And boy did it snow. Probably 8″ last night.

Luckily it was pretty light weight, so the snow blower was able to deal with it. There were some parts where it was struggling though. I’m thinking that we’re going to get a more heavy duty snow blower for next year. Definitely a two stage with an electric start. Probably four stroke engine, so I don’t have to deal with the oil / gas mixture.

After clearing the driveway & sidewalks, Ginny and I went cross country skiing. We went out to Busse woods in Schaumburg. Nobody else was skiing yet, but there were a few snow mobilers (ptooey!). We were out for about 45 minutes before the wind started blowing pretty hard and made it less fun.

I did achieve my ‘Zen’ state for a little while … this is where I have a good rhythm going and I zone out of any heavy thought … just listening to the swish of my skis, the crunch of my poles, and the sound of my breathing. It’s quite relaxing.

Of course, about that time, a snow mobiler zoomed past and ruined the moment.

At least there are more four stroke snow mobiles out there than there used to be. Much quieter than the old kind.

Tonight is going to be fairly busy … my niece’s birthday is at an ice skating rink (indoors I hope … especially since Dan has asked me to take pictures) and then Ginny’s friend Katie is having her big five zero birthday.

One thing I did find out is that my contact lenses … well, my right contact lens, prescription is no longer valid. I like to be able to wear my sun glasses when I ski, so I have to wear my contact lenses. When I put the left contact lens in, I had no problem … but my right lens was all fuzzy. I’ll have to go get an eye exam soon. Maybe tomorrow.

Update 1/23: Well, turns out the prescription for my right eye was not invalid … as the new lens prescription I got was the exact same one as I had before. I suspect the lens was defective. I need to verify that stuff earlier on next time.