I love summer, primarily because of the scorching hot weather. I think seeing flowers and constant green everywhere is beautiful, and it’s always nice walking out of the house not worrying about layering up. However, as much as I look forward to summer, there are instances in between summer breaks that I thoroughly enjoy. The complete opposite of blistering weather is—SNOW! Watching the snowflakes fall and cover up the earth makes for the most beautiful scenes. This past week, I had no choice but to stare out my window, witnessing the Blizzard of 2011. All of Tuesday during school, every conversation revolved around the upcoming blizzard. There were talks of snow days, several feet of snow, and super fast winds. Everyone was alarmed, anxious, and worried. I loved the excitement! Although I was stranded at home the entire night and following day, I constantly looked at the beautiful scenes surrounding me. In the morning while “shoveling the snow”, I went around the house with my waterproof/freeze proof camera, capturing every moment that simply wowed me. This wasn’t an easy task though. When I tried taking normal steps, the snow was so deep that I couldn’t bring my foot up without my boot falling off. This led me to resort to 1) rolling down the snow dunes, 2) crawling through the snow, and 3) using my arms to swim through the snow. I was literally doing the breast stroke to help me get through these insane depths! It was crazy! Last year I climbed the sand dunes of the Namib Desert, this year I was climbing the dunes of my own backyard! In conclusion, I had a terrific snow experience. I like to go through it all—hot sand and freezing snow and ice. Living in Chicago may be unbearably cold, but it’s an advantage to experience all 4 distinct seasons, and it’s nice to fully appreciate the warmth of summer when it comes back around.