(Sunday, Dec. 16th 2007, in Natick, Massachusetts) We aren't just dreaming about a white Christmas. We're back indoors after shoveling - again. You, too? For the second time in four days, Jill and I have dug out our snow-catching (and snow-cacheing) driveway from over seven inches of snow.

It could have been worse. We got outdoors early, before the fast-falling snow turned to freezing rain, so it was still semi-fluffy. Thursday's dump (which stalled highway traffic for many hours) was fluffy. And there are two of us. And this year, we are equipped.

We bought our electric snow thrower two years ago: a Toro 1800 Power Curve Electric Snow Thrower. We bought it near the end of that winter, and last winter brought us very little snow. So this week has been El Toro's real shake-out, and it performed admirably. It fits between the car and the stone walls! It shoots that snow up and out of our deep driveway! It can leap tall buildings at a single bound! (Okay, that last was an exaggeration; it often takes two bounds.) Between performances, it is low-maintenance - no gasoline fumes or fire hazard, no messy Spring clean-out and no start-up woes. One of us can lift it, and it stores easily. If your driveways and walkways are all within reach of an electric cord, we recommend it highly. About $300 at most of the obvious stores, when they're in stock. Or see Craig's List, for a good used one that's local to you. (We saved over $100 that way for one that was like new, and the seller bundled in an extension cord.) Eh, TORO! (And that's no bull!):
http://toro.com/home/snowthrowers/electric/1800.html
http://www.craigslist.org/ (Pick your region, then search on: "Toro 1800", etc.)

We have another new weapon in the fight for winter mobility: a Trade-Craft 60" Telescopic Snow Brush. It's not just another car brush. It easily extends, up to five feet long. Its brush and squeegee end pivots so you can clear your long car roof (we've got a wagon) easily, dragging large clumps of snow the long way while standing alongside the car. (No more aching arms, or dragging the snow onto you.) Its ice-scraper end can pop off (but only when you want) for separate use. It's light in weight but seems to be built for ruggedness, ease of use, and even good looks. We've seen these for $20-30 online, but just bought ours for $10 at BJ's Wholesale Club. That's just a tad more than the cost of a good ice-scraper alone. It promises to become the other half of our arsenal against General Winter. Our snow brush has blue closed-foam grips and is longer, but otherwise looks like this one.

We haven't solved the problem of The Returning Snow Plow. You know; the one we pay extra taxes for, so it can sweep by right after we've completed the job, corking our driveway with a new ridge of compacted snow. Over and over. We are keeping the snow shovel and ice breaker for that. (We rejected the alternate tool - a bazooka - as we really do appreciate the folks who do this work; we just wish they'd stop closing off our driveway.) And we're saving the sand-salt mixture for another day; perhaps, tomorrow. These traditional New England tools count, too. But we like our new ones!

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