Living in the DMV (that’s DC, Maryland, and Virginia for the uninitiated), we occasionally get snow. Not the soul‑crushing, car‑swallowing lake‑effect snow they brag about in Buffalo—just our modest, respectable share. Still, our schools build in snow days, the plow trucks idle like sprinters before a race, and HOA contracts are ready to deploy at the slightest flurry. We even have laws requiring everyone to shovel their own walkways. I assume this is because at some point, someone looked outside, said “Oh hell no,” and went back to watching TV instead of shoveling.
Anyway, let me share how Sunshine and I get ready for one of these “major” snow events.
Supplies
First things first: stocking up. I’m not a doomsday prepper—I grew up in Florida, where “Hurricane Season” is practically a personality trait. Sunshine, being Pinay, comes from a land where “Typhoon Season” plays the same role. So between the two of us, we’re semi‑preppers by upbringing alone.
Our house stays stocked year‑round with the essentials so we never have to join the last‑minute grocery store panic Olympics:
- Toilet paper — Costco sale? We’re leaving with 100 rolls.
- Bottled water — When we open the final case, we buy two more.
- Paper towels — Because spills don’t take days off.
- Flashlights — The more, the merrier.
- Batteries — Because dead flashlights ruin dramatic emergency moments.
These aren’t just emergency items—they’re part of our natural habitat. And honestly, they’re not that expensive to keep around, even when the weather is behaving.
A Storm Is Brewing
According to the forecast, this storm was supposed to be a big one. When it first popped up on my iPhone, it predicted a dramatic 22 inches. A true snowmageddon! As we got closer to the inevitably cold weekend, the forecast toned itself down to a humble 6–10 inches. Typical DMV snow hype cycle.
Our Preparations
Someone once said—and I wish I knew who—
“The time to prepare for winter is before winter.”
Fair enough.
So, with the storm looming, I went into full pre‑snow mode:
- Fetched the snow shovels from the shed and staged them in the garage like they were on standby for NASA launch operations.
- Positioned the snow melt for rapid deployment.
- Took down the shade cover from the deck before it froze into a modern art sculpture.
- Rearranged the vehicles at the end of the driveway like I was curating a museum exhibit titled “Things I Don’t Want Buried in Snow.”
- Charged every Ryobi lantern battery we own—because, of course, the power goes out right when it gets inconvenient.
- Placed extra flashlights throughout the house in strategic “why didn’t I do this sooner” locations.
- Set the Coleman propane travel grill and three bottles of propane in the garage, ready for action if we need emergency waffles or morale‑boosting burgers.
Now, all that’s left is to wait. My weather app says it’ll be bitter cold for days after the snowfall, so I’m fully expecting to be working from home on Monday—preferably in sweatpants, under a blanket, with a hot drink in hand.
Let the snowpocalypse begin.