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February 6, 2007
No School Again
It's just after 7:30 and we're once again at -2 F (-18.8 C).
And, again, school is canceled.
I know my parents read this and that this whole school-being-out problem is likely killing my father.
As many of you probably suspect, my dad had to walk 10 miles to school each day in all kinds of weather. Not having the money to spare for the cafeteria, and not having a bag to use to tote food to school, he had to return home for lunch each day and then, of course, get back to class before recess was over. It made for very good cardiovascular health (and may be the reason dad is in such good shape today).
This all happened way back ... back before global warming ... back when the winters were fierce. Back when if someone were to say, "Northing's impossible," someone else would pipe up and say, "Oh yea, have you ever tried to stretch a gnat's ass over a lard bucket." And while I'm inclined to think that a lard bucket has a rather wide mouth, I'm betting it would be pretty hard to stretch a gnat's ass over just about anything.
Snow in south-western Ohio used to fall to depths of three and four feet each and every Monday of each and every winter. This was also back during the time, and if you're old enough you may remember (if you're not run this entry by your father) that Mother Earth was having an Axis problem -- worse than the one Churchill and Roosevelt would ever have -- and she sort of wobbled around the sun. This led to a condition in which if, let's say, you had to walk 10-miles uphill in a snowstorm to get to school that by the time school let out you would find that your walk home was uphill too. I know this seems to defy geological laws.
Life was certainly a bitch.
I remember dad telling me that things got a little better for him in fourth grade as for his 10th birthday he got his first pair of shoes. Things got a lot better that Christmas when he got laces for them.
We've canceled school because we don't want our kids to stand outside waiting for the bus.
[And I say that sort of for fun. There are kids that have to walk to school, and kids whose wait for the bus isn't 20 feet from their front door. At -2 F it doesn't take a lot of exposure to the elements to create exposure problems.]
Posted by delmer at February 6, 2007 7:37 AM
Comments
That was also the day before massive litigation. A kid gets frostbite or worse standing out there, it'll cost the school district millions.
Posted by: The Phoenix at February 6, 2007 11:03 AM
It's an old classic. People always say they want it better for their kids than they had it ... and then they complain when their kids actually do have it better.
Posted by: Rob at February 6, 2007 11:42 AM
The sucky thing is they never, EVER close work because of weather.
ONCE I was working somewhere and we were told not to come in because of a bad snowstorm. But then we had to all log in and work from home.
I don't think school really prepares kids for adult life. ;)
Posted by: diane at February 6, 2007 12:58 PM
At my last job we were aloud to leave once because of an ice storm, granted you would have to drive in said ice to get home, but it was the thought that counted, I stayed at work and waited it out. My current employer gave us a day off because of snow once, which is nice for us that live 30 miles away, others....cough....cough....like Delmer live 2 miles away.
Posted by: mikeo at February 6, 2007 3:01 PM
Phoenix: Sad but true.
Rob: Sad but true.
Diane: Sad but true.
Mikeo: True.
Posted by: delmer at February 7, 2007 12:01 PM