Slushed

Well, it was a storm of decent size. Respectable snow and snow and snow followed by miserable freezing rain (which brought down a chunk of the tree in our backyard, though tree limbs are down all over the city) followed by rain and rain and rain. We didn’t lose our power, though many did. Most of the city (including our neighbourhood) has buried electrical wires, and that helps a lot. This is the worst combination for a pedestrian city. The snow covers the sewers and creates dams, then it warms up a little and it starts to be freezing rain instead of snow, so then the city puts down salt to melt the ice, plus the snow starts to melt (helped by the salt) and then it changes to rain and then…

Slushorama0302

Slushflood. Not terrible, horrible flooding, but urban flooding that covers every single sidewalk in the city with inches of an icy slurry of slush and water, making getting around really rough. (If there is anyone in the city who has found a way to keep their feet both warm AND dry in this (insert expletive of your choice here), I would be interested in hearing it. All of my winter boots can’t cope with the water, and all of my spring boots (that can handle the water) aren’t warm enough for the slurry of ice.

Snowclearing0312

My neighbour is seen here going up and down the street trying hard (as are many Torontonians) to find the street sewer under the snow and ice and open it so the water can drain before it freezes.

Shovelwater0302

We tried for a good long time. We failed. I shovelled water for long enough to figure out that it was a losing game unless my neighbour could open the sewer, and he couldn’t even find the sewer. All the neighbours out on their porches giving advice, some walking up and down, all with different techniques. Some were listening, some had long sticks for testing the road at intervals and some were convinced that they could remember where it was. (They were wrong.) Someone in this neighbourhood has got to put a damned flag on it in July or something. This happens every winter. I’d call the city and ask them, but in the wake of a storm like that they have bigger fish to fry than our wet sidewalk. Thwarted, I knit on the Bohus instead.

Bohusist0302

It was considerably uplifting. Sort of like my own little sunshine farm. I think I’m almost done the first sleeve. ( I thought I was before, but when I tried it on I was totally deluded. By a lot. Hope is an incredible thing. )

The kids are home today, two of them had a scheduled day off and Sam stayed put because, well….she’s a pedestrian. We’re supposed to get more snow later this afternoon and evening as the temperature drops….and that should be even less entertaining for all parties who failed to find their sewer as that 8 cm /3 inches of water freezes into a spectacular city wide skating rink. (Sam admits that she thinks this will be very, very fun. I have a terrible sense of balance and am less sure.)

Waterside0302

In the interest of producing cheerfulness in the face of the two outside things I hate the most (cold and wet) I am going to bake cookies and eat as much of the batch as it takes to replace lunch and possibly dinner and consider how very, very happy I am that the basement is not currently leaking. Optimism is everything.

(How much longer ’til spring?)

Added later: Apologies for if your comment from earlier is missing. The server (which I loathe with the white hot fury of a thousand suns) is having some sort of seizure – again.

We hates it.

231 thoughts on “Slushed

  1. You may actually be able to view your city’s sewers/catcbasin from either Google/Google Earth’s aerial photo and I’m sure that Toronoto has some sort of online mapping (look for GIS) of their city.
    Good luck!

  2. Good lawd, that looks like a mess. I like your option. I like Sam’s enthusiasm – I picture her finding a stick and punting herself down the sidewalk like a gondolier.

  3. Good lawd, that looks like a mess. I like your option. I like Sam’s enthusiasm – I picture her finding a stick and punting herself down the sidewalk like a gondolier.

  4. Is the drain not in the same place every year? LOL – j/k!! I can relate; we have a small lake at the end of our driveway that I could groom into a skating rink.

  5. I think Sam has the right attitude: bust out the ice skates and enjoy it. Also, baking cookies and using them as meal replacement is a great idea for a snow day! sorry you’re having a slush flood… bu the Bohus looks so cheery!

  6. My feet are soaked too. I had to opt for the road, then dodge the bad drivers by leaping onto the wet and unstable snowbanks…..
    But our power DID return, after 7 hours. So at least I can make a pot of coffee now, and thaw out my feet.

  7. Oh Yeah, I’ve got a bone to pick with a certain ground hog…looks like you’ll be skating to the market;) Bohus is looking beautiful.

  8. *shock*! Well, really.. the way to keep feet warm and dry in all that is to wear a thick pair of wool socks (or two) under the spring water-proof boots. I’m surprised you didn’t think of it yourself! *smile*

  9. Try you husbands spring boots with several layers of sock for clumping about in the mess.

  10. Yipes! Those’re some intense winter weather issues! Perhaps staying indoors is the right choice… We’ve been doing “the ice-rink shuffle” up here for the past few weeks, and I finally fell yesterday 🙁
    Hang in there, spring will come eventually!

  11. Current object of lust is your Guld. You and Guld and the EZ Rib Warmer, not to mention Norma (yet I just did) have awakened in me a long-silent need for warm colors of wool. I must log off, my trigger finger keeps pointing to the WEBS website where I could instantly satisfy this need with some yellow tweed at garage sale prices and Lamb’s Pride…well I won’t go into that…I’m hoping it will still be there when I can actually afford it a little later in the month 🙂

  12. Yipes! Those’re some intense winter weather issues! Perhaps staying indoors is the right choice… We’ve been doing “the ice-rink shuffle” up here for the past few weeks, and I finally fell yesterday 🙁
    Hang in there, spring will come eventually!

  13. I haven’t posted before, but had to for this…I live in Boston, and we had this situation last month. Snow, then rain, then a 20-degree drop in temperature overnight. The sidewalks were ok, but there was 6 inches of standing water in the street. When it froze solid, everyone’s car tires were completely stuck. We were surrounded by the sound of revving engines and spinning tires for days. I agree, can’t wait for spring!

  14. One of my fondest teenage memories was when our city turned into an ice rink. Although school was cancelled my friends were all able to skate over to my house. We were so disappointed when the sanding truck went by.
    The flooding/slush part sounds terrible. Could you put on 4-6 pairs of knitted socks inside your rainboots?

  15. Regarding the cold/wet tootsies: could you get some wellies a half size up then knit & felt yourself a toasty lining? just a thought…

  16. *shock*! Well, really.. the way to keep feet warm and dry in all that is to wear a thick pair of wool socks (or two) under the spring water-proof boots. I’m surprised you didn’t think of it yourself! *smile*

  17. Let the record show that the server gobbled the comments only after several people patiently explained that it gives a false error message and that “refresh”ing usually shows that your comment did indeed post. It knows we’re on to it and is trying to intimidate us into silence. If, heaven forbid, your basement did, um, leak at all, I’d blame it on the server.

  18. Big black rubber irrigation boots (LaCrosse) from a feed store. Get a size larger than you need and wear two or three pairs of wool socks. The boots are even relatively steady on black ice. They come up almost to the knees (marsh boots are thigh high, and they make chest waders too for those BIG storms) and are big enough for jeans and longies to fit inside. You can also get an insulated version. They were great on the chicken farm in Montana, and out here I wear them to the market on super rainy days. Oh, and you can decorate the outsides with nail polish.

  19. To qualify my last comment, a huge part of my job is mapping out the storm/sewer water for my city and aerial photos are extremely important. Also, your city’s engineering or GIS office will easily be able to access that information. They would probably be psyched to get such a call. I would!

  20. Is it wrong that I wish this weather would happen in California? I could totally use a snow-day to stay in and knit my sweater.

  21. I don’t miss the slushflood! I don’t miss the grey and brown of faux spring in Toronto. Of course we have that here too. *makes face*
    My grandma used to make felted inner soles. We’ed have a boots a size bigger and put our feet in the felted booties then the boots (this was handy as we were still growing and could reuse them next year). The felted booties kept us warm and dry….well dryish, after a while you’ed have very hot and sweaty tootsies, unless it was really, really cold. They rocked so hard.

  22. The bohus is beeyootiful!!
    Please do be careful on that ice; I fell off of my back porch last year (3 days before Christmas) and broke my leg below the knee. I am waaaaay too old (42) to do stupid things like that.
    Luckily (for my skeleton) we have had NO snow this year in Virginia. I miss it so much!! I’m from the north and get so sad when there’s no snow!!
    Enjoy your weekend and I can’t wait for your new book to come out!!!!

  23. Oh no, what a mess! I hope y’all stay safe… I’m glad the kids are home and you don’t need to trek out in all of that. I’ll try to send a little Kansas sunshine your way to help the melting!

  24. March sure came in like a LION, but I hear a LAMB baaaa ing or is that all the people that have to go out in this crud ? Enjoy that beautiful sunshine you are working on –eat all the cookies and when it freezes pretend you are on the Ottawa canal and have a grand time .

  25. March sure came in like a LION, but I hear a LAMB baaaa ing or is that all the people that have to go out in this crud ? Enjoy that beautiful sunshine you are working on –eat all the cookies and when it freezes pretend you are on the Ottawa canal and have a grand time .

  26. Trying again. On the dry feet issue,plastic bag between boot and sock, feet stay dry but the boot still gets wet, ugh!
    Just a word or two on the storm, here in NE Minnesota, the piles are 6+ feet deep. We got about 24 inches of snow and wind gusts up to 66 MPH. They closed everything but the hospitals, took the plows off at 6PM and put them back on at about 5AM. No mail, school, busses, malls, or anything else running today. Only, state and county plowtrucks and all the pickups with plows, clearing driveways. Wind and snow warnings until midnight. Good day to sit and watch old movies and knit. At least the power stayed on.

  27. We just had a dumping of icy blowing snow here in Sudbury. I’m counting myself lucky. At least our roads are still driveable. Today was the first official “Snow Day” at school. YIPEE! Four kids under ten trapped at home on mommy’s day off. Lord Help us all.

  28. Insulated Xtra-tuffs — they’ve kept my feet cozy and dry through many Alaska freeze-ups and break-ups. The best part: if 10 years down the road you find yourself with a small hole in the uppers, you can cut them off and you have fabulous xtra-tuff clogs! Nevertheless, it looks like you have a great excuse to stay indoors and knit away.

  29. Coming out of lurkdom to tell you that the best way to keep your feet warm AND dry is to get some of the insulated rubber boots made by Kamik – you can buy them at Canadian Tire for around $45. They are great! My husband introduced them to me and informed me that they were standard footware for those from northern Ontario. They are not very stylish but when slogging though the slush – who cares!

  30. Ugh all that cold water and just more to come.
    I have boots that are warm and water proof. They are called Coleman Dry and I got them at Wal*Mart. Have you tried to go to any sporting goods store or a Bass Pro store. I know that Bass Pro carries really nice boots for hunters and they are warm and dry. Hope that might help you a little.
    Stay in, stay warm and dry.

  31. You’re bringing back more memories of Ottawa with this post. Feb/March thaw/freezes. Walking to university and falling about a gazillion times (give or take) and getting soaked. Ugh. Here on the island we have a snow blizzard today. My crocuses (crocii?) are not happy about it.
    But Bohus is certainly a ray of sunshine!!

  32. My driveway looks a lot like your sidewalk. In fact, two weeks ago our next-door neighbor went ice-skating on it. Once the stuff freezes, may I recommend YakTrax? http://yaktrax.com/products.aspx I have no affiliation with the company, except that three years ago I trained for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer all winter long, walking up to about 15 miles at a time on icy surfaces and did not fall even once (which is a minor miracle in oh-so-many ways).

  33. My driveway looks a lot like your sidewalk. In fact, two weeks ago our next-door neighbor went ice-skating on it. Once the stuff freezes, may I recommend YakTrax? http://yaktrax.com/products.aspx I have no affiliation with the company, except that three years ago I wore these while training for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer all winter long, walking up to about 15 miles at a time on icy surfaces and did not fall even once (which is a minor miracle in oh-so-many ways).

  34. When I lived in New England, we took to calling these (perhaps eloquently, but inelegantly) “snot storms,” a contraction of snow-and-sleet. No matter what you’re wearing, it’s wrong for the weather.
    Can’t your publishers send you on a nice tour of, say, the Caribbean and Mexico? With your entire family as featured players in the travelling show? Or will they think on that, and schedule it for hurricane season?

  35. Excuse the double-post above — I tried to stop the first one so I could edit it, and unfortunately wound up posting twice. Many apologies.

  36. Your comments yesterday bothered me and I have figured out why. Finally.
    I live in a rural area, so “preparing for a storm” does NOT include having multiple stores, health facilities, etc. within a reachable or a walkable distance. Better to be stocked up than trying to figure out how to “make do”.
    And better to stock up BEFORE a storm – when cash registers, which depend on electricity, are still working – than trying to find a store, which is open, after the power goes out. (A couple of winters ago we were without power for over a week, and nearby places went without for weeks longer.)
    Even your stores need to be re-supplied wtih goods. And if the trucks can’t get through …
    From the mess you’ve shown on your streets today, count your blessings that you are not mobility-impaired to begin with. And that you are not likely to fall and break a hip during this. Two reasons which would inspire you to stock up with enough provisions to last until July.

  37. Dear Harlot,
    So sorry for the slush, ice, snow….. We are feeling it, too, here in western New York. A long, long, long winter. The snow melts just enough to get soft, then it gets icey overnight. Nasty, nasty! Your bohus is lovely, though. You will be done before you know it and on to another wonderful project. How’s your spinning coming?
    Maybe some nice yellow/gold/orange (can you say warm) roving would brighten your day! This too shall pass!

  38. Your comments yesterday bothered me and I have figured out why. Finally.
    I live in a rural area, so “preparing for a storm” does NOT include having multiple stores, health facilities, etc. within a reachable or a walkable distance. Better to be stocked up than trying to figure out how to “make do”.
    And better to stock up BEFORE a storm – when cash registers, which depend on electricity, are still working – than trying to find a store, which is open, after the power goes out. (A couple of winters ago we were without power for over a week, and nearby places went without for weeks longer.)
    Even your stores need to be re-supplied wtih goods. And if the trucks can’t get through …
    From the mess you’ve shown on your streets today, count your blessings that you are not mobility-impaired to begin with. And that you are not likely to fall and break a hip during this. Two reasons which would inspire you to stock up with enough provisions to last until July.

  39. To get around in Slush… use a Bicycle! (with fenders! or go slowly to avoid splashing) because you never really touch the ground — so you can’t really get wet! and if you are feeling frisky, put your feet in recycled shopping bags, then into your boots… and voila! dry feet!

  40. Wear 4-5 pairs of handknit wool socks with your rain boots. Or wrap your feet in plastic trash bags and wear your winter boots. Then, continue looking for the storm drains.
    If it is still warm, run to restock chocolate, wine, beer, wool, etc. You should be back before you get sick.

  41. Up north here in Winnipeg our slush is what they call “oatmeal” – it’s grainy and slippy because it’s like walking/driving on ball bearings, as opposed to the icy-slippery you get down there. This is because we have to use dirt/gravel/sand for grip, since it’s too cold for salt to melt the ice, which makes the oatmeal stuff.
    But oatmeal doesn’t close schools, it just makes buses very slow (boo!).

  42. If the earlier comments got eaten before you read them– waterproof boots, felt liners, Siberia.
    Pretty Bohus.

  43. If the earlier comments got eaten before you read them– waterproof boots, felt liners, Siberia.
    Pretty Bohus.

  44. Living in California I don’t get much oppty to just sit and knit due to weather. I envy you.. cookies, knitting… the bohus is lovely. Stay warm — Knit on.

  45. Here in Ottawa, the city marks yellow ‘T’s in the centre of the road which is supposed to be the high point so the bottom points to the drain. Good luck because we’re still in the snowstorm and I’m not certain what’s going to happen next.
    Your sweater is super.

  46. Yaktrax are great, they are like chains or cables for your shoes. However, for deep solid ice, you may need something even more grippy. You have two options (that I know of). The cheapest way to go is to put little lug bolts through the outside sole of some old boots. I haven’t done it myself, but my friend from Alaska swears by it. Another option is crampons. They are more like studded tires. They have pointy little metal teeth for gripping the ice. There are all sorts, from simple ones for sneakers, to bigger more rugged and spiky ones for hiking on ice and glaciers, to scary medieval looking ones for ice climbing. You might try a sporting gear shop for the first type, a hiking/backpacking shop or Campmor, the mail order catalog, for the second type. Since you probably don’t need to do any vertical climbing, don’t worry about the third type.
    Julia

  47. We’re having a “Lake Effect Event” after our storm. We’re expecting another foot to 18 inches. Yippee. Fortunately, we know how to deal with snow here. Our plow guy has been thru 3 times today.

  48. Yaktrax are great, they are like chains or cables for your shoes. However, for deep solid ice, you may need something even more grippy. You have two options (that I know of). The cheapest way to go is to put little lug bolts through the outside sole of some old boots. I haven’t done it myself, but my friend from Alaska swears by it. Another option is crampons. They are more like studded tires. They have pointy little metal teeth for gripping the ice. There are all sorts, from simple ones for sneakers, to bigger more rugged and spiky ones for hiking on ice and glaciers, to scary medieval looking ones for ice climbing. You might try a sporting gear shop for the first type, a hiking/backpacking shop or Campmor, the mail order catalog, for the second type. Since you probably don’t need to do any vertical climbing, don’t worry about the third type.
    Julia

  49. Just a suggestion, however, I don’t know if it will be enough to keep the slushflood out of your feet but we use beeswax for our riding boots and farm boots(bought in the shoe section) to waterproof our boots. It works here in the midwest – especially thru wet/muddy areas and creeks etc.

  50. We’re having a “Lake Effect Event” after our storm. We’re expecting another foot to 18 inches. Yippee. Fortunately, we know how to deal with snow here. Our plow guy has been thru 3 times today.

  51. Oh yeah – we just had the same thing happen last week, only since we weren’t home until after dark (drat the worky-works), we missed our shot at draining the water/slush/mess away before the temps plummeted into the teens (farenheit), and then we ran out of salt and there was none to be had apparently anywhere in the city. That was fun times.
    I used my snowboots (the ones i use for the snowshoes and the winter hiking) paired with extry-thick, handspun, handknit wool socks for about three days, and that seemed to work out just fine for keep the feet both warm AND dry. Sure, I looked like an ASS clomping around in the snowboots, but what the hell, at least I could see my feet again w/o having to bend over. 🙂

  52. Have you considered stilts? With spikes? Ok, it’s ridiculous but so is this freakin’ weather. As of 3 minutes ago, it has started snowing again just west of you in Milton. I can barely see the house across the street. Consider me your advance warning system.

  53. I hate your server, too. I’d say you’ve given your ISP every chance, Steph, you might try another who doesn’t underestimate the size of your readership after you tell them the size of your readership.

  54. I recommend the Adirondack Boot from Ugg. Warm and dry even in freezing slush. We get that too here in Chicago, and since at the moment I’m looking out the window at snow that is falling horizontally (yes) and very fast, it looks like more slush ahead. Knitting will be delicious tonight!

  55. I hate your server, too. I’d say you’ve given your ISP every chance, Steph, you might try another who doesn’t underestimate the size of your readership after you tell them the size of your readership.

  56. I hate your server, too. I’d say you’ve given your ISP every chance, Steph, you might try another who doesn’t underestimate the size of your readership after you tell them the size of your readership.

  57. I cannot believe you actually posted that your basement is not leaking. Tell me that you knocked on wood as you typed it! If you think the knitting goddess is vengeful, you do not want to meet the basement god – pretty dang nasty in my sadder-but-wiser personal experience.

  58. Wow!! What a cool pic of Bohus. The light is really fabulous in that shot. I should also ammend my previous comments: it DOES indeed look like sunshine. Very springy from my monitor perspective. I also adore the Tolkien reference. Poor Gollum! So misunderstood, so necessary. I am now officially one week past my due date. Your posts have been really helpful in cheering my otherwise crankier and crankier mood. Thanks a million!!!!

  59. I agree with Sam on the ice thing. Big sheets of ice can be slid upon (in the car this is more iffy, but on foot it’s fine) I have issues when there’s ice and dry ground… slide, slide, slide… crashing halt on the pavement.
    Of course since I live in New England and we haven’t had any frelling winter this year… I am crabby.

  60. Boots? I finally invested in a pair of North Face “Greenland” (zip up) boots.
    LOVE. THEM.
    I trek several blocks to work every day, and have to park in a riverfront lot that is rarely plowed in a city that gets snow/slush/ice. I’m glad I bite the bullet and bought these bad boys.
    You can get them a bit cheaper on Zappos.com

  61. Bohus is gorgeous! Much more lovely than the heavy snow outside today. And certainly more lovely than the slushy stuff you have. I’m off to shovel out the driveway of its 12+ inches of snow. 🙁
    I’m thinking dry thoughts for you.

  62. Looking at your comments, it seems quite a few are being posted twice.
    Just wanted to say you make me very happy to be living in North Carolina. You can feel sorry for me when the temps in the 90sF and the humidity is 85%. Our storms are hurricanes and the TV guys freak out telling us to prepare. My thoughts are the same as yours, batteries, water, etc and plenty of knitting!

  63. I tried (and failed miserably) to dodge all the ankle-deep slush puddles on my walk this morning…Bless your neighbour with the shovel! So many of the snowdrifts are now just dams keeping the water from running away. I am praying for a VERY windy day today or tomorrow to blow away the moisture!
    I think your cookie-baking plan is so good I might have to do that too. Excellent notion.

  64. Here’s a quick, easy cross country ski trick. Put on a thin pair of socks, a baggie (like a Ziplock) another pair of socks, then your boots. Your feet will stay both warm and dry. It works for motorcyle riding in the rain too. You can cut off that zipper part if you like. It’s cheap, the stuff you need is easily available, and it’s easy.

  65. Hey I’m in the first 100! I have a pair of rubber boots that reach almost to my knees that I originally bought for (get this) sailing. I wore them once and realized that if I fell into the drink I’d sink quicker than I could get them off, but they are great for shoveling slush. Cookies sound good. I made veggie black bean chili. If someone contributes a salad we can have an internet pot-luck:>]

  66. Hey I’m in the first 100! I have a pair of rubber boots that reach almost to my knees that I originally bought for (get this) sailing. I wore them once and realized that if I fell into the drink I’d sink quicker than I could get them off, but they are great for shoveling slush. Cookies sound good. I made veggie black bean chili. If someone contributes a salad we can have an internet pot-luck:>]

  67. You could always wear big boots that can cope with the water and pair them with very very warm thick socks. I’m sure a knitter as fast as you could even make enough for your whole family!
    -Sarah

  68. I knew that living with heavy (or real, rather) weather, had its challanges, but I really had no idea. I’ve grew up with tropical weather and now live in San Francisco, which is temperate-lite. We’re talking big news day when the barometer dips. When I’ve been to NY in the winter, I learned quickly to look down before crossing the street or else risk a boot full o’ slush – but a whole sidewalk? And then freezing? Sheets of iced sidewalk? You have the right idea, stay inside and knit that bohus!

  69. Stephanie:
    Have you tried boots called Sorrels? They come with liners – that’s more than one set, so you can exchange them when they get wet. The ski area folk I knew used to swear by them – and they were out in the stuff all day long.

  70. When I was growing up in Vancouver, we’d get days and days of downpours. The sky would open up and it was the Ocean was in the sky for a few days… Of course, at that time it was also autumn and there were fallen leaves everywhere. So many washed away to the sewer – plugging up the sewer making swimming pools out of sidewalks. My sister and I would fold up paper boats and run up to the top of the hill and drop them down the side of the road. Running with them down the stream towards the plugged sewers. By the end of the soggy fun, we’d take the soggy boats home and then bring out our brother’s hockey sticks and unplug the leaves from the sewer. At least in the rain, we could find the sewer. It was where the mounds of brown leaves were.
    It (hopefully) shouldn’t last much longer. Isn’t that what the groundhog said?
    Lookin’ forward to June. I just got my ticket yesterday for your talk in Victoria. Yay!!!!!

  71. You need some sort of wetsuit-type socks. Keeps you dry(-ish) and warm even when cold and wet outside. Neoprene yarn, anyone?
    Alternatively, you could travel the world in winter. Imagine leaving the grey slush behind and doing a bookbookbookbookbook tour in, ooooh, say, perhaps New Zealand?
    Just a thought. Now. I’m off to the beach with the kids. Must remember to pack the sunscreen…

  72. We are not in the same slushy boat as some, but March 1st it snowed 6-8 inches here. The weather channel kept claiming “little or no accumulation” in our area. HA! FREAKING HA! Yesterday and today very cold. 1 degree (F) over night and warming up to a whole 17 today.
    I am thinking about Ground Hog stew for a nice warm winter meal!
    The sweater is so beautiful though, that has just got to warm your day.
    Oh, and your server has a bad case of hiccups!

  73. My street in Leaside looks like your street — water and slush and very wet snow mounds everywhere… Best best BEST boots for my skinny cold feet have been Kamiks, made in Montreal. They come up waaay over my ankels with a zipper up the front and my feet have never been cold or wet; last night I was shovelling in the gale of wind and this morning I was pushing water and slush. Nary a leak or breeze. Happy knitting!

  74. We do indeed hates it when the server seizes.
    We hates it a lot.
    Good luck finding the storm drain. We recently had a similar experience (but including water in the basement) and had to go clear the storm drain of all of the icy slush covering it. Including when the snowplough totally blocked it. Repeatedly.
    Enjoy the cookies.

  75. Living in the South, I thought your photos of skating on the Rideau Canal were just fairyland. Looked like so much fun. Now this is the price you have to pay? Yuchhhh! I have absolutely no advice to give you on warm, waterproof boots, but you did get a lot of suggestions. Suppose you need them for the whole family.

  76. The rubber boots/woolies works great – see pic at http://yarnaholicinto.blogspot.com/. I had to shovel myself out today from the lovely Toronto city workers who plowed me in and since my evil teenage daughter stole my boots, these worked. Who wouldda thunk???
    Well the March – she came in like a lion, so I guess that means she’s leaving like a lamb…how appropriate. 🙂 Tania

  77. I once gave a bag of wool roving to the local Boy Scouts to stuff down their shoes for their 50 mile hikes to ward off blisters. I’m suddenly thinking, warmth, and hey, that’s one way to felt the stuff down, and…I don’t suppose you’d have any spare wool fiber around your house? Nah….

  78. Could you buy boots like your Spring ones, only a size larger, then wear two or more pairs of wool socks inside of them for warmth? That looks really, really cold and unpleasant.

  79. Well, they’re not “fashionable” in any way, but I’ve been wearing Sorel boots for years – they keep you warm and dry, but they aren’t cheap! I guess you can buy online now, as well as stores. Here’s the URL: http://www.sorel.com/ (no affiliation, just have used their product for years). Cabela’s carries them as well as other top line stuff for hunters, so that might be another place to look – don’t know if you have those in Canada….
    And once that water turns to ice? Put on your skates – it looked like you did well skating with the family not long ago!

  80. OK, maybe I’ll ramp down on my complaining about the 38 degrees below zero we’ve been having for almost two weeks. (OK, that’s -38F and -39C, and for those of you who didn’t know, Fahrenheit & Celsius meet at -40.) Because at least if I decide to step outside, my feet won’t get all soaking wet, and I’m not in danger of drowning in the deep but very dry snow drifts we have here.
    That Bohus really is a burst of sunshine – just looking at pictures of it warms me up.

  81. OK, maybe I’ll ramp down on my complaining about the 38 degrees below zero we’ve been having for almost two weeks. (OK, that’s -38F and -39C, and for those of you who didn’t know, Fahrenheit & Celsius meet at -40.) Because at least if I decide to step outside, my feet won’t get all soaking wet, and I’m not in danger of drowning in the deep but very dry snow drifts we have here.
    That Bohus really is a burst of sunshine – just looking at pictures of it warms me up.

  82. Please try to find boots made in Canada. We all need to improve our own economy and promote Canadian businesses. I saw one reader suggesting Kamik, which, last time I checked were Canadian. I have some fabulous waterproof leather boots from Montreal. I always used to try to get my knitwear (eg sweatshirts and t-shirts) from Tiger Brand in Cambridge, a lovely old knitting mill that used to make clothing for Beaver Canoe, Roots, Eddie Bauer, etc. that has since been bought by a foreign interest and gone offshore. We need to buy Canadian whenever we can (and can afford it, since it’s bound to cost more at times) to keep Wal-Mart and its ilk from swallowing us whole.

  83. baking cookies – the answer to almost everything that goes wrong, and now my 16 year old knows when to get them started, so I just have to think “hmmm cookies might be needed” and low and behold they’re done!
    I’ve started a webring for knit bloggers with teenagers, that way we get a laugh from others also living in this fascinating world.

  84. Too funny to log in and read this after just having the smart idea to try to walk out on the lake to get a photo of an ice castle and sinking through the 5 inches of snow into the 3 inches of slush underneath. Gaaaahhhh! Good thing I was less than 5 minutes from home. My feet are now wrapped in a towel and as soon as they are warm, I second you on the cookie baking!

  85. Footwear can be tricky – I don’t sell them and get no credit for this, but here is my favorite boot in the world. Merrell makes great shoes but this is the only one I’ve ever found that kept my feet completely dry and oh, so warm.
    http://www.merrellboot.com/Shop/Detail.aspx?NavID=FT-TM-BOT&PID=8220
    It’s the Merrell Tundra Waterproof and of course, it’s the men’s version (just go down about 2 sizes for women)

  86. I second the Sorel recommendation. I used to work in wilderness camps (for youth-at-risk) and they were the best in the winter for keeping warm and dry. You can buy different liners for different temperatures as well. If I recall correctly, one even had some sort of heat-reflective material in between the layers of wool felt. Good luck. I’ve always disliked slush – the definite downside of snow.

  87. Hi–I’m from Alaska (born there-lived there until about age 38–only member of my family to live “outside” in the “lower 48” and a 3rd generation Alaskan) so grew up with the weather descriptions you describe–but you are the first writer I have found who can make winter weather sound so interesting and fun! (living in California now –I actually miss winter weather) Seriously, your descriptions are so entertaining! My grandmother (in Juneau, Alaska) had these boots with (short) metal spikes (teeth?) in the soles–so she could get around on the ice in her later years….I have no idea where she got them–they were insulated boots, also. I saw you are going to Anchorage this spring–a good place to shop for winter boots! and cold weather gear–ask folks there what they wear on their feet in the icey slush? maybe you will find the perfect boots…here in California our daffodils and camelias are blooming 😉 and cold is 40 degrees.

  88. Oh no, I am so sorry to hear that you are having such troubles with hosting. 🙁 Isn’t there a 97-day moneyback guarantee or something???

  89. Well I for one am glad to be stuck indoors today. Why? Well many reasons. First of all it’s my birthday and I get to do whatever I want – if it doesn’t entail permanent damage to myself or the house. I managed to escape from Toronto yesterday morning and arrived home in Elora just in the nick of time.
    I had been away from home since January 31st – vacation in Victoria so waiting for me were 2 large parcels from the BeeHive knitting shop in Victoria. Having just finished my first knitting project, a muffler, it feels so good to have a stash. And it’s over $300.00 of lovely yarns, bamboo needles and a few patterns. Nothing like being an optimist when you’ve hit 64 and learning a new skill.
    My mentors are 2 daughters, who began knitting last year and are well into the sock stage, and a world-famous harlot to instill creative urges in this older brain.
    So, keep warm and dry – spring is on the way.
    Hugs. Susan

  90. Sorry you’re stuck in slush. I had to come into work today for a meeting that didn’t happen. *sigh*
    A while ago I looked at your ‘Where’s Harlot’ link and saw that you were going to be in Massachusetts in April.
    I look now, and I don’t see it listed. Is your schedule changing, or was my brain swiss cheese and I looked at a list for last year?
    Thanks!

  91. I second the Sorel recommendation. I used to work in wilderness camps (for youth-at-risk) and they were the best in the winter for keeping warm and dry. You can buy different liners for different temperatures as well. If I recall correctly, one even had some sort of heat-reflective material in between the layers of wool felt. Good luck. I’ve always disliked slush – the definite downside of snow.

  92. To get around in Slush… use a Bicycle! (with fenders! or go slowly to avoid splashing) because you never really touch the ground — so you can’t really get wet! and if you are feeling frisky, put your feet in recycled shopping bags, then into your boots… and voila! dry feet!

  93. Hello from the Canadian living in North Dakota. If it mkaes you fell better we are also covered with snow and ice. Our lovely bonus is so much wind that even were I to go out and shovel the driveway an hour later it would look the same again! Cookies sound like a very good idea!

  94. I use waterproof hiking boots for walking around in slush floods. If the puddles are really deep, gaitors are helpful. But some of the other options people have put forward are a lot cheaper.

  95. Good job we don’t have (very often) that type of weather in England. The country would grind to a halt!

  96. I don’t know what’s worse…your skating rink or the three feet of snow I’ve been shovelling off of my much to large driveway here in Minnesota. Good luck!

  97. NOW will you think about moving to Texas?!
    Really, we aren’t all rednecks, and the weather is so lovely this time of year…the first redbuds are blooming already….

  98. Philadelphia had that last weekend. Snow, then freezing rain, then just rain. Makes it real fun to navigate the sidewalks on the way to work. We still have snow on the ground, but it poured rain last night and now the sun is out and it’s in the high 50s. Crazy spring weather.
    What about spring boots with wool socks to keep warm?

  99. Hiking boots and socks. I don’t even bother with dress boots anymore, unless I’m out for the evening. I wear hiking boots with Goretex and waterproofing and a nice fluffy pair of wicked hicking socks in snow and rain. My feet are never wet.
    Spring is officially March 21st. Unofficially, I think the groundhog is planning to ambush us, possibly with 3 feet of snow around early April. I won’t be convinced it’s spring until Memorial Day.
    And what is it with the computers? Your server, livejournal, yahoo groups – they’ve all gone haywire . . .

  100. I don’t live in a city, so I know I don’t walk as much as you, but for our slush problems here, I wear galoshes (tall ones that are big on me) and a couple of pairs of really thick socks for the warmth.

  101. I have always wondered why American cities didn’t bury the electrical lines. It looks so ugly and primitive to see them all up there, and they are such a hazard.
    Good luck with slushoveling, and with the server. (Damn Mercury and his cursed retrograde!)

  102. You live in that part of Toronto? That is, I think I recognize something in the last photo. Tres Cool.
    That’s my favourite part of the city. I try to visit a certain bookstore near there every time I’m in.
    Okay…. a certain 3 bookstores. Books are good.
    Anyway, yup, the aftermath is fun. Our backyard is literally covered in tree branches that fell.
    I’m baking cookies too. I just finished cleaning out the batter bowl (almost as good as the cookies themselves). 🙂
    Karen

  103. Can’t comment on the weather, you’ll all hate me. Meanwhile, Bohus g-o-o-o-o-o-d!

  104. I was just reading your archived post of January 2004.
    Did you ever think it would come to this? Thanks for urging me become a better knitter who hopes someday to be a Knitter. Your writing makes me be brave. Not yet unafraid, but braver. I actually bought 3,000+ yards of 100% silk just because I know that I can and will be able at some poit to make something out of it. (OK I had to have it, even if I never do anything but fondle it))
    Best wishes on the new book and launch. Can’t wait to add it to my collection!
    Katrina

  105. DH has been really surly and craptastic lately with all the downtime. It’s stretched across a number of their servers. Alas, I think this is another example of a host that sells mass storage and bandwidth, but doesn’t quite have the hardware to back up the claims. Buttheads.
    Hey, if it does freeze, maybe your ice skates will keep your feet both warm AND dry?

  106. We are awaiting the arrival of that same storm as it makes its way east. I don’t mind. The storm held off during the day today and the weather had calmed enough in toronto for Team Nova Scotia, which includes my fourth son, to fly in and out and their way from here to the Canada Winter Games in Whitehorse.

  107. Hi, Steph, have you tried thinsulate-lined Maine Hunting Shoes from LL Bean? I have them, and my feet stay warm and dry in water that’s almost ankle-deep.

  108. Here in Montréal it’s still snowing hard and there doesn’t seem like we’ll have any flash slush floods. As for the boots you need, I’ve got exactly what you need. My mom got them at Canadian Tire (where else?) and they are rubber rain boots with thick, comfortable and warm felt inside. I’m always stealing them.

  109. I vote for spring boots with two or three pairs of wool socks underneath for warmth.
    As for the slushy slip & slide, are any of those downed tree limbs big enough for a walking stick? I have a wooden cane with a pointy metal tip I use when I have to walk in slush or snow. When I slip, I just jam it down into the ice and hang on.

  110. It’s nowhere near as cold here in California Bay Area (in winter, I mean). Generally, winter means rain. And it’s on the colder side. Keeping feet warm and dry is an ongoing battle. I always find the only parking space in the middle of a huge puddle as I’m out and about working. Grrr.
    And never a sign of a city wide ice rink!

  111. For warm and dry feet, I rely on Crocs boots (lightweight, comfy and totally waterproof) in a size or two too large, with — as mentioned — nice thick wool socks underneath. Blissfully warm and dry.
    The Bohus is beautiful — truly a ring of sunlight around your shoulders.

  112. Well, crap, dare I even try to leave a comment?
    The Bohus indeed looks like dazzling sunshine coming through rain/snow clouds….stunning.
    I hope Joe is able to get home soon (if he’s not there already) and glad the basement isn’t leaking.
    Mmmm, cookies…sounds good to me.

  113. I second Muck Boots. I have Brit Riders which aren’t even specifically for cold weather and they are amazing for Winters in the Pacific Northwest.
    For Toronto, I’d think a light duty pair for above 0 temps and an Arctic pair for the really cold weather.

  114. Re boots: Go to a farm supply store and buy manure boots and wear them with your thickest, warmest wool socks. These boots are tough!
    BTW, I hate your server, too. I tried posting earlier and your server kept timing out. Time to change closets!

  115. Oh those slushy storms are so annoying…you never can go anywhere but half the time places expect you still to go. Oh well. They’re a fact of life, aren’t they?

  116. Great weather, isn’t it?! (I’m kidding) I’m not making cookies but have opted for other comfort food: Salisbury steak and mashed potatoes with corn on the side.
    The Bohus is beautiful and looks perfect for this time of year.

  117. LLBean’s Stormchaser Insulated Boots (rated for -20 degrees F) and some lovely handknit socks aught to fix you right up. Think bright, your Rockin’ Sock package should be arriving soon if it’s not already there.

  118. as a fellow northerner (Alaskan), i would suggest bunny boots. if you haven’t heard of them, they are AWESOME. military surplus and developed for northern climes, they are unbeatable for warmth and completely waterproof. the only hitch is that they’re white (unless you can find the elusive black ones), making your feet look like huge bunny feet! but oh so warm and dry bunny feet. mine keep my feet happy at -50F – very niiiiiiice. i’d be happy to send a picture if you need to see them!

  119. I sometimes feel very sad that we only wear flipflops in our family…and that here in Arizona even our nice wool handknit socks don’t see much action. But then I realize that there are people who must have “Winter Boots” and “Spring Boots”. Even multiple pairs of each, allowing the others to dry out and/or warm up between wearing. Thank you, Yarn Harlot, for taking away the sad.

  120. I have been having good luck with a pair of rubber garden wellies my friend mailed me from England in a size larger than I usually wear, with several pairs of wool socks inside. I know our winter (Utah) is not as bad as yours, but snow and slush are the same temperature everywhere. It was astonishing the first time I stepped into gutter slush up to mid-calf and my feet felt fine. Obviously this would not work for a long period of time, but it gets me through snow blowing, getting the mail, and walking the dog. Can Canadians buy rubber garden wellies at your local store?

  121. LL Bean boots? The thinsulate or sheepskin lined ones? What a mess! Syracuse was a bit like that, lots o’ snow and slush. Augusta isn’t so much. Stays cold, though not as cold as you had! Glad you have a sunshine farm, love those autumny sunny colors!

  122. Noon time in California, I was on a conference call with my co-workers in Toronto. I’m not sure what highrise building they are in but you could hear the emergency annoucements telling them to stay indoors because of the huge chunks of ice falling from the top of the building. One of the chunks broke a window in a taxi.
    I don’t envy you the weather, although I do covet you Bohus and I don’t even wear yellow.

  123. We got that same messy storm in NH. Unfortunatly, our sewers aren’t in the road.. they are on the side of the road… on the other side of the sidwalk .. burried under the snowbanks the plows have created. We don’t see our sewer until spring. As a pedestrian who has to walk to work (school at the end of the road).. I hate these kind of storms. Sounds like you had a good idea with the cookies. I thought of cookies but my arms were to sore from shoveling to consider baking.

  124. LL Bean has had a good reputation for decades.
    The felt innersoles need to be half an inch thick or maybe more (it’s been a while since I’ve seen them). They insulate you from the cold ground/floor. Then you wear the wool socks to protect the sides and tops of your feet. Layering the socks with a plastic bag is a good idea too.
    I used to wear “moon boots” in the 1970s; they were very thick but that thick impervious foam was great insulation and didn’t weigh much. I wish I could still get them. Is that what “bunny boots” are?
    For actual shoveling, I find a loose hood lets me adjust the airflow while keeping my ears warm and the snow off my neck. Mine is cloth but I think a nice lined Fair Isle one might be a good project.

  125. We got that same messy storm in NH. Unfortunatly, our sewers aren’t in the road.. they are on the side of the road… on the other side of the sidwalk .. burried under the snowbanks the plows have created. We don’t see our sewer until spring. As a pedestrian who has to walk to work (school at the end of the road).. I hate these kind of storms. Sounds like you had a good idea with the cookies. I thought of cookies but my arms were to sore from shoveling to consider baking.

  126. I was very, very witty in the comment that was swallowed!
    Just thought I’d see what else was goin on in TO when I saw on the news that sheets of ice as big as cars are dropping off the CN tower. I don’t miss Toronto right now.
    Good thing you don’t live down there!

  127. We had something like that (albeit less severe) a couple of weeks ago. A couple inches of snow, then sleet, then rain. And it sat like that for a few days, because our lovely mayor didn’t feel the need to plow the streets thoroughly (how he decided that New York freakin’ City didn’t need to be plowed is beyond me). And then a big thaw hit, and right when I was laying in my bed thinking “Well, it will be nice to have warm weather,” that’s when my roof started leaking. I thought I was safe in my second floor apartment, but I guess not.
    Hope things go better for you and your clan.

  128. This might be suggesting the obvious, but don’t you have wonderful wool socks to wear under your rainboots? Worked well for me today.
    :o)

  129. Stephanie, I am all the way down in Albany,NY and we had the same exact weather today and the same problems.
    I came home and took a 2 hour nap.

  130. Yuck! Slush. We had freezing rain here in Michigan, yesterday…..all day. Thunder and lightning (that was cool). This morning, we woke to snow. All over the frozen rain….we needed ice skates. Cars were every which-way in the roads. I love winter, but I am looking forward to SPRING! How about you???
    So, yesterday, I finished my first pair of wool socks…and then I started my second pair right away. Socks are awesome…although I’m not sure how you could knit so many green socks….socks are fun, but as I was knitting my first pair, all I could think of is the beautiful yarn I was going to purchase to start my second pair…and it was totally different than the first.
    Well, good luck with all that water….I will say a prayer to the basement god that it stays OUT of your basement.

  131. Another vote for the black rubber LaCrosse feed store boots, what we call Marsh Boots. I have limited experience with the Great Lakes Deep Freeze and hardcore ice and blizzards and all that, but here in Louisiana we know ALL about cold and WET! Buy half a size up, with two pair of wool socks and either neoprene insoles or felt insoles made from rescued thrift-store sweaters. You can stand in half-frozen knee-deep mud all day and be toasty!

  132. Yet again one of the many things that ziploc (or recycled grocery store bags) are good for. Before leaving you put your foot in said bag, then shoes. Remember to bring a pair of extra shoes for your destination if your staying a while so your baged feet don’t sweat to death. Then when leaving back into the bags until you get home!

  133. You sure know how to handle a difficult situation! We living at practically the other end of the world are melting. Either good luck with the ice capades or have a great skate day! Will you savor this knit until next season? Or will you wear it as soon as it’s done? What are your thoughts on THAT special knit that we sometimes make?

  134. The solution for your city: PLOWING. Perhaps spelled ploughing in Canada. It’s the only way to get the stuff off the roads before it turns to rivers of slush.

  135. I am so sorry you are having trouble with the e-mail corrector. They are particularly lacking in constructive things to do, or for that matter, a Life.
    I too am currently going through a love fest with EZ. Such an encouraging knitter.
    As a Michigander I can empathize with your weather situation.
    Pamela

  136. Several things.
    One, my experience with Dreamhost is thus: You have to stick up for yourself. My site was having crazy troubles, but my friend/tech guy told them we needed the site switched to a more stable/generally better server. After they switched it(more than a year ago) I’ve had no troubles. None.
    I have winter boots that keep out water and cold. LLBean. Yeah. They’re also light, and great at keeping balance(I have the whole falling down issue, too) I live around Buffalo, which, weather-wise, is Toronto. Just in the US. (Note: I’m a huge fan of Canada. Given half a chance, I’d move there. GBS, Stan Rogers, SCTV…yep)

  137. Well, since over half my friends down in NYC area have flooded basements I will say there are worse things than slush.
    And Sorrells – formerly cdn, bought out several years ago, I find they are still much better in terms of water-proofing than the llbean stuff. But if you go way north to shop you have to explain that you are talking about spring snow in their terms.
    Anyways, your sweater looks warm and sunshiney!

  138. I am only going to say one thing about this weather. Remember that old saying: If March comes in like a LION, it goes out like a LAMB. But if it comes in like a LAMB…! So I am okay with it being yucky at the beginning if it means it is going to be nice at the end! I always hold my breathe right about now, hoping it’s very liony and not lamby and hoping that the old adage holds true…

  139. Now that is what winter generally looks like here on the West Coast.
    I love your manner of coping – eating as many cookies as can replace your meals. I love it!

  140. I think when it’s clear again you could, perhaps, take a lovely picture of the drain with a map and post it on this here blog. Then you and us will be able to find it during the next coming of the great white sea.
    just a thought….
    Love and Laughter,
    Amy

  141. Well… I guess if all else fails, search for the manhole in a grid pattern. Just have people stand across the road shoulder to shoulder and start from one end and go to the other. Less efficient but more likely to succeed.

  142. I feel sympathy, and I hope things get better, and that you find some good boots, and stay warm.
    I also hope you don’t hate me too much for saying that today, my co-workers and I had a picnic lunch on the grass outside because the day was so beautiful.

  143. We moved years ago from Denver, Colorado to Portland, Oregon. When our Rocky Mtn friends ask how we cope with the rain, our answer has always been, “Well, at least we don’t have to shovel it.” I guess we have to come up with a new answer now. Maybe you could wear a couple of layers of plastic bags over your warmest shoes? Not so fetching, I know.

  144. Your Bohus sweater is just glowing. It is so nice to be able to read your blog again. Your water and slush shall soon pass, and soon we’ll be seeing pictures of your daffodils blooming.
    We just had our electricity returned after 6.5 days, due to at least 500 miles of downed power lines and poles in our area. OMG, it was wonderful. I was busy doing the happy dance. I would turn the lights on, then off, then on…the cats were hiding and the dogs thought it was some new game. I think I flushed the toilet about five times, just to watch the tank fill up on its own. I can’t wait to use the washing machine.
    Wanda

  145. Um. You ARE kidding on the feet thing, right? You, Queen of the HandKnit Wool Sock? You, who are working with ANGORA in your hands?
    Come on, Steph! Live dangerously and whip up a set of felted wool/angora liners for those spring boots!
    Or, just follow all the great ideas and buy waterproof AND insulated boots…. 🙂 🙂
    Of course, if you were going to just ‘whip up’ a set of liners, you should have started at Christmas… 🙂 🙂 🙂
    Just teasin’ ya, because I’m jealous of your Bohus. Sunshine on your lap–how much better does it get?

  146. I feel your pain. I’m incredibly cold sensitive and I hate having wet feet.
    I don’t want to hijack your blog with a plug for a business, but if you Google “Celtic Sheepskin Company”, they do waterproof ugg boots which are very warm. I think they call it their “Acqua Boot”.
    – Pam (I know you’re vegetarian, so I’m not sure how you feel about sheepskin. I’m sorry if I offended you.)

  147. Snow … I can’t help thinking how nice it would be (don’t hit me!!). Down under in Melbourne, we’ve only had 2 or 3 days under 30 degrees celcius in the last 3 weeks! Roll on Winter!!
    By the way, Bohus is AWESOME – knitting an entire jumper in 4ply would drive me bananas *lol*

  148. Hi Rachel H. I was swimming in the ocean today. It’s very hot. Aloe vera gel is my friend. I’m knitting with Jo sharp silk road,jackets for my twin nieces.
    G’day mates.

  149. Stephanie, you give my addled 20-year-old brain new aspirations in life: to knit, write about knitting, entertain other knitters, and drink beer (and swear occasionally) while knitting. Forget vet school; my future is with yarn.

  150. From Brett Anderson, one of your countrymen, who says it all: “Parts of southwestern Ontario had close to 10 hours of freezing rain. That cannot be good.”

  151. For once, I’m not complaining about the weather in Virginia. It’s a beautiful, warmish morning…the narcissus are blooming and I can almost sit on the back porch with my spinning (if you can call it that!). It’s clearly never going to snow here again, so spring may as well come on in. Not to rub your face in it, of course 🙂
    Patience, all Northerners. Spring is on it’s way to you, too! In the meantime, your Bohus is so lovely, Steph!

  152. The sweater is phenomenally beautiful!
    Best boot I’ve found for our weather are Sorels-rubber until about ankle-high then warm waerproof fabric of some kind, and good grippy soles.( I got mine in BWV somewhere ).
    Best advice I ever received on walking on ice– spread your toes! Yes, I know they are inside your boots and it doesn’t make sense, but really, it works! (…until your toes cramp.)
    We have an elderly neighbour who clears a lot of our sidewalks for us–my is always done by the time I get up at 6:45 a.m.! He also clears a channel along the edge of the sidewalk for the whole block so the water can drain.
    I love winter, but I’m looking forward to spring so someone can come and fix my roof to stop all this stuff from coming into my home via my ceiling.:(

  153. Well the street is not your roof 😉 A few weeks ago that nor’easter did a number to us, and the flat roof of our sunroom did not take it well with 3 feet of snow on top of it, with an inch of water below. The pictures you show of shoveling water and slush was me for 2 days trying to clear the sunroom roof and stop the constant steady stream of water that was running down inside of it!
    stay warm – pray for sunshine (and a path to the sewer drain!)

  154. yet in the midst of it all…. your sweater is a beautiful thing. and remember, a thing of beauty is a joy forever!

  155. Good luck with the storm- we had a similar (although less intense) slushy mess down here in Massachusetts. The snow on either side of the cleared sidewalks were trapping four inches of water in between them… that was a pain to clear up!
    Your sweater looks beautiful. Can’t wait to see it FO’ed.

  156. Shame that they can’t plough your road any faster. The whole “three days after it snows” doesn’t do much good when you need to look for the catch basin markings the day after it snows. Although I noticed that you didn’t mention those. Do you have them in your part of the city? Out in North York (the Don Mills area at least) we have little markings (I’ve always thought that they looked like cacti) pointing to the catch basins, my mom uses those to know where to dig when she needs to drain the road.
    As for boots – I know a lot of people have been suggesting Sorrels. My family used to get those every year for my sister & myself when we were kids, but the outlet in K-W (we used to get seconds all the time) closed. I found myself missing boots that were partially waterproof, really high, and extremely warm. I went to MEC and got their Baffin winter boots. They’re waterproof on the bottom (around 7 or 8 cm, taking into account the height of the treads) and they have removable liners. My only real problem with them is that they’re too warm – they’re rated for -35 if you’re moving around, and Southern Ontario rarely gets cold enough to justify that. (Well that and they don’t lace up, so mine are too big because I have funny shaped feet so needed to get boots that were too large.) I have the mens boots (the funny shaped feet again), but the MEC website says that the women’s boots are on sale at the moment. And, as a bonus, they’re Canadian made.
    Good luck with the ice

  157. We have slushflood right now here in Maine. At least, last night we had slushflood. This morning we have frozen slushflood. I think my car is frozen to the driveway…

  158. Have you tried LL Bean boots – they are great warm and waterproof I love them and have had the same pair for 3 years

  159. YIPPEE!! For the basement not leaking!! That is the best news!! For the cold/wet combo, I suggest rubber boots, in a size larger than normal, heck, even two size larger, and multiple layers of handknit socks. Works like a charm up here in Northern Ontario!! =)

  160. Isn’t it amazing how much you overlook until you need it? Storm drains on a common route, being a bain to bicyclists, tend to be memorized but not the one right outside your front door. We had this problem in NH and believe me I memorized that drain location for the next January thaw. Stand on the drain and look for landmarks that line up with the drain. Any marker you place will be gone when you need it. Of course this will only help if the drain is somewhat close to your flood zone. If its at the end of the block it makes for a lot of shoveling to get the water to receed.
    As for boots I’m for the size too big manure boots with felted liners, wool socks and sock liners. An old pair of buckle boot over shoes that I had outgrown became the warmest sledding boots ever when I used the above formula. Fit great too!

  161. I’d totally reply, but since I live in Nor Cal and it’s supposed to be 65 degrees here and beautiful, I’d be afraid your entire back East readership might crawl through the blog lines and kill me with little pointed sticks…
    The bohus is fabulous though! And at lease you know you’ll have water this summer!!!

  162. I’d totally reply, but since I live in Nor Cal and it’s supposed to be 65 degrees here and beautiful, I’d be afraid your entire back East readership might crawl through the blog lines and kill me with little pointed sticks…
    The bohus is fabulous though! And at lease you know you’ll have water this summer!!!

  163. Hooray, first and foremost, for cookies and dry basements.
    I think there might be only one way to keep one’s feet warm AND dry in slush or tiny lake conditions, and that would be thrummed boot socks. LAYERED thrummed boot socks.
    Perhaps we can hope that a major executive of the company running your server doesn’t have a dry basement. I don’t like to wish bad things on people, but sometimes it’s fun to pretend that I’m the one in charge of karma.

  164. Hooray, first and foremost, for cookies and dry basements.
    I think there might be only one way to keep one’s feet warm AND dry in slush or tiny lake conditions, and that would be thrummed boot socks. LAYERED thrummed boot socks.
    Perhaps we can hope that a major executive of the company running your server doesn’t have a dry basement. I don’t like to wish bad things on people, but sometimes it’s fun to pretend that I’m the one in charge of karma.

  165. Does anyone have any photos of your street? You should be able to locate the sewer by looking that those…
    Good luck!

  166. RE: Cold Feet and the best boots I’ve ever had
    I get cold feet very easily, and although I’ve only tested these boots in Washington, DC and Manhattan, neither which come any where near rivaling a Toronto winter, I suggest getting a pair of Uggs boots.
    You may remember these were all the rage and in short supply a few years ago (many celebraties in Hollywood were in desparate desire of them).
    However, now I see them all over the place and in a few different styles.
    Personally, I love them. And they seem to have the added bonus of not completely overheating my feet once I’m indoors.
    They’re from Australia and I’m guessing that it’s really wool/fur whatever one calls it inside. Most interesting to me is that they are supposed to be worn without socks. The only downside I’ve found so far is that parts of the lining inside does felt a bit, and I’ve noticed I’ve worn it away at the heel. Anyhoo, I like them and they are not terribly expensive compared to other good footware.
    Your bohus is absolutely gorgeous!! I aspire to one day knit something as beautiful.
    Keep warm!
    Charli

  167. I was relating your story to my husband when he came in after an hour and half of clearing snow-the same storm that gave you slush. We’re near Bangor ME. He says the best boots he’s had for warmth and wet are LLBean Wildcat boots. They aren’t pretty but they do the trick. I’m quite sure they come in womens sizes too. We got all snow – about 8 in. Love your present knitting project.

  168. For a warm, dry pair of boots try online or at a farm store for Muck Boot Company boots. They have several styles. I have a pair of the Chore style, which is about mid calf in height and my husband has a pair of Arctic Sport which comes to just below the knee.

  169. Spray paint! Gillian and Christine mention pavement markings for storm drains. Next time you find the catch basins, and the pavement is dry, spray paint a nice arrow, starting a meter from the curb. Of course, public works might not appreciate your attempt to rescue your neighborhood from the slushflood….

  170. Boots–you might want to look for something like these: http://workingperson.com/products/22_34_36/1/5170/Timberland_Pro_38022_Mens_8_Inch_Waterproof_Insulated_Work_Boot.html
    These are wonderful boots. They’re really warm and very waterproof. I had a pair almost exactly like those ones and have stood ankle-deep in oily floodwater in them without getting my feet wet. (Now I inexplicably have half only a pair, which is why I happen to have a link handy. I miss the other half of the pair very much.)

  171. We had exactly the same weather today, and I’m so glad I (for once) had the perfect thing to keep my feet dry. They’re called New England Overshoes, or NEOS for short. They go over your shoes, and are completely waterproof. They look kind of silly, but who cares when your feet are dry and you don’t have to carry normal shoes around with you. This should be their website: http://www.overshoe.com/

  172. My advice about the boots would be next time you can get out of your house go to a hunting store and buy a pair of heavy duty water resistent rubber insulated hunting boots. There big, floppy and go all the way to your knees but combined with a pair of good wool socks your feet will be warm and dry! I promise.

  173. Wait wait! Of all the neighbors outside on their porches giving advice, was the scary freaky semi-naked neighbor among them?

  174. I’m sure someone else has mentioned this already, but thought I would, just in case. Put wool socks inside your boots, silly! If they don’t fit a nice thick pair, you need bigger boots. And if one pair of socks doesn’t keep your feet warm, put a second, thinner pair on first, then the thick pair.

  175. Hey Steph, I haven’t read through the previous 199 comments, so maybe someone’s covered this but . . . Catch basins and storm drains should be marked by an arrow in the center of the road that’ll point right to the openings. That said, with the slurry on the road you may not be able to find the arrows either. As for the cold wet feet, get rubber boots a couple sizes too big so you can cram ’em full of socks (which would be slippery walking but warm and dry) or do the oh so attractive shopping bag boot liner.

  176. I heard you guys got some wicked weather out east (I’m in AB…where it’s TEN degrees muahahaha), but this is redonkulous!
    I’ve been following your blog for some time now, but this is the first time I’ve had the guts to comment. Weather looks like crap, knitting looks amazing, as usual. Seriously, looking at your pictures makes me want to felt something…
    K

  177. Hi Stephanie – or whoever else reads this far down in the comments,
    With regard to the “you say tomato, I say tomahto” discussion a couple of posts ago: How DOES one pronounce “arse”? Is the letter r pronounced?
    Seeking enlightenment in Maryland,
    Margie

  178. You could move to Ottawa? It is colder, but seems to have less slush than Toronto.
    Remembering way back to my years as a paper girl in PEI, my mom usually made me wear plastic bags over my wool socks in my winter boots. My feet were warm and dry in slushy weather (until I fell into a deep puddle) and I made a neat crinkleing sound as I walked.
    (Although I didn’t read the over 200 comments ahead of me, I am fully aware that this option has probably already been mentioned, but I fully endorse it!)

  179. Hey Stephanie! I work at a dog kennel. I have to walk in that very same sort of slush, water, etc. I bought myself a pair of Ranger brand rubber boots with an insert in them that is good down to -40.( C or F, the scales meet there, lol) And I’ll tell ya, between either hosing the kennels when it’s warm enough or walking through inches of shush/flood/water crap, my feet stay toasty warm. http://www.rangerboots.com/product_info.php?products_id=77 There is the link if you want. I swear my life by these boots. Make your feet feel invincible! Good luck staying dry, best wishes!

  180. If you want to go more high-tech than the ziploc baggie between your sock layers, go to your local hiking/outdoors store and look for vapor barrier (VB) socks. Winter hikers use them to keep their feet dry and warm.

  181. Here in the land of wet but not solid stuff, those of us who live rural and do livestock chores all year around swear by MuckBoots. http://www.muckbootcompany.com/
    Neoprene, solid, gauranteed waterproof. Wear a thick wool sock for sweat absorbing properties and you will be warm and dry in these no matter what. They also float and do not mar boat decks, so my sailboat racing hubby encourages them for long races in the cold wet months. THEY’RE WONDERFUL!

  182. The best footwear for warm and dry are those green rubber knee high boots (LLBeans sells them and I think they come in colors now) with two thick pair of wool socks on underneath. I have worn those ice fishing in northern Maine in truly awful weather and wading through snowy slush over ankle deep and was perfectly, smugly comfortable. It’s the hand knit thick wool socks that do it.

  183. I grew up in Wisconsin and I remember winter; the melting ice rivers were a favorite place to play and sliding on the ice was fun. I’m older now and winter in the Southern USA is much more to my liking. I can forget my coat and it doesn’t really matter!

  184. Could you convince your publisher to send you to Palm Springs to bring out your new book in the West? Really soon? It’s really nice here, not yet too warm (although that’s coming soon).
    We had a brutally hot summer and some really cold weather (see my blog about the Inside Slider), but right now it’s pretty nice. Yesterday I had the windows and sliders open and spent an hour or two outside in light jeans and a short-sleeved tee.
    My husband is from northeast Iowa and intends to keep it that way. As he points out, they don’t make snow chains for wheelchairs….

  185. Could you convince your publisher to send you to Palm Springs to bring out your new book in the West? Really soon? It’s really nice here, not yet too warm (although that’s coming soon).
    We had a brutally hot summer and some really cold weather (see my blog about the Inside Slider), but right now it’s pretty nice. Yesterday I had the windows and sliders open and spent an hour or two outside in light jeans and a short-sleeved tee.
    My husband is from northeast Iowa and intends to keep it that way. As he points out, they don’t make snow chains for wheelchairs….

  186. Steph, I tried to do a follow-up post yesterday but I don’t see it. I think your server ate it.
    After my first post, I thought that it would be quite easy to find the storm drain if someone on your block has a metal detector.

  187. Wow, what a mess! We had snow, ice and rain all in one day recently but the worst of it drained into our lovely sinkholes.
    Good luck staying dry!

  188. Man, us Michiganders can sympathize! I hope y’all find that sewer drain 🙂
    I guess now would be a bad time to describe how the weather is in AZ now then, eh? Just kidding 😛

  189. Coming from Sydney Aust. I would really like to have your problem with snow. Winter here nowadays is quite warm, one scarf and a long sleeve shirt with wool socks, no coats, not necessarily gloves. I was in Toronto last Christmas and it hardly even snowed.
    cheers Gemma

  190. Down here in the land of Oz (Canberra to be specific) we have been getting big summer storms. We had a real doozy here last week and there was so much hail that most of the central city and the university were shut for days because the hail overloaded the gutters and lots of buildings flooded, but only on the top floor 🙁 It is weird having reverse flooding. At least all of the hail melted away since it has been around 30C ever since.
    Good luck with all that slush, it looks very unpleasant.

  191. Sorry if I sound less than empathetic, but, you LUCKY, LUCKY SOUL!! I’m cowering in a badly air-conditioned bedroom away from a 39C day (40C forecast for 2moro). The wool is damp and sticky in my hands and I can’t realistically expect to ever wear my gloves even when I have finished them. It’s too hot to turn the oven on to bake anything and I can only dream about being cold enough to wear socks. Sniff! Let’s swap; a couple of days of slushy storm for a couple of blazing blue-sky days. Regards from Oz.

  192. Would it not be sensible to measure the drain from a fixed point like someones porch – like 2m down the street and 3m into the road – so that you can always find it? – in the UK we have little markers by the side of the road that show how far out in the road from that point the drain (or whatever) is

  193. Yep, ate my post, which had to do with the fact that the best boots I’ve ever had we from Canada. Are they sending them all to the US?

  194. Here’s how I keep my feet both warm and dry for the winter wet/cold. Not that we get here in SE PA that you have there, but we have plenty of the slushy stuff. I wear Wellingtons (Rubber Gardening boots), with one regular pair of socks and one pair of insulated socks.

  195. I live in Minnesota. When I first moved here, my dad bought me a pair of Columbia brand boots I call duck boots (they make me feel like I have duck feet). They’re heavily insulated, plastic on the outside (waterproof) leather at the top with laces. I wore them when clearing all of our recent snow and they kept my feet both warm and dry – even slogging through 20 inches of snow.

  196. When I was in the Norid Ski patrol, I learned to put a plastic bag over clean, powered feet (note: your feet only sweat to 100%humidity so the bag does not slosh). Then put on a nice warm sock, and if your boots leak, put another plstic bag over that. Fianlly put on your boots. The socks will stay dry and insulate your feet. A patroller I knew from Alaska used the rubber booties that divers wear, they also worked really well.
    Suzanne in Boston

  197. Get yourself some Sorel boots. I’ve had mine for close to 10 years and they are wonderful. Not real attractive, but they are warm, don’t leak and are tall enough you can get through most snowdrifts without getting your pants wet. And (a plus for you!) I think they are made in Canada. The only reason I just bought a new pair is because the grommets that hold the laces are almost completely rusted through and I think about to fall apart.

  198. Hey
    I just saw that you will be in Pgh Friday March 30,
    I have a knit shop just an hour north of Pgh, I am just a couple miles from where I79 and I80 cross. Is their any chance you could stop by the store on Saturday March 31 on your way to your next gig. We could do a book signing or whatever. If not I hope to make it to the city to meet you.
    Nancy

  199. Hey
    I just saw that you will be in Pgh Friday March 30,
    I have a knit shop just an hour north of Pgh, I am just a couple miles from where I79 and I80 cross. Is their any chance you could stop by the store on Saturday March 31 on your way to your next gig. We could do a book signing or whatever. If not I hope to make it to the city to meet you. I would have emailed you but could not find a link to do so.
    Nancy

  200. oops, just saw that the Sorels have already been given props by a previous commenter. Silly American, though, don’t you know that Canadians *invented* Sorels?

  201. steph,
    I am about to start an Icelandic sweater with
    Classic Elite La Gran Mohair using 4 colors.
    What do you suggest as a good color combination
    that is not to ordinary or to wild and bright.
    The bottom and sleeves uses the main color with the chest using the 2nd color with 3 patterns on chest using colors 3 and 4 and the main color. It
    is diffucult using the color chart online. The
    pattern is from an old Classic Elite Pattern.
    Thank you
    barb

  202. steph,
    I am about to start an Icelandic sweater with
    Classic Elite La Gran Mohair using 4 colors.
    What do you suggest as a good color combination
    that is not to ordinary or to wild and bright.
    The bottom and sleeves uses the main color with the chest using the 2nd color with 3 patterns on chest using colors 3 and 4 and the main color. It
    is diffucult using the color chart online. The
    pattern is from an old Classic Elite Pattern.
    Thank you
    barb

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