A Rare Snow Day

In most of Southern Arizona, snow is a rarity and a delight. A few years ago, the main school district here had its first ever snow day–and no one in admin or the state knew how to handle it. They didn’t want any buses going over any bridges (ice! ZOMG!) but they didn’t want to cancel school because we don’t build snow days into the schedule here. It would have thrown EVERYTHING off. So they ended up having a four-hour delay, and by then no one was coming to school. I think we got about fifty kids total, out of eight hundred, who had shown up before the district decided what to do. They spent the morning playing in the snow. Now that I own my home, I’m aware that hoping for snow (and obvi, the cold weather that comes with it) is a silly thing to do. Citrus trees like I have in my back yard do not love snow. The new trees that I had planted back in November aren’t ready for snow. Heck, the mature, huge palm trees in the front yard aren’t big fans either, I’m sure. The last struggling tomato plant of my garden, with about five green tomatoes still clinging on, is not going to do well in snow. (And, worse, the 29° predicted for tonight.) But it’s so pretty. This morning driving to work, the Catalinas were white all the way to the foothills. The Rincons too, when I could see them beyond…

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