We laughed. We cried. We dug.
And dug. And dug …
Finally, thankfully, gloriously, most major roads and highways were cleared, and Metro ground back into gear Thursday night and Friday morning.
But then, workers returning to D.C. on Friday were greeted with massive gridlock, overpacked Metro trains and buses, and a derailed train at Farragut North.
So after the record snow last week, what have we learned, if anything? Well …
» Living in D.C. is great during a storm. There were two massive snowball fights in Dupont Circle, and Metro service was the most consistent (albeit spotty) in the underground-heavy District.
Conversely, living at the end of the Red Line in Shady Grove is not. Aboveground stations were closed much of the week, and the Shady Grove, Rockville and Twinbrook stations didn’t reopen until 4 p.m. Friday.
» A walk in the snow is a beautiful (and relatively fast) thing. On Friday, with Metrobuses back in service, a biped covered a mile on Massachusetts and Connecticut avenues before the N4 arrived at Farragut North.
» When walking along Embassy Row, count on a Japanese-Ivory Coast plowing pact, but don’t expect the sidewalk to be clear outside the Romanian Embassy.
» Shovel early and often. You’ll need a jackhammer to break up the snowpack on streets and sidewalks later. Although you may want to stay warm and dry inside your house, you need to keep clearing a path to your car and wiping the snow off the windows. Do an inch or two at a time, and you’ll be able to stay ahead of the snowfall. Clear and maintain a shovelwide trench around your car, and shovel it each time you shovel the walk.
» Park in an area you know will get plowed out, like a church or public parking lot. Or, better yet, a garage. Just avoid emergency routes — and a costly ticket.
» Park so your car blocks your driveway, pointing slightly out toward the street. There’s less shoveling to do, less turning on the snowy street, and a dry patch in front of your driveway.
» If you need something to eat or shaving cream, go to places where people get paid only if they show up for work. Restaurants and gas stations across the region stayed open; on Wednesday, residents used the honor system at a Safeway in Tenleytown that had been left open by an employee.
» Next time the federal government shuts down for four days, make it five — instead of creating gridlock across the region like the traffic nightmare in downtown D.C. on Friday night.
» Stir-crazy golfers, take heart: The mounds of snow will leave your course in beautiful shape — in June.
» If you have dogs that are picky about where they … go, find a grassy area and shovel it out or they may hold it in for two days — resulting in many a whimper and sad puppy face.
» Pick good neighbors. Ann Fierstos, who lives in Cameron Station in Alexandria, awoke Friday and found a welcome surprise: An anonymous good Samaritan had dug out in front of her house. “Some angel came and dug me out this morning,” she
said.
» Or, enlist your family. Jalila Sebbata was helping her mother, Najat, dig out of a side street in Alexandria, as her mother had resorted to scooping away the snow with a small white bucket. “I’ve never had to dig out like this before,” Jalila said. “It’s definitely a hassle — I didn’t work the whole week, and now it’s the … big dig out.”
» Chin up, old sport: Spring is just five weeks away.
Examiner Staff Writers Tim Carney, Freeman Klopott, David Freddoso and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
