"to-day were pathless with untrodden snow..." ~ Jane Eyre

A perfect end to a perfect day.

The English Patient is on HBO and I am viewing it drowsily as I sip sugar-free cocoa, eat strawberries, and brood over the fact that Ralph Fiennes is dating a woman who is 15 years older than he is and not dating me.

I got the call every teacher loves - the "tomorrow is a snow day" call - and am excited for my day tomorrow. The streets will be clear and my car is already shoveled out, so I have every intention of spending the morning at Panera, the afternoon with my nephew, and the evening doing some food shopping for lasagne ingredients.

I am smiling at the fact that exactly on the second at 11am this morning that my family and I started making the rounds of phone calls to each other. Of course we were all at home with plenty of food and doing fine, but we called one another anyway. Snow days growing up were the best. Missy, Robin, and I would get together with Mike, Joey, and Tom across the street and build huge forts and igaloos for snowball fights. We were out there for hours until my mother called us in because she irrationally worried we would get frostbit or something ridiculous like that. I remember once she sat us on the radiator (yes, it was covered) to warm up. I remember a blizzard in April once when I was very young, and it was wonderful to have my father home from work. I remember sitting in the living room in front of the fireplace after dinner with the family, just enjoying the dancing flames.

I have become used to spending snow days in solitude.

This morning I slept late, did some yoga, and then shoveled a bit. I made chicken soup as I drank a glass of chardonnay, read a great deal, and was on the phone with many of my friends. I shoveled more, took a walk in the snow, and watched a few cooking shows on both Foodtv and PBS. Chaz and I always joke about Lidia and her "man hands." Despite her huge stature, I love watching her cook and printed out her gnocci recipes. I read Glamour, cleaned my kitchen, and caught up on reading some other blogs.

Hope you enjoyed your day in the snow...