Baby, it's cold outside...

I've been on Facebook for the past two days chatting, reconnecting and just killing time. Why? Because a blizzard just blew through my town and for a Californian like myself, a couple inches can qualify as a blizzard. I got about a foot and drifts of about 2 feet.

Did I ever mention how much I hate snow?

My hate affair with snow began when I was about 9 years old. It snowed in San Francisco and I got the rare opportunity to play in snow as a child. My teacher took us outside, we began playing and I noticed my hands were getting very cold. They got down right frigid and then began to hurt. This stunned me. I heard of being cold but didn't realize being cold can be painful. It was fascinating but also annoying. I immediately wanted the pain to stop and even more so wanted the snow gone. I decided at that moment that snow sucked. Those feelings were reinforced by a trip to my grandmother's home, staying until school and winter began, and having to walk to school. The teachers thought it a grand idea to have outside recesses and I only thought how long until I can try and get warm again.

The massive blizzard that blew through a third of the country was amazing. So many on FB claimed that it was all bull, the predictions that is, but I said they should count their blessings. No one likes being snowed in...unless you are in a lovely ski lodge with a roaring fire, hot chai and a hot body next to you willing to make your stay even hotter.

Unfortunately, I've heard tell that this will be the new "norm" for winters due to global warming. That is not a comforting thought but with the world getting warmer, we had to expect some kinds of changes. I remember the jokes about how can a warmer planet lead to colder winters. As I have heard, warmer temps. means more moisture in the atmosphere, meaning heavier snows. Oh....they now must be saying....It makes sense! Uh, yeah, it makes sense because you are shoveling out of 12 inches of snow when you are used to getting 5 or less.

The good news is shoveling all that snow so I can actually go to work tomorrow when the city "re-opens" was good exercise. I thought, as I shoveled, about how angry I would be if I were still married. If I were still married, I would have still been outside, alone, shoveling snow in negative temperatures. My ex would have been inside, on his computer claiming to be watching our son. In the end, I decided it was better to be shoveling my own drive and not married to someone who would essentially be a parasite and not a partner.

So...as tax time creeps closer, I have to wonder if everyone is going to file early or wait until April 18 to rush the job. We have extra days due to a holiday in Washington D.C. It is the anniversary of the day slaves were freed in D.C. I didn't even know there was such a holiday. I've heard of Juneteenth but not this D.C. holiday. For those who have no clue, Juneteenth is the day slaves in Texas finally got knowledge of the end of the Civil War and their freedom. Unlike the D.C. holiday, federal offices don't close for Juneteenth.

This creeping recognition of slavery and the happiness that followed once it was abolished is interesting. Slavery seems to be the "it seemed like a good idea at the time..." black mark on U.S. history. It's like the pink elephant in the room...people know it's there but when it's talked about that is done is weird whispers. The people who don't whisper are usually shouting about how they deserve the holiday or how "that incident" doesn't deserve a holiday. The state of Arizona refused to acknowledge MLK Day for years. As a black person in America, I kind of took that personally and I'm glad a bit of financial arm-twisting worked on Arizona.

February is Black History Month...I guess I crept up to that point. Black Americans have contributed a lot to this country, yet we still get stereotyped as leeches upon society. It's sad that today, that stereotype is still alive ans strong. I hope that will change but I worry I will not be alive to see the change.