When The Americans came....and it snowed.....and snowed.

Where to begin?

I really don’t have a clue. There are too many thoughts in my head and not enough words within my grasp to describe to you the fun and adventures we had with The Americans.

But I will give it a go.

They returned from Paris to a rather snowy and icy Hull. Discussions were had. Chilli was eaten. And we made plans to go to York the following day to meet one of our old flatmates, who was unable to attend the planned reunion in Manchester at the weekend.

Then Thursday happened. And the snow came. My phone binged from the old flatmate saying he wouldn’t be able to get to York because he was travelling from Edinburgh and the trains were either not running or running incredibly late. I looked out of the window at a sky that couldn’t make up its mind. One minute it was heavy and grey with snow, the next a lovely fresh blue. I knew that York was pretty snow-covered so we decided not to risk the drive there which unfortunately takes place down rubbishy back roads.

So what to do?

Hull has many things on offer but it was more than a little miserable and a walk into town would have meant risking life and limb as very few pavements seemed to have been gritted.

So we went to the cinema to see Avatar in 3-d instead.

I know, I know I can hear your cries of horror. WORST HOST EVER! Taking them to the cinema? They can go to the cinema anywhere! But it really was slim pickings people.

Avatar was surprisingly good. Not my kind of film at all I was dreading having to sit there for nearly 3 hours watching a film about blue people but it actually held my attention. Admittedly the plot is unbelievably obvious and the dialogue was liberally sprinkled with healthy doses of cheese, but something kept me sitting there and not looking at my watch. My backside was killing me at the end of it all though. And the 3-d was very clever. I didn’t really see the point but I have a feeling 3-d is the future (a feeling and the fact that that’s what people are saying). It just felt normal and watching films in boring old 2-d will be quite....well....boring.

After the Avatar experience we set off for an experience of a furrier kind.

A trip to meet the Fred...

...and the Lily.

Don’t worry I’m not so sad that I specifically took them to see the furry ones, we were actually picking them up because Mum was off to see my sister for the weekend. Introductions made and Fred and coaxed down from the top of the kitchen cupboards they were stuffed in their box and brought back to the flat.

The beasts released, and Fred ensconced under the bed, we left them and went to that fine purveyor of food – Wetherspoons. Hello? It was Thursday – curry night!! And the drinks are cheap. What more is required?!

SNOW.

Snow was required. And the skies obliged. We made our way home under a million flakes of snow and arriving at the gate I announced that we simply must make a snowman. I didn’t care that it was 11.30pm. A snowman was in order.

Suitably wrapped up we arrived outside and discovered that it had been so long since any of us had made a snowman we had forgotten how to. Well not all of us. American Boy knew what to do and soon we were rolling our snowballs up and down the path. Turns out making a snowman when you’re an adult is kind of tough. All that bending over and running up and down, backwards and forwards, it’s hard work. Especially when you’re full of curry and wine. We made a good attempt though and we plonked all the balls on top of each other. No carrots or coal to hand so we had to gouge a face out and Mr Tree kindly gave us some twigs for arms. We could have possibly made a little more effort with him and made him slightly more stable, he was leaning rather worryingly to one side, but the point was we had made him.

We decided that FRIDAY was the day for York. The day dawned pretty bright but not so early as we were all rather tired from our snowman building so we didn’t set off until the afternoon. Arriving in York we saw that they’d had some very impressive snowfall and whilst it’s pretty it didn’t make for easy walking up and down The Shambles.

We said hello to York Minster. We would have walked round it but it costs a rather ridiculous sum of money to do so. No thanks York Minster. Not when you can walk round St Paul’s Cathedral for free. And although it was slippy, the sun was out as you can see from this photo.

Unfortunately American Girl’s boots had given up the ghost. Un-used to actual boot-like weather (this one lives in Arizona, not much snow there) they had capitulated and decided to fall apart, letting the lovely icy weather in to a pair of very frozen feet.

To a boot shop!

I’m pretty sure we visited every shop that sold boots in York. There were points we felt like giving up.

But onwards we marched (through the slush) until Baratts came up trumps with a pair in the sale.

Darkness was falling by this point and without the blue sky to give us the illusion of warmth we decided to head to Betty’s for a warming cup of tea. We had to take them to something touristy! American Girl had a cream tea and I had a spiced hot chocolate which I waded my through until molten cocoa was flowing through my veins.

We enjoyed the calm, fancy surroundings until a woman managed to set fire to the newspaper she was reading on the lovely little tealight on her table. What was better was that she didn’t actually realise she’d done it until the rather helpful man on the next table leaned over to tell her by which point the flames were about a foot high. How can you not realise your paper’s on fire?!

By this point the snow was coming down pretty hard and fast so we made our escape back to Hull.

Slowly.

Very slowly.

At 30mph to be exact.

And we arrived back in Hull to find that the apocalypse had occurred. Everything was white. Everything. About 3 inches seemed to have fallen since we’d left a few hours before.

I have since been filled in and it turns out that about half an hour after we left to go to York, Hull was visited by the most ferocious blizzard anyone had ever seen. My building was closed at 4pm as everyone left to try and make their way home.

Whilst we boot shopped and sat about sipping tea.

I will leave it there as I can sense your attention is waning. WAKE UP!

We went to Manchester the next day. And we thought we’d seen snow...