2007-12-16

Squirrels: they know what's up.

Over the last couple of days, we've had two fairly nasty snowstorms. And this isn't the end of it by any means. I started calling all of this back in October, and I was telling everyone who'd listen: "Look at the squirrels. They're fat as fuck, and they're EVERYWHERE. Mark my words -- when the squirrels are fat as fuck and all over the place, it's going to be a BAD winter." And these people would look genuinely surprised, like: "Squirrels? Really?"

(I don't know how many people I've directed to the Urban Pantheist site. You live in the city, yes, but there's still plenty of the natural world that merits your attention.)

Everyone believes me NOW, boy howdy. Squirrels: they know what's up.

This morning I awoke to about 6 more inches of snow piling up in the driveway, and near white-out conditions from my bathroom window. I was slightly headachey from having stayed up well past my bedtime, so I crawled back into bed and seriously considered not going to my meeting. And then I said it out loud: "This wouldn't have stopped me from going out to buy alcohol." And once I said it, I couldn't very well NOT go out. So I did. I put on eleventy-twelve layers of clothes, strapped on my big ugly boots, and waded up the street to the train station.

It was actually pretty amazing. I should have brought my camera. At this point (around 8:30 AM), nobody had come by to plow or shovel (I barely got my front gate open). Things weren't much different when I got out at Back Bay station and headed up Columbus Avenue (I eventually just decided to walk in the street, as the sidewalks were no use). When I got to the church basement, the stairs leading down had already been cleared, the lights were on, and a handful of folks were inside and laughing like hell, and pretty much everyone said the same thing: a nor'easter would not have kept them from the bar or the packie. Well, everyone except my friend Andrew, who said, "Nah, I would've just not drank that day. BUT, I figure if the Patriots can play in this, I can get out and go to a meeting."

It was probably the best meeting I've been to since I quit the sauce five-and-a-half years ago, honestly. I was really, really glad to be there.

lisamcc at 4:23 p.m.

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