when mankind has mauled the planet so badly that the glaciers start melting, fishies start dying and the climate in the northeastern U.S. turns tropical, I will miss the sound of snowplows at 6:00 in the morning.




I'll also miss the tingly cold feeling you get around the ankles when you insist on shovelling the driveway wearing jeans and short boots...




the numb face that results from nighttime walks with a -25 degree windchill...




...and the sore muscles you get when you've had three storms in three days and the snowbanks are shoulder-high.


fortunately, I don't anticipate being alive to see lake erie's fine shores lined in palm trees and beach towels. well, okay. I don't anticipate being alive to see lake erie lined in fake palm trees, barbed-wire fences and signs reading 'no swimming: biohazardous waste'.