Posts Tagged ‘snow removal’
Ice dance
In southern New Brunswick, we are recovering from a snow and ice storm. My husband has been in the tractor, removing snow and ice, for two days. Between runs with lunch and diesel, I am reading Ann Cleeves, one of my favourite UK detective authors. The phone rings and I am wrenched from a very different kind of storm in the Shetlands to a neighbour who wants the services of an ice-gobbling tractor.
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As the sun goes down, I re-live the beauty of the day. Chickadees, a downy woodpecker and a red squirrel spent the afternoon competing for the sunflower seeds in our feeder. Every tree is laden with ice and the wind stirs up powdery snow-devils across open places. The evening begins with memories of glassy trees and the faint tinkling of their twigs and branches.
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Every twig wears
A diamond bracelet.
A wrist turned,
Just so,
To join in the dance.
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All my best,
Jane
snow duties
Our first big snow arrived Saturday night. Twenty centimeters of fluff. Time to begin snow removal duties.
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This year my husband has about 30 clients for snow removal and he has been getting ready for a couple of weeks — staking driveways, buying diesel, replacing lights in the tractor array, removing stressed bolts and moving things around the yard to make moving the snow as simple as possible.
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My duties are simple and few. I set the alarm for 3 AM, print off the client list from the computer and run the checklist — water, raisins, earplugs, client list, flashlight, cell phone, “go bag”. The “go-bag” has about sixty pounds of chain, a roll of tow strapping, assorted connection devices and anything you would ever want to pull yourself from a ditch.
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I also supply diesel when needed and lunch. No set times for anything. Just a hearty meal, packed to eat on the road, when my husband gets hungry.
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lunch packed into a cooler (or in this case, a heater) … lots of protein and calories …
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Otherwise, I answer the phone, work away at various editing projects and worry. Things can go wrong out there in snow-land and they often do. A stray two-by-four goes through the blower. The tractor slips off the side of a driveway into a deep ditch. The plow for the main roads is late. There are three cars in the driveway and no one at home to move them!
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My husband is the only one I know who talks about snow and winter longingly in the middle of summer. Everyone should love their work as much as he does!
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Enjoy your snow-day where-ever you are.
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Copyright Jane Tims 2017
Snow days!
We have had lots of snow in central New Brunswick. So, just a few photos to show you my day on Friday and all the piles of snow!
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Our driveway, partly plowed …
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The impressive piles of snow in the box store parking lot …
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My husband and his tractor, clearing snow …
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Copyright 2017 Jane Tims
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