I know, I know - not another article about the damn snow! But many of us can't help but look at picture after picture of the Goliath sized snow piles lining the streets of Boston. With over six feet of snow in three weeks and icicles the size of Godzilla's teeth threatening to impale us upon exiting our homes, I feel like the movie Frozen was really about Boston, not some medieval nordic hamlet.
Harvard University yesterday. Could this be Elsa's handiwork (or "Elser" as they call her here)? Perhaps she's a Yalie?
While we complain about the snow often here in New England, I think that we secretly like it for the following reasons:
7 Reasons Why Bostonians Secretly Like Blizzards
1) We get an outpouring of sympathy from around the world for the bad traffic, train delays, shoveling and the impending floods on the horizon. Being a city full of Gen Ys, we revel in the attention.
2) At the same time, we get to reject said sympathy and brag about how tough we are. I've heard all three of the following statements in the last two weeks – verbatim:
"I shoveled 10 tons of snow this afternoon. It's good exercise for the back".
"I went for my 11-mile marathon training run the morning of Juno. It was actually refreshing".
"I can't believe they canceled school for just a foot of snow. What a bunch of pansies!"
I'm not kidding. Verbatim.
3) There is a tacit understanding that Bostonians can save their street parking space with whatever piece of junk they happen to have lying around. If someone moves your chair/cone/walker and takes your space, you are entitled to slash their tires or, in Jamaica Plain, you just shovel the snow back onto the "thief's" car. Either way, there is some satisfaction to be had.
Better not move that walker or Gramps will shove his cane in your tailpipe.
4) We get full license to berate anyone on social media posting pictures of sunshine, beaches and palm trees. There has been a virtual blizzard of "GFYs" on Facebook over the last two weeks.
5) New micro economies are springing up. We are already taking bets on when the snow will melt and enterprising high school and college kids are using their youthful brawn to earn extra cash by charging local residents a hefty fee for shoveling out their cars.
5) New micro economies are springing up. We are already taking bets on when the snow will melt and enterprising high school and college kids are using their youthful brawn to earn extra cash by charging local residents a hefty fee for shoveling out their cars.
6) We get to ski. In the city. Pretty freaking cool.
7) It gives us something to talk about. Because, let's be honest, nothing else is happening here in February.
And with that, here are a few of my favorite neighborhood blizzard pics:
Forget about snow-covered cars - this HOUSE is almost completely buried!
Free parking for anyone with a shovel!
Walking down my sidewalk after the last storm.
This face makes 6 feet of snow look cute.
Here are a few shots of Cambridge, MA from the @beyondvoyage Instagram gallery:
St. Petersburg, Russia? Nope, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Buried in my office during Juno.
Deadly icicles near Harvard.
They may cause a lot of chaos, but blizzards can be incredibly peaceful and beautiful.
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