It was the second storm of December 2009 that made us notice. 25 inches in my yard. That weekend the town was paralyzed … well, most of the east coast was as well.

The lowest hinges on the church’s front doors are about a foot from the ground. But the drifts along the rest of the building were much higher. When the snow plow cut trenches along the sidewalk, the snow stood at least a foot or two on both sides.

My poor car sitting in the carport, immobile for at least three days.

The backyard walk from the back porch to the carport, about an hour’s worth of shoveling. The neighbors’ kids went sledding, knocking down my perfect walls of snow. The snow didn’t melt away completely for a couple of weeks, and there was snow on the ground on Christmas Day.

My yellow labrador Chief navigating the yard to a quiet spot … eventually getting back to the house quite relieved.