Amiable Anarchy

There's something special about a snow storm in the city. The air buzzes with a certain kind of excitement. People revert to the children they were years ago -- only with more alcohol. And there's a certain playfulness about.

Saturday, midstorm, there was a major snowball fight in Dupont Circle. It was particularly hilarious watching Adam Caskey, the weatherman on Channel 7, attempt to do a report while being pelted with snow.



Yesterday and today, people emerged from hibernation to hit the restaurants and bars that are open (and many of them are). And D.C., in their infinite inefficiency, has yet to clear many of the streets. The major intersection of 18th and Columbia is still a snowcovered mess, so pedestrians are strolling down the middle of the road. There's what feels like an amiable anarchy throughout the city.

And with the Feds closed tomorrow and another 10-20 inches of snow predicted by midday Wednesday, one has to wonder where we're going to put all that snow. Our friends to the north, and throughout the snowbelt, are proud to brag about how much better the snow removal is up there . . . but the same way that people in Nebraska don't surf, crews in D.C. don't remove snow -- we just don't have opportunity to do so very often. And so, my far north and snow belt friends, you can brag about your prowess in the snow removal arena, but I'll happily bask in our inefficiency, enjoy the gift of days off of work, and walk down the middle of the road, simply because I can.