south of us) got 18 inches of snow. I figure we got at least that much, further complicated by the drifts created by the overnight winds.

Mary says she heard we had “thunder snow” overnight. I’ve never heard of such a thing, but it’s clearly a week of firsts. I’ve never seen this much snow, either. We decide to focus on indoor activities for the morning. While it’s unlikely that the girls will be able to drive down from Indianapolis tonight as planned, we still need to finish cleaning the house, preparing the guest rooms, etc.

10:00am: The housecleaning done, I decide to start on the driveway and front walk. I take a minimalist approach with the front walk, clearing a shovel width up the walk to the front porch.


A different look for the entrance.

Before starting down the driveway, I stick a yardstick into the drift at the top of the drive. It shows 19”. The good news is that most of the drive has less than that. I take a couple deep breaths and plunge in. Yesterday, I wanted to get all three lanes of the driveway cleared. Today, I have much less ambition. One lane clear to the street will be an accomplishment.

Mary and Will both join me a little while later, and I’m glad for the help.


Two more shovelers...just in time!

Together it takes us til 11:30 to clear one lane down to the street. We don’t bother to try to dig out past the curb, figuring that the snow plow should be along sometime today (we hope!) and will cover the base of the driveway with its discharge. We know we’ll have to dig out again.


About 16" deep at the curb.

Will takes a photo of me and Mary before we head in for lunch.


"American Arctic"

2:00pm – After lunch I decide to get started on the other side of the driveway, where Will parks his car. That will leave only the middle lane with snow on it. Will comes out to help, and we get into a pretty good rhythm. After a few minutes, Will gets manic – probably from the music pumping into his brain from his MP3 player. He starts shoveling at high speed, flinging snow high into the air. After a few minutes of this, he looks back at me (I have retreated a safe distance so I’m not struck by flying snow…or flying snow shovels), grins, lets out a whoop, and leaps backward into the snow pile beside the driveway. I resist the urge to pitch a shovelful of snow on top of him.

Within 45 minutes we’ve cleared his lane down to the street.


Another lane clear.

Will heads back inside. I stay out for a while longer, working on the center lane, cutting a diagonal path that links to the lane we cleared this morning. Before going back inside, I peek around the side of the house and take a photo of the drifts against the wall.


Where did the A/C unit go?

The tracks in the snow mark Mary’s path from first thing this morning. Somewhere underneath the snow is the gas meter.

3:30pm: Back inside, I get a shower to warm up, then help Mary with the Christmas cookies. I get to help make the peanut butter mice.


Plenty of Christmas treats!

I also get to sample the others. Yum!

We hear from the girls in Indy. The parking lot at the condo has not yet been plowed. They can't get out.

6:15: We make the local news. Bartholomew County is mentioned as one of the “hardest hit areas”. We see aerial footage of snow-covered streets, cars in ditches, and the Interstate highway at a crawl. Our street has still not been plowed. But there’s no place we need to go tonight.

The Blizzard of "Ought-Four", Part 1.

Today's Top Story:
At the time of this posting, 1324 US soldiers have died in Iraq.
Source: http://icasualties.org/oif/
That's almost 90 more than at my last posting 3 weeks ago!

(Why is this "The Top Story"?

1. Each of these soldiers died in a war that was initiated by a President who intentionally misled the American people about the reasons for war in Iraq, (and
2. Like Gen. Anthony Zinni, I believe that this has got to be more important than "American Idol").

Today's Feature: The Blizzard of "Ought-Four", Part 1.

Wednesday, December 22, 2004

6:22am: The phone rings, 40 minutes before we are planning to get up. Alarm set for 7am, since I’m on vacation, Will is out of school, and Mary only needs 30 minutes to get ready for work. On the phone is Mary’s boss, the doctor, telling her that he is closing the office for the day because of the snow. He is going to call all the patients to let them know not to come in.

We get up and look outside. It appears we have gotten 3-4 inches of snow overnight, and it’s still coming down, hard and fast. It’s 6:30am and we’re up, so we get the day started. Coffee brews, breakfast gets made. We watch the local and national news. I send an email to my family, emphasizing that the local forecast is calling for up to EIGHTEEN inches of snow. I’ve never seen this much snow at one time. But I’m on vacation and don’t have to be anywhere at any specific time til January 3rd, so let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

8:30am: Mary and I go outside to shovel the driveway. Mary is skeptical that we need to do it so early, but I’m convinced. There is at least 6 inches of snow on the ground already, and I’m worried about how hard it will be to get it cleared off the driveway. I’m trying hard to appreciate Indiana weather – mild summers, all four seasons, not too much snow in the winter…it could be the ideal climate – but this is a stretch. My last collision with Indiana weather was after Thanksgiving, when high winds blew some shingles off my roof. I bought replacements and spent two weekends replacing shingles and 6 weeks nursing a sprained back. The doctor prescribed naproxen and muscle relaxants. This morning I do a quick evaluation of the relative risk factors: Naproxen was all over the news this week as a possible contributor to heart attacks. I’m also aware that many middle-aged men drop dead of heart attacks every year while shoveling snow. My back isn’t back to normal, and I need to shovel snow. Since I haven’t had any naproxen in a week, I figure the odds are in my favor, and take one before starting to shovel. I take it easy…not going too fast or too hard. My goal is to get the driveway cleared without wearing myself out. It takes us 45 minutes to make one pass through the driveway.


An optimistic shoveler -- first pass through the driveway on Wednesday. 



Mary being a good neighbor and clearing a path to the mailbox - Wednesday. 


It’s a losing game, though. By the time we clear the driveway from the garage down to the street, we can’t see the driveway at the top. The snow is falling faster than we can shovel it!


Didn't we just clear this driveway? 

We measure the snowfall on the top of Will’s car and see that we’ve had 6 inches of snow.


Wednesday morning measurement on the roof of Will's car. 


10:00am: I bring the snow shovel through the house and into the back yard and clear out a spot roughly 10 feet by 10 feet so the dog has a place to relieve herself. I name it the “crapatorium” and force the dog to go out there. Mary starts working on Christmas cookies and I start cleaning the downstairs to get ready for all the company we're expecting this week.


Mary and Oscar make cookies. 

1:00pm: After lunch it’s time to shovel again. Mary asks if I really think it’s necessary. I open the garage door and stick a broom handle into the snow. The snow depth equals the length of my Swiss army knife, which turns out to be three and a half inches when I measure it back in the kitchen. Another 3 ½ to 4 inches is on the ground, and more continues to fall.

I decide to clear the driveway again to try to keep up. It takes me until 2:15 to get it done. Will comes out and does his lane of the driveway. I measure the snow on top of his car – 8 inches, total.


Wednesday afternoon measurement on Will 

I think I’ve shoveled more total inches. Mary comes out and tells us that the revised forecast is for another 8 – 12 inches. Gee, something to look forward to.


A clear driveway - Wednesday afternoon. 

Back inside, I help out a bit with the cookie making, sprinking sliced almonds on some of the absolute best sugar cookies I’ve ever tasted. Then I head to the basement to do some painting. We’ve got company coming and I haven’t finished the trim down there.

5:15pm: It’s nap time. After a long day of shoveling, baking (and tasting!) and painting, it’s time for a rest. We each hunker down under the covers with a good book. I manage two or three paragraphs, then have to put mine down and turn out the light. Nighty nite.

6:00pm: The phone rings. It’s the doctor…waking me up for the second time today! He talks to Mary and says he’s going to close the office on Thursday…does she have the list of patients that are scheduled? No? Could she go retrieve it and call them? We bundle up and head out. The office is about a mile and a half away, over several main streets. We slide out of our neighborhood – our street has not yet been plowed. The main streets have been plowed, but snow is accumulating rapidly. We get to the office without incident, and spend an hour or so making phone calls. When we leave, I have to scrape the car windows and I can’t see the tracks we made in the parking lot when we arrived.

8:00pm: We get back home. Will is there with two of his buddies. They’ve been out sledding all afternoon and have picked up a pizza and a movie. We’re all chatting in the kitchen, lots of milling about and noise, when we notice the dog in the middle of the group, squatting and peeing all over the kitchen floor. I’m not sure I ever saw those high school boys move quite so quickly. We decide we need to do a better job monitoring the crapatorium…

9:00pm: An alert comes over the cable tv network, advising that a “snow emergency” has been declared. This is something new to us. The message is simple: You should only venture out in an emergency. We have nowhere we need to go. Will’s buddies emerge from the basement and say goodnight. They saw the announcement and are heading home.

9:30pm: The snow is pouring down. A group of kids trouped through our yard in mid-afternoon, dragging snow shovels, but I can’t see any sign of their passing as I look out the front window. Tomorrow should be interesting.


Hard snowfall at night..