“Remoted” Workday 212 / Day 322 (Monday)

Snow!

The snow was promised. The snow arrived. Around noon, there was an official email that our physical locations would be closing at 2:00. Shortly before that, there had been an email with guidelines about potential notifications and procedures for Tuesday morning, and the depressing news for the remote workers throughout the organization. One sentence laid bare the depressing downside of remote work. It read:

“For team members working remotely, any change to our physical location hours should not impact your remote working hours.”

Cue the game show sound effects when someone does not win the big, exciting prize. Whomp, whomp whomp. 

Snow for 120 minutes ...

Goodbye early release days. Goodbye snow days. Goodbye workday afternoon curled on the couch with cocoa and dogs and that rare spark of winter joy. It doesn’t even matter that being on the couch is how I have spent nearly every night and weekend for several years. There is a special magic to it when out of work early because of a snow day. It’s lighthearted. Or, at least, it was, when it existed. And now it is gone. Let the tears begin for remote workers everywhere. 

One forecast said the snow would begin around 2:00, and it did. There was no easing into it. One minute it was just cloudy and the next minute it was snowing. There was no opening act with big fluffy flakes lazily drifting around and down to ease us into the production. It was millions of the tiny flakes that Mummu always said meant there was going to be a lot of snow. Even though the snow is supposed to last into tomorrow, all afternoon and evening, my phone informed me it would snow "for 120 minutes." Perhaps it is in denial.

Between the start of the snow and 7:30 pm, I had cleared the back deck, stairs and made a path to the back yard three times so the dogs could potty. Luckily, the dogs have been napping and so far, the snow has been light and fluffy and easy to relocate. The morning could be a different story, but there is no point worrying about it. The outcome will be the same either way.