Environment Canada: "No snowman-making weather with this kind of snow."

Today I got stuck in the snow.  Twice.

It all started when I had to be at work at 5:30 am to let in another girl.  Getting out of my apartment parking was fine... while driving I did a little slipping and sliding but luckily the snowplows had made at least 1 round and there weren't many other people around.  The problem was when I had to park.  Vancouver got 26 cm of snow yesterday.  That's over 10 inches... almost a FOOT of snow!  Well I got stuck.  As I ran into the shop, in tears, Ease was already there and helped me shovel and move my car so it wasn't blocking the alley. 

That put me in a terrible mood.

Since it took Ease and I almost 45 mins to get me in a legit position to leave my car, we opened pretty late.  I didn't have to bake as much.  Which meant I got to go home earlier...  when one of the delivery guys showed up he taught me the best way to get my car un-stuck.  Since he grew up in Ontario, I figured he knew what he was talking about.

But, I couldn't get my car out.  Finally, after another 20 mins of shoveling, hot water and manuevering (luckily I wore my rain boots today so my feet weren't soaking like yesterday), I was able to move.  Then I got stuck getting out of the alley.  FINALLY I made it to Main St. (the snow plows had been riding up and down all morning dropping salt) and made it home without further incident.  

I've seen snow, and driven in snow, but never THIS MUCH snow.  To help me make my point of exactly how much snow there is lying around, I bring you Gordon, my foot tall Texas garden gnome.

Here is the snow on my balcony outside my room:

Here is Gordon hanging out in the snow:

Close up:

That, my friends, is Gordon in 9 inches of snow.  On my balcony.  It's not much better outside in the alleys, side streets and the like.  Here are two pictures of it snowing outside my window.  The first is from the first snowfall since I've been here, from last week, and the second is from yesterday.

The first is fairly light, the second is fairly heavy.  Also, yesterday when I came out from work, my car was covered in between 3 and 4 inches of snow.  That was fun getting that off.  Its supposed to be a picture perfect white Christmas here... maybe I will venture out on xmas day and take photos, maybe not.  All I know is that for now my car is NOT leaving its garage!  Even if it takes me 2 hrs to get to work and home this next week.

It snowed up until 9 or so this morning and will start again tomorrow.  People are shovelling sidewalks like crazy, but we're running out of places to put the snow.  Melt please?