mashed potatoes in Austin

I certainly didn't really believe it when on Sunday the weathermen/women first started spreading this idea of a wintry mix with snow when it was in the 70s here in Austin. Oh me of little faith in our meteorologists. But really. We get ice here...and sleet...but it hasn't snowed in at least 6 years.
This morning on the drive to Lost Creek for swim practice it was raining...and sometime while we were swimming that turned to sleet. Yes, a sleet-swim...try it, it's fun. Except for when you have to get out! By the time I left Lost Creek, a little sleet had even built up on my car.
The drive in to work was uneventful and easy...no real problems on the road. Thankfully. Everyone seemed to be paying the appropriate amount of caution to the wintry weather. And by the time I got to work, the rain-sleet was coming down pretty steadily. All of the students were bustling around as if they were doing some snow dance that they hadn't practiced in years...no kidding. Yet somehow their amateur efforts worked and mid-way through first period it was snowing. A colleague still called it sleet at the point but by my standards it was snow - it was falling quietly and not pelting the roof of my office and it sure looked like flakes to me. The students all rushed out of the classrooms to continue their snow dance, this time with mouths open to the sky to catch snow and lots of twirling going on. They were hysterical to watch.
Teachers tried to keep everyone on task...many were taking History exams after all...but it seemed like a rather fruitless effort. By advisory, it had legitimately snowed in Austin. A light dusting on the ground, enough to gather and make snowballs (which we did), and even enough to make a snow angel (albeit a very faint one...which we did). Of course the million dollar question was whether or not we'd be dismissed from school early - something that the students (not surprisingly) were gunning for. I have to admit that at least a few of us teachers decided we wouldn't mind it terribly either. And around noon we got the word...SCHOOL WOULD BE DISMISSED AT 1:30 PM! Excitement all around. Obviously, snow isn't a huge problem in terms of driving when you're getting the light dusting that we got; but icy roads are a worry. And with teenage drivers. Yikes. Of course, nearly 300 people leaving one place at one time fueled by the giddiness of a "snow day" isn't the safest idea either...but we urged them to drive slowly and cautiously (as if teenagers really know that language) and we sat back and do what we so often do where our students are involved...hope and pray for the best!
As eager as they were to get home and grab sleds or make hot cocoa or take a nap, they must have heeded our advice because I didn't hear any reports of accidents - phew. And, not wanting to be on the road with all of them and thinking that it would be a quiet afternoon to get some work done, I made myself a cup of tea, turned the music on in my office, and settled into my desk...enjoying the winter scene outside of my office, knowing that it would most likely be gone tomorrow.
More people made it to core and spin than I expected. (And the roads to get there were both clear and relatively empty of cars...nice!) And while it might have been a good night to spin at home, I never work as hard when I'm not spurred on by the energy of my teammates and a coach so I was glad that I made this stop on the way home. And I had the extra inspiration to work hard because Wednesday has become my day off from exercise this week...sort of by default. None of the pools in Austin are going to be open early enough for me to swim before work; our own swim practice at Circle C got canceled due to low temps in the morning; I have a faculty meeting that will creep into track practice; and, as a result of having to shift my Wednesday swim to another day...Wednesday has now become the day to take off from exercising. A little switch-a-roo in the middle of the week...not a bad thing. And crawling under my down comforter tonight with my flannel pjs knowing that I get to "sleep in" tomorrow is an even better thing. Maybe we'll even get a late school start?! Better consult my students for the dance moves for that...
Oh...and why "mashed potatoes in Austin"? Well, apparently when I was little and saw my first snow (I was maybe 3 or 4) I said that it looked like mashed potatoes. Either I had a fabulous sense of imagination or I was hungry! Either way, it was a day of a light serving of mashed potatoes in Austin today...but enough to give us all a little change of pace...which is always welcomed in my book.