Snow Day Blues

When I was a kid, the prospect of a snow day was the best thing in the world. It was better than spring break and even better than fresh cookies after school. Why? I have no clue. I guess the prospect of getting to skip school was thrilling to me -- even though I knew very well that we'd have to make up the skipped days at the end of the year, thus cutting into my precious summer vacation. We didn't get very many snow days in Georgia or North Carolina, but in New Jersey there were snow days aplenty (especially around my birthday).

Sunday night we experienced our first winter storm in Portland. It was beautiful, but really cold (with the high this week not even reaching 30 degrees). I also learned on Sunday that Portland is not really prepared for snow, as they didn't really salt any of the streets until after they had turned into continuous sheets of ice. Most of the sidewalks are pretty treacherous too. Monday evening Jesse and I went out for a walk and were amazed at how many cars were zipping around town without chains on their tires and skidding and swerving whenever they tried to slow down.

(The video above is from a snowstorm last year, but is a pretty accurate depiction of how crazy people are in this city for driving on roads that are covered in a 1/4" of ice.)

As an adult, the prospect of a snow day should be even cooler. You get a day off from work, but don't have to make it up at the end of the year. Of course, the work you had to do on the snow day still has to be completed, but for one day you can kick back and enjoy the white fluffy stuff with a cup of hot tea and a good movie. That is, except when you are a part-time employee and time is precious. I would be absolutely thrilled about the snow if I didn't have so much work to do before Christmas! So far, the snow has prevented me from going to Salem for a much-needed site visit and all of the libraries that contain things that I need are closed again today. I'm ready to pull out my hair.

Jesse encouraged me to treat today as a "weekend" and take care of personal tasks before we head down to California for Christmas (like making a packing list and gathering together our presents and wrapping them). It's going to be difficult, but I have been pretty excited about the fabrics I purchased to wrap Christmas gifts this year. We're going to try and make it a "no disposable wrapping" holiday, so I have a few things to sew this week!

1852 Rowhouse

Our apartment in Savannah was located in a 1852 row house that's listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The exterior is impeccable and has been well-kept. The inside, while clean and spacious, is crammed with knick-knacks, do-dads, and lots of lace. The master bathroom had a tub that was large enough for our entire family and there was a baby grand piano in the parlor.


The walls were clad in red damask wall paper that was punctuated by an array of prints ranging from classic impressionist paintings and rather strange posters from a bygone era. If we had chosen to soak in the family-sized tub, we could have set our sights on this scantily clad butt during our soak.

The lady (with clothes that somehow were run through a paper shredder) greeted us every day when we came home from touring the city. The shredded lady was sandwiched between a 1920s ad and a movie poster for Gone with the Wind. I'm not sure if Scarlett O'Hara would approve.

Unlike Charleston, Savannah was warm and balmy. The temperature hovered right around 65 degrees during the day, but the humidity hung in the air and made our hair unruly and our shirts damp -- even while just strolling along the streets. Despite the fact that it was the middle of December, the city was still beautiful. The fountain in Forsythe Park was still running and the trees hadn't yet lost all of their leaves.

We didn't tour any of the houses in Savannah, instead choosing to take a trolley tour. Our legs were tired after all of the walking around Charleston and we decided it would be a lot more fun to see all of the city and just hop on and off the trolley when we found a site that looked interesting. Of course we walked by the Mercer-Williams house that was a prominent setting in the book, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. Even without the history behind it, I think the house is pretty amazing.

One benefit of the accoutrement in our row house was the opportunity to channel our inner child. Katie and I had lots of fun on our last night in Savannah playing dress up with items we pulled off the walls, mantles (from the 5 fireplaces scattered throughout), as well as our bedrooms and the parlor. Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls in the dining room? Heck, why not?!

Jesse opted to watch rather than play along -- especially since the only thing left for him to wear was the undergarment to my lacy negligee. The woman who owns this house must be seriously out of her mind, but the lacy bedstead, flowery towels, and bizarre sense of style made for a pretty good time in Savannah. I don't think I've giggled this much in a very long time!