Ambivalence

I can't figure out whether to be righteously crabby about all the inconveniences we're suffering at the moment, or jubilantly grateful for the stuff that's going well.  The snow that started on Saturday afternoon kept sifting steadily down for about 24 hours, so that now we have something like 6-8 inches.  Even major roads are packed snow and ice, and plenty of side streets are just not passable.  No neighborhood streets will be plowed anytime soon, if ever... Seattle just doesn't have the equipment for that.  So we can't really drive anywhere - we're stuck with whatever's within walking distance.  On the other hand, everything we need is within a few blocks:  grocery store, pharmacy, nice restaurants and coffee shops, parks with hills for sledding, even a friend's house.  We can even walk to work.  So can I really complain?  Our front door is even draftier than before, since the firefighters kicked it in - Dale stuffed the cracks with actual rags, believe it or not, as if we were genuine paupers living in a shack.  But at least the door is functional, and yesterday he replaced the rags with weatherstripping.  It's still ugly, but it's less ugly now, and it works.  The power is on, the water is on in spite of a pipe freezing, the apartment is warm, the gas fireplace is cozy, the fridge is stocked.  The snow creates some limitations to say the least, but it's actually quite pleasant outside in its way, not windy and not even all that cold.  I enjoyed my walk to work.  (Dale generously made it my turn today.)  We're not among the thousands of people stranded at airports all over the country -- and you know we would have been, had we been attempting to travel cross-country this year.  Instead, our only travel plan is to get over to Sammamish on the 24th.  They're saying it'll be raining by then, so I-5 and I-90 should be all right, and we live three blocks from I-5.  Dale and I are feeling more than a little cooped up, being in the kid zone in a small space for a long time - school was closed all but one day last week, and it's hard to imagine it opening this week.  But the kids don't actually seem to mind, and we're all getting along amazingly well, considering.  And it is the holidays, anyway.  We had a super cute first night of Hanukkah last night, with latkes and presents and singing and an actual game of dreidel after Aaron went to bed.  

Teeny Latkes

3 russet potatoes

1 medium onion

3 eggs

3/4 c flour

1/4 c matzo meal or cracker crumbs

1 Tbsp salt

lots of fresh pepper

Grate the potatoes and onions, preferably with the grating blade of a food processor.  Turn the mixture into a colander (poof! you're a colander!) and squeeze out all the liquid you can squeeze.  Let sit for two minutes and squeeze again.  Mix in eggs, then dry ingredients.  Heat up a nonstick griddle with a few tablespoons of oil until the oil is shimmering.  Drop batter onto griddle in heaping teaspoonfuls, or bite-size forkfuls.  Turn when you see that the edges are golden brown.

Serve with hot applesauce, sour cream (or greek yogurt), and salad or soup.  Makes enough for dinner for two adults and two kids who had no afternoon snack after a long walk in the snow (whoops).