So it finally snowed.... a little. It was almost 5 hours late and never got more than a few inches. I'm sure it would have been tough to drive in...had you been out driving at 4 A.M in the morning. But when we woke up this morning, our driveway was plowed, the roads were clear and the sun was shining! The only "bad" thing was the cold and wind. Still, I windchill can be dealt with by not hanging out outside. And bundling up if you Must go outside for any reason. Still, not the bitter winter storm we had been promised. I think the one in December was much more of a challenge.
But on the ride home today, I was reminded of a time when my brother and I had to shovel the driveway. This was back in the '70's. Snow was heavy and deep! The Shovels were heavy and metal. Our driveway was not paved nor was our residential road. ( that
did happen later though, around '78.) the snow plows would wait until we had cleared a small narrow path to the road and WHOOSH! Come by and fill it back in. Usually in the middle of the night.
 |
| This happened ALL THE TIME! |
By the time we would realize it, Mom would wake us up at 5-6 A.M. and we would have to clear the entrance out again so Dad could go to work. By that time, the snow had
solidified to a
Hard crusty ICE. Mom would yell at us as we complained and wrestled with those HUGE METAL SNOW SHOVELS! Maybe do don't remember them or
never saw them... because humans eventually
evolved to make snow shoveling
easier. Namely: Lighter shovels, snow throwers, PLASTICS! and so on. Ours was so old and "Used Up" that the edge of it was blunt and rusty with large chunks of shovel missing. The edge of it
Curled up from being
hammered against the ice for so many years. The handle was as thick as my wrist and twice as tall as I was at the time!
 |
| Ours was bigger and Heavier! |
We would fight over the
Coal Shovel because it had a short handle and was easier to deal with. It was STILL made out of the
heaviest metal they could find. Ever see a small kid try to shovel snow with a shovel that is three times his size? (Or Weight?) Well, that was us. And Mom would harass us every minute to hurry up! Dig faster! Do a better Job! Bla Bla Bla.
 |
Healthy? No one cared back in the
'70's |
 |
| Simple. Hot. Delicious! |
After it was over, though, she would
sometimes give us the
best hot chocolate ever. (Sometimes! Not
every time...) Made with Evaporated filled milk! (The
worst kind
EVER if you were worried about your health.) It was the Best tasting Hot Chocolate I ever remember having. It's amazing what you can get away with paying children for manual labor. ( I guess there were no Child Labor Laws in the "70's. )
But things have come a long way. Thankfully! They make shovels you don't even have to lift and throw your back out anymore! You can simply push all the snow to one side of the walkway. Easy!
Then there is the Snow blowers. You don't have to spend a fortune to get one either! You can find small ones at Goodwill for Cheap! That will run fine and, with a little love and care, probably work as well as a new one, if not better!
Nothing could have been done about the snow storms of 1976. But had they made cheap plastic shovels available to the masses.... AND had I been older and wiser and more assertive, I would have pointed out to Mom that buying us a new, lighter, cheaper shovel would increase out productivity and keep us from hating her as an adult when we think back on her TYRANNY! It is possible that those things DID exist back then, but Mom was Old School. And keeping the Work HARD and DIFFICULT was the only way to build character. I guess. Or she was just Evil. My vote is for the latter.
So it finally snowed.... a little. It was almost 5 hours late and never got more than a few inches. I'm sure it would have been tough to drive in...had you been out driving at 4 A.M in the morning. But when we woke up this morning, our driveway was plowed, the roads were clear and the sun was shining! The only "bad" thing was the cold and wind. Still, I windchill can be dealt with by not hanging out outside. And bundling up if you Must go outside for any reason. Still, not the bitter winter storm we had been promised. I think the one in December was much more of a challenge.
But on the ride home today, I was reminded of a time when my brother and I had to shovel the driveway. This was back in the '70's. Snow was heavy and deep! The Shovels were heavy and metal. Our driveway was not paved nor was our residential road. ( that did happen later though, around '78.) the snow plows would wait until we had cleared a small narrow path to the road and WHOOSH! Come by and fill it back in. Usually in the middle of the night. 
By the time we would realize it, Mom would wake us up at 5-6 A.M. and we would have to clear the entrance out again so Dad could go to work. By that time, the snow had solidified to a Hard crusty ICE. Mom would yell at us as we complained and wrestled with those HUGE METAL SNOW SHOVELS! Maybe do don't remember them or never saw them... because humans eventually evolved to make snow shoveling easier. Namely: Lighter shovels, snow throwers, PLASTICS! and so on. Ours was so old and "Used Up" that the edge of it was blunt and rusty with large chunks of shovel missing. The edge of it Curled up from being hammered against the ice for so many years. The handle was as thick as my wrist and twice as tall as I was at the time!
We would fight over the Coal Shovel because it had a short handle and was easier to deal with. It was STILL made out of the heaviest metal they could find. Ever see a small kid try to shovel snow with a shovel that is three times his size? (Or Weight?) Well, that was us. And Mom would harass us every minute to hurry up! Dig faster! Do a better Job! Bla Bla Bla.
But things have come a long way. Thankfully! They make shovels you don't even have to lift and throw your back out anymore! You can simply push all the snow to one side of the walkway. Easy! 
Nothing could have been done about the snow storms of 1976. But had they made cheap plastic shovels available to the masses.... AND had I been older and wiser and more assertive, I would have pointed out to Mom that buying us a new, lighter, cheaper shovel would increase out productivity and keep us from hating her as an adult when we think back on her TYRANNY! It is possible that those things DID exist back then, but Mom was Old School. And keeping the Work HARD and DIFFICULT was the only way to build character. I guess. Or she was just Evil. My vote is for the latter.
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