Mother Nature's Goosey Nite Trick

Mother Nature, in a Goosey Nite Eve rampage (that’s Mischief or Devil’s Nite for those of you who don’t live in northern New Jersey), played a mean trick on the East Coast Saturday, dumping snow on trees that, in some places, are still green.

There’s never been an October snowfall in the history of the Garden State.  Because the trees still have all their leaves in lower-lying areas, large branches and whole trees were knocked down all over the state.  The nor’easter came in a little sooner and a little faster than expected.  Within an hour, the temperatures dropped from autumn to winter, making it cold it enough for the snow to fall and to stick.

Shoppers, out early because they expected the storm to come later in the afternoon, found themselves skidding over slick roads.  Whole neighborhoods are blanketed in snow, fallen trees, and green leaves.  Many residents are still without power.  Mom was thinking about going out Saturday afternoon – before the trees started falling – and I told her not to.

A couple of big branches came crashing down into our parking lot, right into the much-debated visitor parking space.  When the weather is bad, like it was on Saturday, I always warn my visitors not to park there because of the trees.  The visitor parking spaces are first-come, first-serve.  My next-door neighbor’s son insists on parking there, even though his mother’s resident space out front is free because she doesn’t drive and she also has a designated visitor’s space.

My car was safe because it was just out of reach of the branches.  I also tarp my car during winter storms.  I highly recommend tarps to anyone with a high-profile vehicle.  The snow will freeze to the metal on the car; but it slides right off the tarp.  I still have to shovel it out of the way in front.  But it’s a lot faster than trying to scrape the ice and snow off the roof.  Once the snow is off, I pull the tarp down, roll it up (rolling is better than folding it flat; makes it easier to put it on the car again and isn’t as heavy) and store it away until the next storm.

Still, even though the branches impeded the space and the plow could only push the snow up to the branch, leaving only half a space, this stubborn moron insisted on parking there, clambering over snow banks and tree limbs to get to his mother’s door, and leaving his car sticking out in the roadway.  The association printed out the rules, but this woman still doesn’t have a license,  collar or leash on her dog,  lets the dog run loose, lets it wee-wee on the grass, and keeps garbage cans at her back door, even though the garbage bins are a short walk away.

Clearly, they didn’t get Mother Nature’s message.  Next time (and there will be a next time), she’ll have to drop a branch right on this moron’s car (it has so many dents already, that you wouldn’t notice) before they finally get it – park out front where they belong.  Why is it such a problem?  Because they’re going to kill the grass.  I can step from my stoop to the parking lot without ever touching dirt.  We’re right beside a stream on a downslope.  Without the grass, the soil will wash away and in time, we’ll find our back doors on a precipice.  It’s one thing for the residents to sit on their back porches, and maybe wander over to the stream to see how high it is.  It’s another thing to treat the back green like the New Jersey Turnpike.