This evening, some small salvation came in the form of a massive front-end loader. 
They can’t fit a regulation size plough down our narrow road, so a front-end loader came and took the snow out of the center lane, scoop by scoop. 
Since the forecast is calling for 10-20 inches of additional snow on Tuesday and Wednesday, the pressure is on the city crews to get as many roads cleared as they can. 
Just shoot me now.
Imagine how good you will be at sewing by next week!
ReplyDeleteAt least they are trying - KCMO gives up after one quick plow, if you get that. At least you have your new sewing machine. Poor Connor.
ReplyDeleteKept waiting for something like this in NYC! Wish a little woulda come our way.
ReplyDeleteBetsy
Good luck Meg....and I wish you lots of patience, xv.
ReplyDeleteRight. At least your city apparently has a snow removal budget. You should see the side streets here.
ReplyDeleteMy dogs refuse to go in their little shoveled out circle and are due to explode by Thursday.
Who did you all pay in city govt to get that front loader to come by? Can I get their phone number?
ReplyDeleteJust kidding--but I'm amazed that they came by. I'm really enjoying your snow pictures, so please keep them coming!
Hang in you guys. From up here in Maine it looks like your government and public works people are doing an amazing job, given the lack of resources and experience. The plows are so dinky-looking for the job!
ReplyDeleteOne thing that speeds clean up after storms is that people here are not allowed to park on the street. In some cities there are parking bans just during storms, but in most towns parking is not allowed on the street at night from November 1 thru April 1, period. It's one more thing that is slowing down your public works crews (remember to thank them; they're getting tired right about now with more to look forward to).
Enjoying your pictures and how you describe your experience. Morag
Morag... that's a great idea, but this is a neighbourhood of rowhouses, none of which have garages or even parking pads. There is no place to park except on the streets. There are "snow emergency routes" where you're not supposed to park, but the side streets are different.
ReplyDeleteIn the county we got cleaned out quickly, but I can't believe we have more coming...
ReplyDeleteIn Clarksville, TN we'd be sitting until spring thaw!
ReplyDeleteThinking about you. It's been a hideous winter. Hope spring comes soon your way.
ReplyDeleteMeg,
ReplyDeleteIt's just getting a little scary, all this snow. For once, I hope the forecast in completely incorrect. I mean, 10 to 20 more inches? On top of what's already there? Spells power outages to me.
HT... My internet connection went out for about 10 minutes yesterday and I thought I'd freak out!
ReplyDeleteMeg, Its hard to imagine it taking that long to clean the city up, but hang in there. Spring IS on its way.
ReplyDeleteI think the armadillo/pig is impressive. You'll have to give tips for those of us with similar ambitions.
Can't Connor chase tennis balls?
I am also snowbound. I live in Howard County and they just announced that schools will remain closed for the rest of the week.
ReplyDeleteMy 3 kids have been pretty good so far but OMG that could change in a heartbeat.
I used to like snow.....NOT ANY MORE
Meg, this is what I posted on Frank Roylance's weather blog at the Sun:
ReplyDeleteI would urge readers to take a look at Meg Fairfax Fielding's excellent blog Pigtown Design, specifically her post called "Salvation," the photos there, and the comments on it. Meg lives in a small rowhouse on a tiny street in Pigtown, a situation that perfectly exemplifies why removing this snow is such a monumental task.
I emphasize again that city workers are busting their behinds trying to keep up with this, but it's an extraordinary, extraordinary event, and it's insane to expect that the city should be able to magically get rid of all this snow easily or quickly.
http://pigtowndesign.com/
It takes him a while sometimes to update, because so many comments are coming in and he has to vet each one first to get rid of the nasty, obscene ones. But it will be up there before long, so look for more traffic at Pigtown Design!
Good luck tonight and tomorrow, Meg - I'm with you. You could shoot me now, too. I've never been so unexcited for a snow day in my life.
ReplyDeleteI guess at least it's pretty while it's falling...
honey, don't get the gun, Spring really is on the way. sorry you are getting so much snow... :(
ReplyDeleteOh. My. God. That looks MISERABLE.
ReplyDeleteAt least you're not one of the snow plow guys.
Hi again, about how parking bans work. In Portland Maine, which has narrow streets like yours, the city opens all parking garages for free plus other designated public and school parking lots. Then, if EVERYBODY is not off the street by the deadline (before the storm begins) they get towed. Period. It's really the only way to handle it when there's so much snow to move around and you can't count on it melting.
ReplyDeleteBut that's an academic point for you right now! And after this next blizzardy bit, I hope, no more snow for you! Stay safe and warm. Morag
Hey Morag... they're doing that here, but in some of the neighbourhoods like mine, which were built in the 1880's, there are not municipal garages or big school yards.
ReplyDeleteRight now, they can't tow cars because there's no place to put them. The city has resorted to dumping snow into the harbour, with permission from the EPA.
The real issue is that we're just not prepared to cope with snow like this, because it's never happened before. We've just broken the record for single year snow, and it's still early February!
NOT giving you and the mid-Atlantic a hard time for not being prepared! I understand. The amount of snow you've gotten would slow us down some, too. It takes a lot of dollars, preplanning & experience for municipalities to to cope with the logistics and coordinate parking, banning, towing etc which all have to happen before a single flake falls to be effective. It really does facilitate road clearing and snow removal, which we have no choice but take seriously here.
ReplyDeleteWhat is fascinating me is the different mindset that we have about little things. For example, I take it for granted that I have to park my car a couple miles away and walk back and forth for a few days during and after every storm. There are no parking lots in my neighborhood either. Not fun, but part of owning a car in the city in northern New England. But it sounds like parking outside your neighborhood is an alien concept to you--and that's what fascinates me!
Vice versa, when you talked about paying someone else to dig out your car: what an amazing idea! That just doesn't happen here; everybody digs out his/her own, and,man,it gets old after a few storms.
It's been fascinating to read how you've experienced the storms, and I love your open-heartedness. Just enjoying the regional differences in perception and feeling for you. Morag