Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Confessions

So it has not stopped snowing all day people. Huh ... Whaaa??? This is Vancouver! It doesn't snow here! Not like this! 

Anyway, the result of this deluge is that we have a good six inches of soft white snow on our big back patio. And more coming. And this being the day away from daycare, after our post-lunch rest (more on that later!) I decided we should go outside. 

So here's the confession part. What has 34 years of snow-less existence done for me? You know, besides given me a so-far life-long hatred of snow?

Turns out? I have NO IDEA HOW TO PLAY IN SNOW.

Seriously. The snowman I made? Totally unrecognizable as such. I cannot roll snow. I cannot make a snowball. And what's worse, I cannot even tell if this is just due to lack of skill on my part. It might be because the snow is not the best kind for making snowballs. It might be because I have hand-knitted mittens that stick to the snow like glue (all the while keeping my hands toasty, so I can't complain!). The point being? I don't know. I have no idea why the making of a snowball is an impossibility for me. Just completely clueless. 

See what I mean? Not a real Canadian. Truly this is probably the real reason I shouldn't go outside when we visit the in-laws for Christmas -- I look like a bumbling idiot out there. Who doesn't know how to play in the snow??!

Me. 

I should note that the one thing I did remember how to do is to make a snow angel. My two year old declined the honour of lying down in the snow, but requested that I show him. Being the mom I am, and trying so very hard to have some fun for my child, I did so. And made a very nice snow angel, if I do say so myself. 

What I forgot was that lying down in snow brings warm skin, in jeans, close to cold snow. And hey, for the one other person on earth who doesn't realize this, here's the problem: Warm legs + cold snow = wet jeans. 

Because of course I don't own any type of appropriate clothing for snow.

Yeah. I'm awesome.

2 comments:

wealhtheow said...

If you really have a lot of snow, and it's the fairly heavy, wet-ish kind that packs well, you can build some quite impressive structures out of snow bricks, which are easy to make using any kind of rectilinear plastic container as a mold. Easier than snow people (I am not good at snow people, either, despite growing up in Calgary, where we tended not to have a shortage of snow).

Flinging snow at each other was also a popular snow-related activity in my childhood and adolescence, IIRC ... ;)

erin said...

I read this post earlier this morning and I giggled. A few minutes ago, I started thinking about going outside to play in the snow and that is when I realized... I have no boots. No ski pants. No sled, even. CRAP, what has happened to me??

It's still snowing here and showing no signs of letting up. This may be the most snow I've seen in Seattle since I moved here.