Snow

It's snowing again in New York City. When you add it all up, this is more snow than New York City has seen in a long time. For those of us walking on sidewalks or traveling by subways and ferries, it doesn't matter much, though the shuttle from the Ferry to Wagner College has been suspended a couple of times recently. But the driving is impossible and the repeated closings do take their toll on some institutions. I don't personally worry about it a whole lot, though. I just enjoy the big flakes that stick to my black overcoat. I should add that since the damp snow makes for excellent packing, snowball fights are breaking out with shocking frequency on Amsterdam Avenue. And winter boots are finally getting a real workout.

Which leads to a topic that has caused me considerable consternation. Umbrella use in the snow. Never have I encountered so many people who use umbrellas in the snow as they do in New York City. Why do they do it? Don't they understand that umbrellas, given their inconvenience and cumbersomeness, especially in big cities, are to be reserved strictly for major downpours. Umbrellas are useful and necessary in the rain, but in the snow, they just create needless clutter, while severely limiting your ability to catch snowflakes in your mouth. Nothing should interfere with something that important, certainly not the very umbrellas whose edges have left scars on my cheek and nearly decapitated me once or twice. I'm thinking of starting a campaign to outlaw umbrella use in the snow. Maybe I can convert the whole city to my way of thinking like the "pooper scooper" lady did during the 1970s. All I have to do is convince New Yorkers that umbrella are a blight and health risk, just like stray dog crap. Shouldn't be hard at all.