Prepared for Possible Snow

It might snow later this week. In Memphis, the "might" in that phrase is a pretty big one. Snow only comes to Memphis at most once a year, and we are thrilled if an inch of it stays on the ground an entire afternoon.

Regardless of how much does, or does not, fall, though, we take our snow very seriously!

There is strict protocol all Memphians adhere to when we might get our snow. The first thing we all do is assume that everything will be cancelled and closed the day the snow might come...even if it hasn't come and might not come. Blackberries and iPhones in hand, we begin checking our calendar for the date of the supposed snow event and systematically cancelling everything, just in case.

Once all the cancelling is complete, it's off to the local grocer to buy all the milk, water, and other necessities (soda, frozen pizza, ice cream) we may need during the hours we may spend stuck at home due to the inch of lovely white stuff all over the ground in shady spots.

Finally, anyone not already subscribing to Netflix heads to Blockbuster or finds a Red Box to stock up on all the hottest new releases to get through until conditions improve without too much boredom.

Once all the stores are laid in and preparations made (which may or may not include remembering to cover the outdoor faucets), we incessantly check the forecast to see if the snow is still a possibility or if, once again, it is going to go just north of us.

With the possibility of about an inch of snow coming our way after midnight tomorrow, preparation across Memphis is already well underway. Store parking lots are packed as if it were the day after Thanksgiving, and I have already sent the e-mail reminder to my office staff that we close for snow only if the schools close.

There are lots of things one can say about Memphis and the people who live here, but the one thing that will always be true is that we are definitely interesting!