Snow. It’s not all bad. It’s not just about getting gridlocked in Guildford, stuck in Sussex or frozen in Farnborough. Snow is good. Here’s why.
First footprints in the snow. Like new tyres, big deep tread-marks. Neat and crisp and even.
That was me. This morning. Trekking across the car-free agency courtyard to be the first in to our unit. The sense of achievement that this little act of arriving created transformed me into a zeroes hero: a Person Who Can Make it into The Office when it Snows.
So after a while of waiting for the other zero temperature heroes to arrive, I got to thinking: what else does snow do to make people (in offices, not on ski slopes) feel good? Here’s my take on this:
- firstly, the sense of communion: zeroes heroes enter the (warm and snug) office with a hearty “Ahhhhhh!” or “Phe-e-e-ew” and are dying to say things like “What a day!” or “Blimey, what a journey!”
- next, there’s the blitz-like spirit of sharing and caring: porridge, tea or coffee or anything else is sought out and then offers are made around the office to other zeroes heroes as to whether they’d like a cuppa, too
- then, the transformation of everyday ordinariness: everyone wants to discuss their day so far in amazing detail — from the moment they first peered out of the crack in their bedroom curtains, to walking to the station along the snow-laden pavements, to the hats and gloves and boots they’re wearing, to the minute they arrived at the office
- next, the collective sense of disdain — the “yeah right!”, factor: zeroes heroes congratulate each other and diss their absent colleagues who’ve called or emailed in (so much less demanding) to say they are “working from home” in the sub-zero Surrey Alps or ice-bound Basingstoke; yeah, right!
There’s nothing like a disaster to bring people together. And snow, for many Britons (Yorkshire-ites and brave Scots, apart), is that disaster.
When we’re all worried about whether 2010 is going to be the Year of Great Recovery or whether it’s going to be the continuing disaster of 2009, or whether the light at the end of the tunnel is another Eurostar train, snow seems to be able to melt all our hearts.
Apart from those ‘working from home’ people, of course. Brrrrr
