Waiting for Phil

In case you are wondering, Phil is a snow day. He hasn’t come to Weymouth even once this year, though last year it seemed Phil had taken up residence for the season. The name comes from lines in a song Maura sang in her school’s Winter Concert this year: "Snow Day… gonna call him Phil." It’s out of context—Phil is supposed to be the name of a snowman—but it’s fun to tease Maura with it now and then.

I’m beginning to think we might not see Phil at all this year. It’s mid-February already and we’ve hardly had enough snow to build a snowman much less cancel school. Winter is not over but the coldest and snowiest parts of a typical winter will soon be behind us. Maura is disappointed. She looks forward to sleeping in, lying around the house in her pajamas all morning, and dressing in her warm clothes to spend the afternoon playing in the snow with her friend Dominic from across the street.

I’m glad Maura hasn’t missed school this year because of weather but in a strange way I’m disappointed, too. In past years I’ve always enjoyed the surprise vacations I got courtesy of the weather. The storms themselves were exciting and unpredictable but the best part was the extra time I got to spend cuddled up with Maura and (if the weather was particularly bad) Jennifer. We couldn’t go anywhere unless we wanted to drive on the badly cleared roads but there was always time to spend together. We could share a cup of cocoa, play a board game or watch one of our favorite movies on DVD. We’ll have some time to spend together next week when Maura is out of school on her February break. We won’t be cooped up in the house the whole week unless the weather changes. The trouble is vacations are predictable. Part of the charm of a snow day is that it is never expected.