It snowed in Atlanta on yesterday. And let me say: while the 3 inches we received is NOTHING compared to the 54 inches some of my loved ones and friends in the Maryland and Virginia areas have experienced in the last week – the impact has been equally “devastating” because Atlanta – the city and its citizens – ain’t prepared for no snow!!! Even though, at least once a year, we experience snow dustings which paralyze the city – the municipalities that run things have not invested in the proper equipment to get rid of the snow or, more importantly, the ice that occurs when said snow melts and then refreezes. I think I heard a report that there are a total of 9 trucks to service the entire city, and when snow fell last month, half of those trucks were not in proper working condition. Like I said, the city ain't prepared for snow.
To make matters worse, you have the idiot drivers (yes! I called them IDIOTS!) who feel like even though it is snowing, they should still continue to drive at high speeds, ducking in and out of slow moving traffic, and then ultimately causing accidents that slow down traffic to complete stop standstills. Is it truly worth risking your life (and more importantly, MY life) just to get there five minutes faster than everyone else? I don’t think so.
I am blessed to have a work schedule where I don’t work on Fridays, so when the snow started (around 1:30p), I was safely ensconced in my warm house, looking at the falling snow from the inside. Being a beach bunny at heart, I had NO plans to go out in the foolishness, until I was reminded by my Facebook friends to take pictures. Oh yeah. I might want to record this for prosperity. So, around 2:30p, I bundled up and took a bunch of pictures of the 'beginning to fall' snow and how it impacted the landscape of my neighborhood. Wanna see the pictures? If you are on Facebook, they are posted as an album. If you are not, get in touch with me and I’ll send you a link to the album. I went back inside thinking, my job is done. I can take any further pictures from inside.
Two and a half hours later, at the prompting of my child … I mean, my mother, I was back outside. “It looks like a Christmas card down the street. You should go get a picture of that.” Now, it is WELL documented how I feel about Christmas. WELL documented. Going outside at 5:00p, to take pictures of a “Christmas Wonderland” did not do ANYTHING to change my feelings about that holiday in December. (hahaha) In my opinion, snow is only pretty on postcards and from inside the warmth of a cozy house. I guess it never occurred to me that in order to get those pictures for the postcard, some idiot (this time, me) has to go stand out there in the cold, wind and snow to get the shot! Fifteen minutes of photographic excitement turned in a second album (because, after all, I am a wannabe photographer at heart). This album is also posted on my Facebook page. Most of the shots still show a pristine landscape of the neighborhood because my neighbors who did have to work, had not yet come home. (Once they did come home, my mom lost interest in looking outside because “her” snow had been defiled by tire tracks and footprints and it no longer “looked pretty”).
NOTE TO READERS: There are a whole LOT of object lessons and spiritual points I could (and want to) make here, but for sake of the length of this post, I'll refrain (for now). But if the snow don't melt over the weekend, guess what I'll be talking about. Stay tuned.
It’s Sabbath morning now. I just looked out the window. Snow is still on the ground. For safety reasons, church has been canceled. (another object lesson for a later date.) I was not planning to go driving in the snow anyway, so this decision by our pastor and the local elder board didn't impact me at all. Even though I learned to drive in snow while living in New York City, this ain’t NYC. And while I may be confident in MY abilities, I am not as confident in the abilities of the other Atlanta drivers. Furthermore, it is not safe or sensible to be out there until the roads are clear…and right now, the pretty snow on top may be hiding treacherous ice beneath – and no matter how good a driver you think you are, NOBODY can drive on ice!!!
So, I’m staying in today. Using the good common sense God gave me. Booting up the computer and finding a church service online – preferably in some warm(er) climate – where I can enjoy the blessings of the Lord. And I’ll look out at the snow…maybe.
Be blessed.
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