Snow Day

Snow day!  Whoda thunk it? It's been so long since our university had a snow day TPP can't remember the last.  The usual reason for the snow day is the time it takes to clear parking lots, or a lot of wind makes driving outside of town dangerous.  Us pedestrian (or X-country ski) commuters present no problem although the cheap skate land lords whose buildings ring the campus for a couple of blocks in all directions never clear their sidewalks, the simple obligation of all property owners. TPP had an exam scheduled today, so my students will feel like they got a reprieve. 
It's actually a beautiful scene this morning because this was a heavy snow that has stuck to all the trees and shrubs hopefully without damaging them.  Some 7-8 inches of snow is nothing for us natives of the New York State snow belt, but for here this is a lot of snow. The cardinals certainly stand out boldly, and when foraging is difficult, large numbers of birds and squirrels gather at our feeding stations, and the rest of the food chain lurks. The kitty-girls just watch the activity out of our kitchen windows. The massive red-tailed hawk is perched in a tree over the garage and about 80 feet beyond a Cooper's hawk is perched waiting for its chance.  But it's time to get moving, and we've got a big, long sidewalk to clear, but not too many people are out and about.