Firstly, I really can’t remember the last time I made a snowman. Secondly, I’m not sure I’ve ever used the word “umpteen”. Two pointless facts, or non-facts more accurately, you now know about me. The above probably says more about my bad memory than anything else to be honest. Anyhoo…

 

The story of the day is most definitely snow. Snow, snow and more snow. Continuing conflicts of various descriptions around the world? Credit crunch/crisis or whatever the new word the want to call it this week getting worse? Woolies coming back as an online retailer (Wahey!...ish. How will the Pick ‘N’ Mix work?)? Pffft. Snow! Snow’s the thing.

 

Unlike most I had no need to wrestle with my conscious about whether to try and get into the office today; no thoughts of the state of public transport even popped into my head for today I have the day off. Huzzah! This of course means I’ve wasted a day’s leave on a day when a lot of people will be getting it for free. Boo! But I digress…

 

I awoke this morning to the buzzing of my phone as e-mails from friends descended on my inbox: SNOW DAY!!!!! they yelled. My curiosity aroused I convinced myself to leave my nice warm bed and peer out onto the street below. Where the heck did all that come from?

 

It is quite amazing how the appearance of crystalline water ice can suddenly change your plans for the day. Gone were thoughts of a long lie-in, camping out in front of the TV with a new DVD or two and generally being very inactive. I now had much more important things to do. Oh, yes.

 

For years I have been disappointed with the snowfall we’ve had in this country, it looks all very pretty coming down and billowing about but it would just never settle. There’s just never been enough for my liking; as a child there always seemed to be a lot more of it about. Maybe it’s all in my overly nostalgic head or maybe the snow seemed higher when I was a couple of feet shorter. Regardless, I’ve never felt I could go out and make an igloo, making bricks from empty lunch boxes, as I did when I was in

First

School

(That’s another story). But today is different. The snow is here. I had the time. The opportunity would not be wasted.

 

Where I live now doesn’t have much in the way of a garden, a bathroom extension required to shoe-horn in another bedroom to rent out has taken over what little free space the house might once have had but outside the kitchen lies a small triangular piece of concrete that was to be my canvas.

 

Once I was suitably wrapped up I exited the house and got down to work. After a couple of false starts the little fella started to take shape (No need to get down to the gym today, rolling that slowly increasing ball of snow up and down, patting down and compressing the snow was all suitably energetic) and in what seemed no time at all, as I was having so much damn fun, he was ready (almost). Two large misshapen snowballs, one atop another. Lovely. But what about the accessories? If I was going to do this I was going to do it properly.

 

Popping back inside I quickly returned with a hat (last worn by me in

Egypt

– bit of a change in environments admittedly) and scarf (courtesy of my brother this Christmas); but what to do about his face?

 

A cursory look at what food I had in revealed a distinct lack of carrots (compulsory obviously); that’ll teach me to live off pizza! So out into the world I went, chuckling to myself over the skateboarders attempting to snowboard in a town centre (bless them for trying), stopping in at Waitrose (other food retailers are available) to find myself a snowman nose. Wandering though the fruit and veg. my eyes roving for further inspiration I found myself looking at a pack of walnuts. Hmmm…Now I don’t like nuts, not allergic I just don’t like them, but my artistic side was screaming for the tools it needed (Now I don’t even own a sowing kit so the likelihood of finding enough unused buttons in the house when I got back would have been small). Oh sod it I thought, why not?

 

Back to the house I went, a few minutes hollowing out some holes and some strategic placing of carrot and nut alike…et voila! My work was done.

 

As I sit typing this up on my laptop, staring out the window, the snow continues to fall (there’s an inch of fresh snow on top of the snowman’s hat already) I can’t help smiling as a walnut grin smiles back at me. For an hour or so I was kid again, enjoying the moment, having fun in the snow. I love snow days.