Every year, when the first real snow storm hits, people allow the media to whip them into a fine frothy frenzy...

I never cease to be amazed at this phenomenon. You would think that the hundreds of thousands of people who live here year in year out would get the hint, see the pattern, clue in, or something!

In addition to the usual rounds of closures, hubbub and horrendous traffic jams (Induced by said closures and media frency) people also somehow managge to forget, ignore, or otherwise avoid the simple expedient of shoveling their side walks.

The problem is exacerbated by absentee land lords who write clauses like "Tenant is in charge of snow removal" into their lease (Which I'm told is of questionable legality to begin with, but I'm hardly a lawyer so I dunno). Your average college kid simply isn't going to feel motivated by a sense of civic duty enough to get his/her butt out there on a winter's day and start shoveling.

I am told that there was a time when, if you didn't shovel your walk, you would be fined by the city. I whole heartedly approve of this practice and wish they'd bring it back. If you are elderly, infirm, or otherwise unable to shovel your walk, you should hire someone to do so.

If you can't afford it, I would question whether or not you should be owning property. This is somewhat harsh, but the truth is that when you own a house in the city, you are sharing space with the rest of us, and some responsibilities to the community come with that. Elder care and charity should help pitch in for those truly needy cases.

Anyway, on a positive note - aside from the impassable, icy sidewalks, I am actually very much enjoying this winter. It's almost a relief in a weird sort of way to see the kind of snow I'm used to seeing having grown up here in New England (An hour away actually, we get even more snow there.).

Enough with the rant. Have a good day everyone!

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