The great blizzard of aught-nine.

Okay, so I'm a couple of days late with this post, but let's put it this way: I am just now beginning to be able to sit down in and stand up from a chair without making horrible old-lady noises. This past Wednesday we got a lot of snow in Wisconsin (from the big blizzard that cut across the country and caused lotsa problems all over), and thanks to snow shoveling, I am now wracked with pain in muscles I didn't know I had. Weak girls with poor muscle tone should not shovel, evidently. But how am I ever going to get that buff bikini bod I've been dreaming of?*

There is nothing I like better in this sort of weather than to stay home** and read. As per usual, I'll be re-reading Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising (as we get a little closer to late December, which is the time period over which the book is set). And I'm also gearing up for my holiday watching: I am not a huge believer in tradition, and I certainly don't believe in decorating (too much work), but there are certain shows and movies I must see or it simply doesn't feel like Christmas. So here's what I'm lining up for the next few weeks:

A Charlie Brown Christmas; The Simpsons Christmas Special (where they get the dog; it's the first one and the best); The Vicar of Dibley Christmas Lunch Incident epsisode, and A Christmas Story (based on Jean Shepherd's book In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash). Mr. CR and I are also next in line to get the second season of The Tudors from the library, which is not holiday-related but about which we are very excited anyway.

So, go ahead and snow,*** but only after I've got all my DVDs collected from the library.

*Yeah, right. I don't swim and I'm not going to learn how to swim expressly because I do not want to have to purchase a swimsuit of any kind.

**I like staying home in all types of weather, actually.

***I was not this sanguine the day before the big Wednesday storm. On Tuesday night I was watching the U.S. weather radar loop online and screaming, "slide south, you bitch!" Which is not nice for the people who live south of me, I understand, but which is my typical weather chant, good for rain- and snowstorms alike.

Comments

[katharine]

"slide south you bitch" will be my 2010 catch phrase.You crack me up CR!

[Citizen Reader]

Glad to be a provider of catch phrases, Katharine! I must say I am guilty of wishing a lot of bad weather on Chicago over the years.

Take it easy now and drive safe yourself, doll. Working from home may not be good for getting health insurance but if I had to drive to work in all this crap I would be a nervous wreck, and the cause of multiple accidents.

[Melanie]

I'm so sorry you got snow, but Im so happy we here in the South didn't. It's 38 degrees today and it's making me forget how much I hate southern summers. After too many years of living in the south my midwestern blood has thinned and I'm turning into one of those wimpy native southerners that I always made fun of.

[Citizen Reader]

Melanie,
I'm glad you didn't too! I also couldn't take Southern summers (normally I like cold weather, just not cold and this much snow), so I salute you for handling that. And I'll try and stop wishing that bad weather hits the South instead of me.

[Roberta]

Thanks for reminding me, it's time to reserve The Dark is Rising on DVD. Ian McShane! Christopher Eccleston! Sinister snow storms!

And a Happy Christmas to you and yours. :-)

[Kim (Sophisticated Dorkiness)]

I have to admit, I was sort of excited about the snow when we were prepping for the storm -- watching the predictions all day, keeping up on forecasts. And then I got a snow day, and that was great. But now, now I'm wishing I'd spent the day yelling "slide south, you bitch!" instead of being excited because, man, there is a lot of snow here!

[Citizen Reader]

Roberta darling,
You're still wishing me a happy Christmas, even after I wished a big storm on you? You're very forgiving! :)
Do you know I've never seen "The Dark is Rising" movie? I'm going to correct that based on your recommendation. I love me some Christopher Eccleston. Is it wrong that I found him very attractive in both "Jude" and "Shallow Grave," perhaps two of the darkest movies ever made?

Kim,
I used to LOVE snow, so it hurts me to shout expletives at it, but I have become a complete pansy about driving in it, so there you go. Doesn't help when our city can't quite figure out how to plow OR salt. Wouldn't you think we'd have that down by now, in Wisconsin?

[Rachael]

Funny, I live outside Chicago and was praying it would make a direct hit. I love the first massive snow storm--you see people do stupid, stupid things in the name of rushing somewhere. Then you get a day to just huddle at home with a vat of hot chocolate and a few really good books. I had to work instead, and it was COLD!!!

Still haven't seen The Tudors, but a co-worker loves it and its' star (yum). She asked in all seriousness if Henry VIII was as hot as Jonathan Rhys Meyers. I told her yes, but not as hot as Charles II (proof: http://bit.ly/4BLSXR). Luckily she can laugh at herself.

[Citizen Reader]

Rachael,
Ha! I'm glad you didn't mind my wishing the storm on you (although I really didn't get my wish, as we got it here too). You are much calmer than me--watching other people do stupid stuff is almost as hard for me as sliding around in the snow myself! I will hope you are safe on the roads all winter, and that next time you can stay cozy at home.

LOVE the Tudors. Probably totally inaccurate and I'm pretty sure the real Henry VIII was never as slim as Jonathan Rhys Meyers. But I don't care--I like a cracking good story, and "the Tudors" does not disappoint.

Mmmm Charles II, what a hottie. :)

[Citizen Reader]

And thanks for the link--I must now get "The Last King" on DVD too!

[Sarah]

I read that the storm busted Madison's budget. You know, operating. But wait till you see that new liberry!

[Citizen Reader]

Oh, Sarah,
Every year after it snows we hear the same story: out of money, out of salt. They went with the "out of money" story this year because they were too dumb to salt the roads before the deep freeze came in!

Oooh, don't even get me started on that new liberry. What a waste of money. What they could do is pay their people a little better and work on their collection, but as we all know, a building is the only thing that makes a library.