Let it Snow!

It is another snowy Monday! The commute to work was horrible - it took me an hour to get to work and I have decided that there are a few really dumb drivers who make it so terrible for the rest of us. I had a number of cars pull right in front of me as I drove along the freeway - granted I have 4 wheel drive but it is still difficult to stop on snowy, icy roads no matter what you are driving. There was one guy that was driving an older model sports car - the car barely had any traction and he was sitting in his car talking on his cell phone like it was any other day. He pulled out in front of the car in the lane next to mine and almost caused a terrible accident. He acted like it was everyone else's fault. YIKES! I got away from him as quickly and safely as possible.

I parked in visitor parking when I got to work because you couldn't tell where any of the parking spots were in the regular parking lot. The good thing about being one of the first ones here is that I get the chance to park in Visitor's Parking which is covered. I didn't leave for lunch today for two reasons, it is still snowing and I didn't want to lose my parking space! Hopefully I can leave a little bit early if I work through lunch.

I'm sure the evening commute will be pretty scary - even if the roads are plowed it will be a lot colder and so there will be tons of black ice. Don't you just love winter?!

Of course I'm not complaining too loud about the cold after watching the Packers/Giants game yesterday - it was -1 degrees at the start of the game with a -23 degrees wind chill. When the game ended the temperature had dropped 3 more degrees and who knows what the wind chill was by then. I can only remember one time when I was in weather that cold and it was at Sun Valley a couple years ago. That kind of cold hurts your lungs when you breathe - you need to cover your face so you can warm the air before it goes into your lungs. It is no fun at all. I was sad for all of the Packers fans who sat through that miserable cold for 4 hours only to see their team lose in overtime!

It was a bad weekend for all of my teams - the Utes lost a barn burner at the Huntsman center in basketball to BYU - I was sad for the team because they played really hard. It was one of those down to the wire games and Utah missed an important free throw and their clock management after that wasn't very good. I know that Utah is still a young team with a new coach and they are learning and growing every week, but it was still a heartbreaker.

On a positive note we had a whole row of BYU fans sitting right behind us and they were some of the nicest BYU fans I have ever encountered in a game like this. They cheered loudly and proudly for their team but they didn't ever stoop to any kind of name calling or negative remarks. We had some fun rivalry banter going back and forth but it was totally good natured and made the game even more fun. Being a Utah fan I have had many experiences at the U and at BYU where I have interacted with BYU fans, I usually leave with a really bad taste in my mouth. So I am happy to say that I had a very different experience on this occasion and I was pleased that these young men could represent themselves and their school in such a positive manner. I hope they felt the same way about us when they left the game.

The Chargers and Packers also lost...I will preface this to say that I am not usually too enthralled with professional football - I am a playoff/Superbowl fan. Of course my kids and Ray have a running rivalry throughout the season with the teams that they have chosen. Ray loves the Chargers because he has been to a game there and has a fondness for San Diego having spent a lot of time there over the years - also we watched Weddle play for the Utes for 4 years and we love to see him play so well and make such a positive difference. Because of this I have followed the Chargers a little more closely than usual this past year and have really enjoyed watching them. So it would have been very fun to see them in the SuperBowl. Of course the Patriots have played phenominally this year having an undefeated season in the pros is amazing. I might just have to cheer for them in the SuperBowl.

The Packers are Kelli's team - she has cheered for them for years and really likes Favre. She really wanted to see him in another SuperBowl before he retires but it won't be happening this year. I do have to say that both of these games were probably better than the SuperBowl will be. For some reason the playoffs just seem so much more competitive.

Anyway on this snowy Monday it is fun to think about the upcoming SuperBowl - it is always a good excuse to get the family together and have a little party - good food, good company, and usually some really great commercials!

Hopefully if you live near here and have multiple inches of snow in your yard you will have the chance to get out in it and build a snowman or have a great snowball fight. Perhaps you are one of the lucky people who got this day off to celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King. I of course am stuck here at work and will spend most of the day dreading my drive home. I will try to take a moment to appreciate the beauty that is found in this blanket of snow. I am grateful to live in a place where I get to experience and appreciate all four seasons...and I am grateful that we haven't had to experience the dreaded inversion this year! If the snow will stop the drought, prevent the inversion, and fill the resevoirs then I say Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!