Hi, James!  Recently you wrote in a message to Ardith Hinton:

JB>  Now, to suit up and clear even *more* snow from the walks...
JB>  I just wonder how many of my neighbours even OWN shovels.

AH>  We do... and so do our neighbours on both sides.

JB>  Looks like this was a recurring theme for me last month.


           Same here.  We had over three feet of snow in as many weeks, and a
lot of people who shovelled the first few inches either abandoned the idea or
took off for warmer climes when the stuff just kept on coming.  I appreciated
having some "down time" at home... but I was beginning to get fed
up with not
being able to use the wheelchair because others ignored the snow in hope that
it would go away momentarily.  Sometimes it does.  Sometimes it doesn't.  ;-)



AH>  I was amused to see a guy from a local shop attempting to
AH>  clear snow off the sidewalk with a long-handled squeegee

JB>  Let him know, the stick can be used to shake the snow off
JB>  awnings too! If he does that first, clearing the walks has
JB>  to be done once.


           Now, that's working smart!  I like it....  :-))



JB>  Funny you should mention a squeegee though, as I used to
JB>  use a hard rubber one to clear most ice build up from my
JB>  windshield, until it got a touch too much use one day. )-:
JB>  I since found a silicone rubber "broom head" with a squeegee
JB>  on its flip side, but it seems to be sturdy enough to only
JB>  clear the snow from glass.


           Sounds as if you need a serious ice scraper.  This guy was using
a squeegee with a thick hunk of rubber, but we have a plastic scraper too. 
:-)



JB>  Lucky, he didn't see an "ice" breaker strapped to the
JB>  front of her chair! 


           Not yet, but we're working on it!  Best idea we've come up with
so far is to bring along a folding shovel we use for camping trips...
[chuckle].



JB>  I have a vacant house beside me, owned by mom. It seems
JB>  sacrilegious to not do her walks until she finds a renter.


           It might make the house more attractive to a prospective
tenant... and/or help you create a lived-in look which would make it less
attractive to thieves, vandals etc.  We did the same when my parents' house
was empty.  :-)



[re shovelling snow for various neighbours]
JB>  Still, they would have to be major jerks for me to stop anyway.
JB>  Mr. rotator cuffs himself was seen on a shovel a couple of times,
JB>  and he is one of the nicest guys. His son, when there, picks up a
JB>  lot of that load, so I consider my part as a goodwill gesture.


           Makes sense to me.  Dallas & I shovel a bit of the public sidewalk
on our next door neighbour's side when we're doing our own & and she does the
same for us.  We take turns, because both of us have back problems.  She is a
widow in her seventies [or so I guess].  She's also a morning person where we
are night people... and her daughter does a bit of the work as well.  One way
or another we get the job done.  But the thing is, people like you & me & Mr.
Rotator Cuffs think of others less fortunate although it's not easy for us to
do our bit.  On behalf of all the "mobility challenged" I salute
you....  :-)



JB>  It just always seems to be the welfare mom on every block that
JB>  considers herself entitled, that gets my cockles in a knot.


           Dallas & I noticed a gaggle of young able-bodied females living in
a rented house just down the street from us playing in the snow one day.  Did
they shovel any of it?  Of course not!  They have no compunction about asking
me for the loan of a hand blender when they're having a party.  We would have
lent them a shovel if they'd asked, but they said nothing about it... (sigh).




--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+