The Only Snow Plow in England

While walking today in the Yorkshire dales around Bolton Abbey we saw what is apparently the only snow plow in London, but naturally they wanted to store it in Yorkshire where surely it would get more use. Well, no actually, they were wrong. This may be an exaggeration, I'm pretty sure the only snow plow in London is actually located somewhere within the city limits. As some of you may have seen on the news, seeing as how it's so very exciting, there is a wee bit of snow in London. In fact, it's more than London usually gets; prompting schools to close, buses to cease running, and the underground to shut down (because there's a lot of snow down there.) Some schools are still closed in the south leaving us Northerners wondering where the hell did all our snow go? We got a nice bit last Sunday evening and all day Monday. My flatmates and I made a snowman, Julio, engaged in a good old snow ball fight and attempted to sled down a hill on a trash bag--translation: we sat in the snow on top of a trash bag. It was all good fun, but then the next day we woke up to find a mere ghost of the beautiful blanket we previously had while two hours south of us there were heaps falling from the heavens. However, it's actually snowing again as I write this. Just a light dusting but perhaps when I wake up there will be enough to rebuild Julio. I just find it enormously amusing that England comes to a halt when faced with any type of weather that is hinting at extremism on either side of the spectrum. When there's snow on the ground the schools, roads, and trains all stop running. Shops close up and people just don't seem to know what to do. The great thing is that every English person is aware of this cultural oddity while the country is still left deciding whether or not to invest in a second snow plow for the greater London area. It's a tough decision.

Besides the snow I've been having a productive couple weeks. I've had a training session for my volunteer job at Barley Hall in town and will be starting work this week. I've also been continuing my cooking adventures and have successfully brought the beauty of mexican food to flat 5. We had beef enchiladas and chicken burritos, both turning out very well in my personal, and professional, opinion. I've started making some headway on my research project for which I am currently reading England and the Octopus by Clough Williams-Ellis, a very interesting essay-book published in 1928 commenting on the ever persisting urban sprawl taking over England's rich and history steeped countryside. A very good read, and the problem still rings true today as much as it did 80 years ago.
(Me at Bolton Abbey)
Today, like I mentioned at the beginning of the post, I went on a hike around the Bolton Abbey estate with outdoor society. The weather was lovely, despite the below freezing temperature(around 25-30F,) there was no wind, rain or snow falling. There was a lot of snow on the ground though which we trudged through with good spirits all morning and afternoon. My ankles are now protesting slightly at the strain they endured while slipping and turning on hills, hidden rocks and mud traps hidden under the snow. It was beautiful, especially ending at the 12th century abbey ruins that stood starkly against the snow.
(the view from my window)
But now I can see a soft blanket of snow settling on the ground outside and my copy of Harry Potter is calling me to my bed. I could fall asleep right here at my desk watching the calmly falling snowflakes out my window but I think it better to fall into bed, so I'll bid you adieu.