Bundled up in heavy coats, fleece hats and cozy gloves, University students have been bracing themselves during the last two weeks against the elements of a Charlottesville winter. The battle against the forces of nature further has complicated the struggle to get to class on time. Yesterday, however, balmy weather permitted outdoor recreation.
Second-year Architecture student Beth Gilbert and second-year Engineering student Nicholas Ward took theopportunity to enjoy the weather by playing a card game of Rummy 500 on the Rotunda steps. "What should I be doing?" Ward questioned himself as he placed a card down. "A lot of work. Well, actually, it is not that bad yet so I figured I'd come out and enjoy nature on the Lawn."
Although the two friends found time to enjoy the weather today, they probably will have to move their card game inside come Tuesday -- weather.com predicts snow. Checking the forecast, however, is not part of Gilbert's or Ward's routine. "I don't think that far into the future," Ward said.
Gilbert's planning is also last-minute. "I open the window and whatever it is, it is," she said.
If the weather is unfriendly, Gilbert sports traditional winter clothing.
"I wear a coat and gloves or mittens, depending on what I have lying around." She also relies on hot chocolate to defrost.
Ward, on the other hand, claims he does not get cold easily. A snowboarding trip he took last Friday proves that he can enjoy cold as well as mild weather. Yesterday he was sitting on the steps of the Rotunda with his fleece jacket unzipped. He said, however, that "it definitely would have been zipped last week."
Although he usually finds ways to enjoy the characteristics of the season, Ward admits the snow creates one inconvenience for him. Biking up ObservatoryHill is a normal part of his routine, but the winter weather makes it impossible. "So I go to the AFC and work out," Ward said. "But it is not as exciting because it is stationary."
The weather also inconveniences him in other ways. Ward chuckled as he remembered his encounter with a sheet of black ice in the parking lot by Bryant Hall. "I was walking to class," he said. "There was ice. I went down. It felt smooth but no one was around. So I kept on going to class since I was probably already late."
Despite troubles that a bit of snow may cause, Gilbert and Ward weather it well. "There has been a lot of snow this year already but I like it," Gilbert said. "At home [in New Jersey] it snows, gets icy and stays for a while. Here it snows, and it is pretty and melts quickly."
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