Does Anything Ever Change?

My apologies for not writing the past few days -- one of the liabilities of being a student, there are such things as exams and I find the older I get, the more intent I am on passing them. As a result, some things go by the wayside during the days before an exam. Nothing important really: eating, sleeping, bathing, or truly listening to my wife when she's talking to me instead of thinking about how to tell angina from a heart attack by an electrocardiogram. Life as usual, right?

Anyway, that's my excuse, for better or worse, but it's the truth in any case. As it turns out, though, I'm taking a moment to write today because exams have been postponed due to an impending snow storm. Twelve to eighteen inches out here in the country and that, on top of the good foot that's left over from previous storms. I understand we've already had nearly five feet of snow this year and the season is far from over. Still, I wouldn't change it. Snow in Maine is picturesque and evocative -- that is, as long as the power stays on and you don't have to travel.

It occurs to me that I must be learning to delay gratification as an older student. When I was younger, a snow day meant sleeping late. Now, it means a chance to hit the books for a few more hours and I'm grateful even if the price is a close encounter with the snow shovel. To borrow a line from Dances With Wolves, it's a "good trade."