You know the old saying about not being from Kansas anymore? Well, I was born in Kansas. So I suppose that makes the comment more apropos or something. Heading into work Friday, we were on STORM WATCH 2000! It was supposed to snow, or at least get near/below freezing, and with the total absence of rain ever present (what?) here in the Northwest, that means craziness. Everybody from Southern California knows exactly what I am talking about. That first time every year when the rain storms hit, and your lawn chairs get blown over, and people drive 35mph on the 5, SHEER PANDEMONIUM!
Well, from what I heard, it was supposed to be like that starting Friday. People forget how to drive (that is assuming they knew how to in the first place), work shuts down, people scream about the apocalypse. Then it got called off.
But we live in a place called Redmond Ridge. It’s a little higher elevation than the surrounding area. You know what that means? Driving back from dinner on Friday (good ole Red Robin) with Emily, we’re in her car and right about when we turn onto our street, the rain starts looking “bigger” and I shout “I think it’s snowing!”
Yep. It sure was. But just flurries. Nothing to write home (Kansas) about. Still pretty cool nonetheless. Fast forward to Saturday…
Emily is flying out to her parent’s house in Ladera Ranch right now. Why? Babysitting. It’s her parent’s 30th anniversary tomorrow (Monday) so her mom flew her in as a surprise so that they (Ken and Pam) could go out and Emily could stay home with the kiddies (yes Sarah, you are still a kiddie, it has been decreed, ask Emily about my decrees). My car is still unmoved, I want it to accumulate as much snow as possible. I’m sure it being a SoCal car, it is crying on the inside. I take her to the airport, go out and run a few errands, and now it’s snowing more than just flurries. Still not really sticking to the road though. When I get back, I decide to take Toby for a walk. It’s been a long time since he’s been in the snow (it snowed in Las Vegas once, about 7 years ago when he was still staying with my parents), but he was never outside while it was actively snowing. It was pretty cute and sad at the same time. After our walk, he was covered in snow! Even when he shook it all didn’t come off. I couldn’t find the camera though! Emily usually leaves it in her purse, and with her being in Ladera, that really didn’t work. So by the time I could take a picture with my phone, it was melted off.
Now, it’s not like he was just a sheet of white, just some specks. Before I head off to sleep, I decide to take a picture of my car, even if it’s not a great quality, just so I have something and to text to Manuel since he gets no snow out in the 909/951.
It’s hard to see, but you can tell in the background that the roads are just wet, and not covered in snow. My car has a nice light top-coat as well, but nothing to serious.
Going into the night, I knew it was supposed to get and stay below freezing. We were also supposed to get from 1-3″ of snow, from what I was told. We had to assign a few families at Church the opportunity to head over early and lay some de-icer down and make sure the walkways were as safe as possible.
Sunday morning arrives…so Toby and I decide to take our morning walk.
Looks like a little more snow cover to me. The road has a nice icey glow that crunches under your feet. I was hoping it wouldn’t be too cold on Toby’s paws, but he didn’t seem to mind one bit.
Yep…that’s more alright. Just a very odd thing to look at when you grow up and live where I have lived. Just complete whiteness. Grass, bushes, everything. Just a nice thin icey layer of crunch.
I think Toby was having a tough time distinguishing where the sidewalk/driveway ends and where the road begins since it all looks the same now!
His ears are extra perked up because there was a father pulling his son along the sidewalk in a sled. Toby decided to walk around the previously grassly/mulchy/dirty area amongst the bushes to take a short-cut.
So no Toby, we’re not in Kansas anymore. It’s all about new experiences, right? Well, this sure is new. You know it’s Christmas in Rancho Santa Margarita when they Light the Palms. Hopefully it’ll still be around when Emily comes back Tuesday afternoon. It should be, the forecast is calling for more snow and sub-freezing temperatures all the way through.