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The Rotunda
Friday, July 4, 2025

How to spend a wintery day

Snowmageddon is upon us everyone! Snowstorm Juan or whomever he was (I put a lot of research into my writing, if you can’t tell) has wreaked havoc on the East Coast. Farmville got a light dusting compared to more northern states, such as New York, which had to shut down its roads entirely.

I realize that our past week of snow storms has come to a close by the time of this writing, as the University opened again on Tuesday despite the fact the many cars are still encased in their icy tombs. However, with the craziness of our bipolar (hahaha polar) Virginia weather, another snow storm is as inevitable as a red ketchup stain on a white tuxedo shirt. The big question here is, how will you spend the multiple days off that are to come? Study, perhaps (yeah, right)? Or possibly escape your dark cave of Netflix and snack crumbs and go enjoy the beautiful winter wonderland? In case you need some ideas on how to do so, I happen to be an expert on goofing off in any situation, snow days included.

A long held snow day tradition is the construction of snowmen on campus, as many appear every year after a snow shower. Building snowmen is a great way to spend a snow day with friends, however you don’t need them for this! The best part of this snow day activity is that you can, quite literally, make your own friends. That’s right folks, you can create your own chilly snow people to keep you company until we immediately get 70 degree weather because, that's Virginia. While the frosty elements persist, your snow friends can watch you make snow angels, go sledding or be willing victims for your snowball target practice.

Alas, the winter weather is not all fun and frolic as there are some tasks that have to be taken care of. The time honored traditions of shoveling snow and freeing cars from their icy tombs are duties that are a part of the required drudgery. Just because these are not the go-to snow day games, it does not mean that you can’t make the most of these activities, as well. Shoveling snow is essentially just preparing supplies for snow forts! And extricating your car from its stuck spot is probably the only opportunity where “floor it and hope for the best” isn’t bad advice.

Have fun and be safe in the arctic beauty. You can vegetate in your bed and watch Netflix anytime, but a snow day should be enjoyed outside!

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