What a Day!

Day 51


Yes. It has snowed. I'm not happy about it but what can I do. I cleared enough snow to get the snowblower turned around and started. I parked the snowblower by my door back in October. It was started once to get ready for the season and there it has remained until today.

There are basically two types of snow here in Michigan; the heavy wet snow that's like overcooked sticky rice, and there's the dry light snow like boxed mash potato flakes. The first snow of the season is almost always the former.

I have a small Toro snowblower. One speed, no drive assist. It only moves as fast as I can push it and it only throws the snow ten feet on it's best day. My deck gets the snow removed first. The deck Is twenty feet long and twenty feet wide. By the time I get half way across the snow height has doubled. Five more feet and it has tripled. When I get to the edge I'm pushing more than I'm throwing. Still better than shoveling by far.

I'm a bit overweight. I'm 5' 10" and weigh 300+ so you can probably guess I don't get a lot of exercise. My New Years resolution is to lose weight. Again.

I'm out there huffing and puffing and blowing harder than the big bad wolf, when a thought occurs to me. More people die of heart attacks, while shoveling snow, than any other time. I know this because the old friend I went to visit a week ago is a retired insurance adjuster for State Farm Insurance. He recited the fact when I mentioned clearing away the snow at my house. Rather, I mentioned how happy I was "not" having to clear away the snow at my house, because it hadn't snowed yet.

Clearly I was intimidated as any sane person would be. So I only cleared snow for a short time and came back in the house. I hooked myself up to my home heart monitor and watched TV, while I rested and ate a snack (just to keep my energy up). I went back and cleared a little more snow, then came back inside again to rest and monitor. I did this all day long. It worked well. I should be able to clear the other half of the deck tomorrow. Then I'll tackle the path to the driveway. Then the driveway. I figure I'll have it done by next spring.

Until tomorrow,

Ken