100 inches and counting...

There's something about snow that makes me irrevocably and quintessentially happy.

As of this morning, Chardon, Ohio is officially over the century mark: it has snowed over 100 inches this year, 75 of that in the last month.
After a depressingly balmy start to the winter, mid-January greeted us with an onslaught of lake-effect snow that has not let up for a month now. SICK! the most recent fluffy deluge is the result of the rendezvous of a moist system coming from the Gulf and a low pressure system complimets of Oklahoma. Kinda weird, but the result is that the rest of Ohio gets to share in the fun with us- it's not just a snowbelt thing.

You want to talk lake effect? Check out those lucky folks up in Redfield, New York, the recipients of 141 INCHES SINCE LAST WEEK!!! That is so sick I can't even believe it. Authorities are currently looking into it to verify that it is a state record. Best of luck, Redfield, I'll be pullin' for you.

I went home for my lunch break and my brother dropped by on his way back to work from his lunch break... ON HIS SNOWMOBILE. Awesome. Actually 2 Payne & Payne employees took snowmobiles to work today. This is truly the experience that we all dream about: more and more snow everyday forever. Am I wrong?

The front walk: I promise I threw the snow into the yard; it really is that deep. The part on the left is under a second floor deck.

Look, I know my former Coloradans are not impressed, but keep in mind: we're at 1,000' above sea level, not 5-8,000 and I'm not in the mountains.

Right before my birthday, I had an epic night-time nordic ski (tracks pictured above). It was POUNDING out, but I really wanted to get out so I went anyway. A fella had just finshed right at dusk when I got there, and I figured I could follow his tracks, which worked for awhile until the tracks were covered. Well, I only managed about 2 1/2 miles in a half-hour (usually you go a mile in like 6 or 7 minutes) but I was just honestly happy that I wasn't lost back in the woods. I won't bore you with details, but sufficed to say my adventure included a downright sketchy low-visibility dark descent into a river valley on narrow, edgeless skis in a thick and secluded forest.

QUICK RANT: Everyday the headlines on Cleveland's major newspapers say all these terrible things about the weather and how horrible life is and how sick of it they are. Darn it, Cleveland! Let's quit the sad-sack routine. Now I know people have to commute and blah blah blah but I say that you moved to Cleveland! Can't we expect this? Look, we'll miss you and all but maybe you should move somplace WARM!

Oh yeah, I went to New York City for my 29th birthday last week. It was incredible and fantastic and I'll post some photos soon.

Pray for snow, friends. Pray for snow.