warm enough to snow

that is the oddest phrase a southerner could hear. apparently it has to be warm enough to snow. what is warm then? well the temperature has to be in the 20's. colder than that and the preciptation just stays in the clouds.

well i guess it got warm enough. on tuesday, chicago got 5" of snow. in the last 24 hours, approximately 12" has fallen. along with freezing rain and ice. it didn't affect me too much since i take the L to work, but apparently some commuters had 3-4 hours of travel time!

it does look beautiful: my first white christmas. the lake has a layer of ice and snow and it looks so different from the summertime when it was filled with boats. instead of leaves, the trees have christmas lights and a thin sliver of snow delicately balancing on the branches. people still flood the streets, shopping and headed to work or the theatre or a restaurant, but they are dressed in fur-hooded down comforters, scarves wrapped up to their eyes, and boots up to their knees. and i'm one of them.

the trick is to just be prepared. i actually get warm walking around in all my gear. i may be asking for it, but dare i say, it's not that bad.

i hope the novelty doesn't wear off in january...