On this Sunday morning I’m looking out of the window and see white snow everywhere.  This is the beautiful “fluffy” stuff that White Christmases are made of; Bing Crosby would have been proud of this snow.  I’ve always said that I have no problem with snow, except for the fact that it falls on paved surfaces, such as roads, driveways and sidewalks.  That’s when you need equipment; equipment and Bob.

Bob is my daughter’s boyfriend from suburban Chicago.  He came up to Minnesota this weekend to visit our family.  He’s been here before and is a delight.  With Deb immobilized for a few days as she deals with the effects from her recent chemotherapy treatment, it is nice to have some family around.  Bob and Tara got here Thursday evening.  Friday morning was sunny and delightful.  On Friday evening the snow started to fall.  It went on for nearly two days before stopping early this Sunday morning.   I’m not sure how many inches we got, but conservatively it is a good 20 inches.

At our place here in Winona we’ve got an ancient but formidable John Deere tractor with a four foot plow blade.    We’ve also got an incredible, eleven horsepower, dual stage, Simplicity Snow Blower.  These are not toys; they qualify as commercial grade snow removal equipment.  With this equipment Bob and I have already spent a good 14 man hours pushing and blowing snow.  With an 8 or 10 inch snow you can wait till it is all done and clean it up.  If you wait on a 20-incher the plow can’t push the snow and you’re relegated to blowing all of it, which can take a long, long time.  You’ve got to get out there and chip away on a 20-incher, which Bob and I did yesterday with gusto.

Later this morning, when Bob gets up and I get my sore muscles going, we’ll finish the job.  It will take us another 4-6 man hours.  So this morning I give particular thanks for three things.  First, I give thanks for my wife’s courage and her miraculous response to her illness.  Second, I give thanks for good, reliable snow removal equipment.  And last, I give thanks for Bob, who has already had to dry his snow-soaked clothes twice, and appears to be willing to have another go at it this morning.

One of our loyal readers, Doc Anderson, sent a photo to me last week.  It has nothing to do with this post, but I couldn’t resist passing it on. Ah…what photoshop can’t accomplish!