s-NOW !

It was predicted and it did happen. The day started with cold wind and temperature of -17 C. The sky was dark. I got ready and left for office. On my way, small snow flurries started. They were too small to pay attention. The roads were clear, the car was warm and we reached office in 10 mins. Later that afternoon, the snowfall continued. Like we have light rain, this was light snow but was non stop from 10 am. Its been more than 12 hours now, the snow shower has not stopped. When we started back from office at around 5:30 pm, The sky was all dark and the earth was all white. This night is brighter than a full moon night. As we left the parking lot, we noticed the road was full of snow. We had to maintain a very low speed. all the dividers, markings on the road were covered. The headlight beam made the snow ahead sparkle. Along with snow, there was a breeze as well. That made the snow fly around on the road. Imagine a dust cloud which is created if a car zooms on a dry muddy road.

As we passed the houses, all we could see was white, All the trees had shed their leaves and were now covered with snow. The green lawn was now a white desert. And all the cars parked outside had snow on them from top to bottom. When we drove the car on snow, we could feel the loss of friction between the tyres and the road. At times the steering would get jammed as there wasn't enough room for the wheels to turn when sunk in snow. We reached home after a 25 mins ride. I was all tempted to feel the snow outside. I came out of the car.The wind was towards me and I was facing the snow head on. I knew they were just snow flakes, but I felt like someone is throwing sand at my face.

I went home and decided that I should first get equipped and then face the snow. It takes at least 10 mins to get ready and go out. With me, my wife was also interested in wandering outside. I saw out of the balcony- it was covered with snow. I opened the balcony door, and all stacked snow came in. In 10 seconds, the whole living room got cold. We decided to clean the balcony later. First, lets feel the snow.

To get ready, Here what I need to wear :
1. Baniyan
2. Thermal T-shirt
3. Full sleeve Shirt
4. Full sweater
5. Snow jacket
6. Ear plugs
7. Muffler
8. Gloves
9. Fur cap.
10. Thermal pants
11. Snow trousers.
12. Shoes.

We went out with a camera to take some snaps. Wearing gloves, it was difficult to handle the camera, and with gloves removed and camera in hand, it was difficult to take a snap.
I couldn't keep our hands exposed for a long time. I took off one glove, took 1 snap, put the camera in my pocket and put back my gloves. We took all snaps the same way. The cars parked outside were fully covered with snow. No room to open the windows, run the vipers. And it will get worse in the coming days. You might think, WOW SNOW ! LETS MAKE SNOWBALLS AND PLAY But here, the temperatures are very low. This was not the right time to have fun. I dared to make a snowball with my bare hands and in 5 seconds I had to abandon my plan. My palm became red and I felt the urge to put my hand in something hot. In India, you might get your hands burnt because of heat, but here, you can get your hands burnt because if cold :-)
The biggest issue faced here is by smokers :) They cannot smoke in the house as all doors and windows are always closed. You cannot go outside to smoke as it is too cold. Still some brave souls dare to smoke. for the 10 minutes of pleasure, they get ready with their jackets, ear bands, gloves etc. go out in the balcony / smoking area and somehow finish the smoke. To sustain this weather, ordinary gloves are not sufficient. You should wear very thick gloves. And holding a cigarette with them is another mighty task. If you drop the cigarette on snow, forget it.
If anybody wants to quit smoking, I recommend him to come and stay in Minnesota.
But even in such weather, people here live happily. The snow on the roads is cleaned everyday. Every building is equipped with an air conditioner and 24 hrs hot water. Cars used here come with powerful heaters, some even have heaters under the seats to keep the butt warm :-) Its a costly affair, but people here love it. The weather will get worse in the coming days and I will survive it and keep posting about it :-)