Snow Day

Snow and ice covered the southeast last night.  I confess, I stayed up late, secure in the knowledge that I wouldn't be headed to work today, since the south shuts down at the mere mention of inclement weather.

Truthfully, as fun as a snow day can be, I wasn't really that excited about being couped up.  I live alone, and though I treasure my alone time, too much of a good thing, you know, isn't always good.  Also, it meant forced separation from my sweetheart, who I sometimes wish I could be with 24/7.  Alas, we could not be together for a day of carefree frolicking in the snow!

I woke up early since I was expected to be online and available for my customers, business as usual, except for the fact that I was in my PJ's.  I spent an hour or more on the phone with our IT's folks trying to determine why I couldn't connect via my wireless internet.  Though we never solved the mystery, I was able to connect the "old-fashioned" way...with a wired connection!  So there I was, up and running, ready to go...all from the comfort of my kitchen table....

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By noon, I am over it, bored, and not actually being very productive.  I decide to make lunch, and invite my niece, who thankfully lives next door, to join me.  Tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.  We're craving something sweet, and neither of has anything that fits the bill, so we decide to make homemade ice cream using my grandmother's very old ice cream maker.  (It's actually quite simple.)  We improvise slightly, which is my typical MO in the kitchen.  Not being much of a cook - but, perhaps, on my way to becoming one - I tend to experiment and improvise with abandon.  It usually works.  I make cookies, but cut some corners as it concerns getting my butter get to room temperature - not recommended, by the way.  Cookies are a fail.  We're counting on the ice cream, which is whirring away and (hopefully) thickening up.

At this point, we can no longer resist the temptation of the snow-covered driveway.  We must sled.  Hmm...we have no sled.  We survey the grounds to see what might work.  Attempt number one is made using the metal top to the garbage can.  Unsuccessful.  What else do we have?  Cardboard.  Cardboard will work.  We give it a shot.  Hmm...not getting too far with this, either.  My niece has a flash of brilliance - packing tape.  Let's cover it with packing tape!  Who knew that such a simple solution could be so effective?  The packing tape turns that cardboard box into an uber sled, propelling us down the driveway at semi-lightening speed.  We hoot.  We holler.  We have a blast!!

Having repeatedly jarred my body as much as I can withstand, and gratefully aware that I have a chiropractor appointment in two days, we put the sled away.  We check on the ice cream.  Hey, it looks pretty good.  We take inside and test it out.  Not too bad.  Not too bad at all.  It doesn't exactly have the texture of normal ice cream, more like soft serve, but we aren't complaining.  We put the less-than-tasty cookies in the ice cream, which makes them taste much better.  We enjoy our treat.

Now, having worked up a bit of an appetite with our sledding, it's time to start on dinner.  Following a simple recipe on the side of a box, I make up an "Italian pizza bake", once again improvising on a few ingredients.  I'm not convinced that the recipe name is particularly appropriate, but it matters not.  Soon, we have a cheesy, spicy, gooey dinner that is just enough for the two of us.

Wow, what do you know?  It's after 6:00 now.  My snow day, the one I wasn't looking forward to, is mostly finished.  My niece decides to head back home to watch a movie or text her friends or whatever else.  I decide to relax, thankful for her companionship, thankful for her creative spirit, thankful that I didn't spend the day alone after all.  I realize that the snow day turns out just how it was meant to, and I am most thankful for that.