The Prized Holly Collection with Fresh Snow Winter is always a little slow here at Clark Kent Creations -- when you make your living off weather-sensitive outdoor work, there is by nature a seasonal lull come winter. But this past week has been exceptionally slow for just about everybody on the East Coast.
Monday was Martin Luther King Jr. Day -- and while many people honor his legacy by volunteering with community service projects, it's still a day off as far as schools and banks and mail are concerned. So as parents eagerly readied their kids to return to school on Tuesday, the weather forecasters began making some noise about a storm -- 1 to 3 expected inches quickly turned into 3 to 5, 5 to 9, and eventually 8 to 12 expected inches.
And although the snow hadn't started falling by Tuesday morning, the forecasts were too much for the schools to ignore. Kids home -- office work shelved for at least a day. Sure enough, by 10 am the snow was falling pretty heavily -- certainly enough to justify the schools' decision.
The snow fell all day, still coming down at a pretty good clip by the time I went to bed at 11. At about 7pm the schools called it for Wednesday as well. The end result -- here in Swarthmore we officially had 14 inches. 14 inches of light fluffy powder. And two days off of school on the heels of a 3-day weekend -- officially a 5-day weekend, as my kids pointed out to me numerous times.
As the storm cleared the cold temperatures moved in as did the crystal blue skies. I've written on this blog before about the benefits of living so close to the Swarthmore College Arboretum -- and with a family day off, it was time to see what the Arb had to offer for today.
Monday was Martin Luther King Jr. Day -- and while many people honor his legacy by volunteering with community service projects, it's still a day off as far as schools and banks and mail are concerned. So as parents eagerly readied their kids to return to school on Tuesday, the weather forecasters began making some noise about a storm -- 1 to 3 expected inches quickly turned into 3 to 5, 5 to 9, and eventually 8 to 12 expected inches.
And although the snow hadn't started falling by Tuesday morning, the forecasts were too much for the schools to ignore. Kids home -- office work shelved for at least a day. Sure enough, by 10 am the snow was falling pretty heavily -- certainly enough to justify the schools' decision.
The snow fell all day, still coming down at a pretty good clip by the time I went to bed at 11. At about 7pm the schools called it for Wednesday as well. The end result -- here in Swarthmore we officially had 14 inches. 14 inches of light fluffy powder. And two days off of school on the heels of a 3-day weekend -- officially a 5-day weekend, as my kids pointed out to me numerous times.
As the storm cleared the cold temperatures moved in as did the crystal blue skies. I've written on this blog before about the benefits of living so close to the Swarthmore College Arboretum -- and with a family day off, it was time to see what the Arb had to offer for today.
The Day After in Crum Creek Valley
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Sledding in the Arb
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Even the Snowboarders Joined in Sleds in hand, we traversed the main trailhead towards the "Meadow" -- the large open area at the bottom of the valley. The snow was still fresh enough that it clung to the trees and bushes, and with the cold temperatures at hand, the snow stayed in place on even the most well-travelled of trails.
We passed a few cross country skiers and dog walkers on the way down, and while other sledders were present on the hills, there was enough space that everybody had their own area to perfect their craft. Even a few of the local college kids claimed an area for some local snowboarding.
Looking at the 10-day forecast, the temperatures aren't scheduled to pass the freezing mark any time soon, so it looks like this winter wonderland will be around for at least a week or two. In the mean time though, it probably couldn't hurt for the kids to return to school for at least a few days -- I do have some work that needs to get done around here.
We passed a few cross country skiers and dog walkers on the way down, and while other sledders were present on the hills, there was enough space that everybody had their own area to perfect their craft. Even a few of the local college kids claimed an area for some local snowboarding.
Looking at the 10-day forecast, the temperatures aren't scheduled to pass the freezing mark any time soon, so it looks like this winter wonderland will be around for at least a week or two. In the mean time though, it probably couldn't hurt for the kids to return to school for at least a few days -- I do have some work that needs to get done around here.
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