During the last big storm residents of the Upper East Side complained about snow removal. The new mayor replied that they received the smae service as any communities in the five boroughs. The filthy rich immediately accused DeBlasio of class warfare.
Today a fierce storm descended on New York City.
By noon over eight inches had fallen on the sidewalks of Fort Greene, however in truth this winter weather freak was a Girl Scout in comparison to the Buffalo Blizzard of 1977 as seen in the above slide show.
Even New York City was shut down by the billions of cubic inches of snow blowing off a frozen Lake Erie. I tried to visit my family with my hillbilly girlfriend in Boston and my father asked, "How are you getting here?"
"By train." My parents lived close to the 128 station.
"And from there?"
"You'll drive me." My father had been brought up in Maine.
Snow was on the ground most of the year.
"No, I won't. All the roads are closed."
"Closed?" The snow was deep in New York. It was definitely deeper in the Blue Hills south of Boston.
"Route 28 has one lane open for emergency vehicles. My picking you up is not an emergency."
"Okay." I hung up and opted to stay put in the East Village.
Alice and I ate at Veselkas and went to CBGBs for a good time.
The city was ours.
No cars, no police, no commuters.
It was not so much fun for the people of Buffalo, where 29 people died during the blizzard.
As the winter ended an urban myth emerged from the disaster.
Supposedly a father had left his house to buy milk for his children. He never returned that night or the next week or the ensuing month. Dark-hearted neighbors suggested that the husband had taken advantage of the snow emergency to flee his wife. The Spring thaw proved them wrong. The man was found frozen to death only feet away from his house with a carton of milk in his arm.
True or not, then again as James A Steele said,"All stories are true if interesting."
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