Ok, only in the south can school be canceled due to winter weather and you wake up in the morning and not only is there no snow.....but no evidence of even a rain drop. When it was announced last night that school was canceled the little one shouted and jumped around the room and even I was a little excited for her, but now all I can think is "Great now we have to make up a day on some other vacation day." I guess becoming an adult makes one more of a curmudgeon. It does, however bring back memories of snow days in the north.
Growing up in Upstate NY, I am no a stranger to snow. It is in fact one of the reasons I moved south. I never really loved the snow as a kid. I remember my mom forcing me to go outside to play in it. Seriously, she would put my coat on me and literally push me out the door! I never liked to sled or ski or anything outside in the snow. Let's just say the snow and I had issues. The one thing I did appreciate from the snow was the occasional day off from school. And though it seemed they were very sparse the older we got, a snow day was always a welcomed day off.
They always start the same way. Early in the morning between 4:00 and 5:00 am the house phone would ring.( like we had anything else but a house phone then!) That was the clue that there might be a chance of no school that day. See, my dad was the president at the local community college and it was his job to decide whether classes were canceled due to the weather. Would I go back to sleep and wait for him to inform us that school was on or not? No! I would go downstairs to the kitchen with my dad. The coffee would be made and he would turn on the radio and listen to the road conditions, cancellations and make his decision. It was so high tech this canceling school thing. It involved some secret code that only the administrators who could cancel school had. I often wondered what one could do with such a code!
There were times when the public school closing was announced while we were listening but most of the time I remember my dad finding out when he called the stations with his decision. I would jump up and down and shout in excitement. Then I would proceed to inform my siblings of our instant vacation day. They would all go back to sleep but I never took advantage of the chance for extra sleep. By then I was always wide awake. I remember lots of reading, playing games and TV watching for me on those days. My siblings would venture out and play in the snow. Occasionally, you might have found me outside for a brief moment. I don't recall ever having to make up those days, and that could be why we loved them, perhaps we just enjoyed the free day or maybe we just didn't care.
So I think that that will be my attitude today. I don't care if I have to work an extra day to make up this day! I think I will hunker down with a good book, play some games with my family, cook something comforting and just enjoy the day.
Oh, wait !!! I think I see a few flakes falling outside! OMG, call the National Guard! It's a blizzard!! This is serious now, we maybe home for days!!!!
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