snow day

I know that many people in the Northeast must be annoyed by all the recent snow, and my sister in Nebraska is just sick and tired of it, but coming from Denton, Texas I have to say: Yay! It's snowing! It has been snowing all day long, and it's going to keep snowing all night. I mean really snowing. There are several inches of snow on the ground. I have never seen it like this here - it's so beautiful! This morning I walked to class only to find out that it was canceled (we Texans don't know how to handle this kind of thing), but it was so much fun to see everything covered in snow that I went back home to get my camera.

It's amazing how the campus was transformed - it was filled with the sound of children. Well, actually, there were no children but it was filled with that amount of joy and laughter. Even the few professors I saw had a hidden smile and a gleam in their eyes. At first I noticed people walking around with a snowball in their hand, just in case they saw somebody that looked like a good target. After a few hours there were large snowball fights going on throughout campus.  There were snowmen of all shapes and sizes scattered throughout campus (one of my favorites held a sign that said "I love global warming.") Some students stopped  to pose with thier friends for a photo in front of the Administration Building or library fountain.  A diesel pick-up truck made figure-eights in an empty parking lot. Everybody was so friendly. Usually we all just rush from one building to the next, barely noticing the people around us. But today everyone looked at me and smiled as if to say, "hey, isn't this great!?"

An extra note about those snowmen - there was also a phallic one in front of the fraternity houses. "True to the university frat. culture," I said to my husband, rolling my eyes. But he, the philosophy student, had a different interpretation. Here is his story: ancient Greek gods were often depicted with a large erect phallus. A prominent Athenian statesman and general named Alcibiades was accused of desecrating pillars with depictions of Hermes by breaking off the phalli. The city decided to delay trial so that he could continue on his planned voyage, defending the city of Athens against the Sicilians city. While he was gone his enemies within the city were emboldened and plotted against him. Suspecting an unfortunate fate Alcibiades did not return to Athens. Rather, he went on and became an advisor to the Spartans, ultimately leading to the fall Athens. --- So perhaps these modern "greek" brother were just trying to bring back the ancient culture, a sort of Athenian revival. 

When I came home from work in the evening it was still snowing. I stood by the car for a moment, alone, admiring the beauty, and the silence which allowed me to hear the snow melting from the rooftops.  I knew that by Saturday it would be 50 and sunny.