Miniplow

The virgin snow is no longer virgin snow. Everyone is cleaning it up the best they can.

We’re supposed to get all kinds of rain on Sunday, which should help melt the snow… but it’ll all freeze into impassible ice on Sunday night, according to the forecast. Ugh. Give me snow any day.

I have to say, this is my first winter in New Providence, and I’m really impressed with how they’ve handled this snow. Wayyyy better than the outer boroughs of New York City, and way better than central Jersey; my parents, who live in Monmouth County, had 30+ inches of snow (76.2 cm), and their roads didn’t get plowed at all for two full days.

Have an exciting New Year’s Eve, everyone! May your new year be a happy and healthy one.

Peaceful cemetery

Another blizzard aftermath shot: the cemetery of the New Providence Presbyterian Church. Both this church and the Methodist church a quarter-mile down the road have very old cemeteries.

Blizzard 3!

Still trying to clean up around here. It hasn’t snowed in over 48 hours, but the wind is pretty strong; as soon as you pile some snow out of the way, it just blows right back in the middle of everything.

This photo is actually from Monday morning. Transportation is slowly getting back to some semblance of normality.

(See previous Snowpocalypse posts here and here.)

Blizzard 2!

I’d call this Snowpocalypse 2010, but that’s what they called last season’s massive snowfall(s). Maybe this is the Post-Christmas Blizzard 2010? First Northeastern Blizzard of the 2010-2011 Season? Those really aren’t very catchy names.

New York City officially got 20 inches of snow (51 cm); I think New Providence got slightly more.

Yesterday morning, I saw a guy who had driven onto a highway ramp and gotten stuck, right there in the middle of the ramp. He had a shovel and he was digging himself out. His car in the middle of the road wasn’t an obstruction to other cars because THERE WERE NO OTHER CARS.

On Monday, my usual hour-and-a-half commute took a little over two hours in the morning (which really wasn’t bad) and FOUR HOURS back the other way. Most other commuter trains were flat-out cancelled.

It’s pretty brutal. I extend a heartfelt thanks to everyone who’s lent a hand to helping us dig and salt and plow our way out of this mess.

(See other Snowpocalypse posts here and here.)

Blizzard!

You may have heard about the blizzard we’re having up here in the New York area! We’ve got three major airports, and they’re all cancelling flights left and right— thousands so far, which really stinks for folks trying to get home after Christmas celebrations! (Are you one of those folks?) The commuter trains have been adjusted to an “enhanced weekend schedule” for today, and NYC subways were getting delayed even yesterday.

In New Providence, it started snowing around 11:15am yesterday (Sunday); the photo above was taken around 4:30pm, so it had only been snowing for about five hours.

Five hours later, we had another 6-8 inches. (That’s what these photos below are from.)

But we’re northeasterners! We’re kind of hardy! We’re bracing ourselves the best we can! But it’s our first real snow of the season, and it’s a doozie!

(See other Snowpocalypse posts here and here.)

Springfield Avenue

Toldja New Providence had a wreath fetish.

These replace the usual banners.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to those who celebrate. To everyone else, have a really, really lovely warm day.

P.S. Here’s a photo of the above church (the New Providence United Methodist Church) from 1911. Originally published in Gonezlik, J. & Coddington, J. (1998). Images of America: New Providence. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing.

P.P.S. Click here for a Google street view of the chuch!

Summit Station

Ah, Summit Station, hub of the Morris/Essex lines. If I lived within walking distance of this station (instead of New Providence, which is oooone station further), my daily commute would be a heck of a lot simpler.

Merry Christmas Eve, if you celebrate that kind of thing!

Wreathy

Summit’s City Hall is dressed up, too! Check out that wreath, yo.

I saw the sign

This is how New Providence gets festive. Townsfolk here apparently have a wreath fetish or something in the downtown area— EVERYONE has WREATHS everywhere (with occasional red ribbons and lights, of course). No stars, or snowflakes, no Santas, no reindeer, no angels. This sign is the only place that appears to even bring on the penguins and snowmen. It’s a little weird, but at least everything’s cohesive.