By Gari Voss
The meteorologists said the snow was coming, and that it did. The heavy, wet sloppy mess came in first. The sludge was plowed and shoveled out of the way. There was muttering from those who had just finished clearing the driveway when the plow returned, but the eyes focused on the weather maps.
Before the city crew could take a deep breath, the next band of weather began. Anticipating a greater accumulation, many businesses and schools closed on Friday.
The accumulation required removing another deposit of lighter, finer snow from streets and sidewalks.
By Friday evening, all was looking clear, but the wise were stopping to fill gas tanks and cans while others were filling shopping carts. The silence was deafening as Allegan County residents waited for the next boot to fall.
Though Friday evening was clear, one did not have to be a magi to know that during the silent night, the landscape would change. Saturday morning brought the next round. The wind did some blowing, but not as seriously as feared, but the fine misty snow kept falling.
Most opted to hunker down and enjoy the snow through their windows, but the snow lovers were celebrating the opportunity to reeve up their snowmobiles, while others headed for the slopes or the trails.
By Saturday evening, closures glided along the bottom of television screens.
What did not close were the snowplow operators – state, county, city, private. These men and women worked through the night and into the morning clearing major highways, streets, homeowners’ driveways, and private roads.
As Sunday morning dawned, boulevards defined by piles of snow had been etched through the landscape. A drive around town found mountains of snow where cars had been parked just days before. Streets and parking lots took the brunt of the accumulation.
Attacking the accumulation of snow that doesn’t seem to stop takes talent and some strategic planning. The truck and equipment operators work endlessly knowing that even though the streets could be easily navigated, the piles will have to be hauled away, truck load after truck load.
The City of Allegan may have received a foot plus of snow, but other areas of Allegan County received more and to the north, the snow was measured in multiple feet.
As Monday arrived, the closure list for schools and organizations not already closed for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was growing. This was not just because of the snow, but the temperature was in the single digits.
As the snow lovers celebrated being able to enjoy the winter sports, those staying closer to home and a warm fire might ponder the conversation between Lucy and Charlie Brown. (Charles Schultz had such a wonderful way of approaching simple subjects.)
Lucy: Snow does not come down, Charlie Brown. Snow comes up.
Charlie Brown: Now, Lucy, I know that’s wrong. Snow doesn’t come up, it comes down.
Lucy: After it comes up, the wind blows it around, so it looks like it’s coming down, but, actually, it comes up out of the ground, like grass and flowers. It comes up, Charlie Brown, snow comes up… You can’t think of anything to say, can you Charlie Brown?… You are being weighed down by the cool logic of my theory!
Charlie Brown: Oh, Good Grief!
The snow is here to stay for a while with temperatures rising slightly each day to reach the low 30s by the weekend. Stay warm, travel safely, and thank the many who work around the clock to open streets by creating wonderful mountains of snow.