Snowtime in the Hinterlands

I live at the top of a hill on a busy street. In the summer, this can get loud. But in a snowstorm it can get ridiculous.

people helping people (and thus making me feel slightly guilty for just laughing at them)

people helping people until they stop at a stoplight (urban planning at its finest)

public transit triumphing until it stops at a stoplight

Who's happier here?

Very rarely, but sometimes, I'm just happy to have a digital camera.

Moral of the Story

There are several morals to this story. First, don't live on a busy street unless you own earplugs.

Second, when stuck in the snow, don't spin your tires!! As soon as your tires start spinning, you have only dynamic friction, not static friction, which means you have much less chance of succeeding. Plus, if the occasional loud crashing noise is any indication, when you do eventually find some traction, you take off rather quickly by surprise.

Third, it's December. Seriously, stop using your summer tires.

Fourth, SUVs actually do accomplish something. Minivans do not. I'm sad not to have a video of the ambulance I saw pushing a minivan up the hill just so they could get through.

Fifth, nobody except me ever learns these lessons, because everyone down there thinks they're somehow unique and will somehow get out of it just by spinning their tires. But two hours later, I can, with great confidence, say that it's a losing strategy.

Special Thanks

As always, special thanks to NITI for having their bandwidth sucked by these videos. But I may have to pull them soon in the name of, you know, not wasting money.