Why I'm not going to pick up my payroll today.

These photos were taken 10:30 AM this morning. I messed with the colors a bit to make enough of a contrast so that the craziness can be somewhat understood.

First off, this is the view from my front door. We live on the third floor. That balcony is halfway between the second and third floor. At the edges it's about nine inches deep in show.

This shot was taken from the balcony previously pictured; it is the original.

Here is something that I tweaked with.

And this is the "shadow" effect that my software automatically does. It makes it look like the pictures are being taken at night, but it shows the texture of the snow a lot better. So this is how most of the pictures will look. Notice please, the tracks along where the "sidewalk" should be . . . Notice that they stop at the bottom of the picture? That is because the 4-wheeler that tried plowing through it this morning got stuck.

Here is the view at the second floor balcony. The ridge in that first snowbank? It's up to my waist.

Here we see the massive snow-plowed snowbank directly beside, and behind, our truck

I'm standing about 15 feet directly behind our truck, at the edge of the massive snowbank. There SHOULD be another parking space to the left of the truck, but it's become a sledding hill.

Here is another shot from the same spot, just angled differently

This is the other side of the snowbank, facing the drivers side of the truck. Yeah, you can't see the truck, because the snowbank is eight feet tall.

This is taken about eight feet from the last picture. Notice the nice slope in the snowbank? Rob and I sledded down it last night. :) Also, notice how the plow marks stop? Yeah, the snow is about 2.5 feet deep there.

This is looking at the stairs from the truck's driver side door. Notice how the snowdrift is as tall as the stairs handrail?

And this was taken from the bottom stair, looking toward the truck and all it's snowed-in majesty.

So why don't I just take some time and dig my way out so I can pick up my payroll, you ask? Because Rob took our snow shovel with him to work, that's why. He had to dig himself out of the parking lot this morning, along with me pushing the car. Yesterday, the roads in Idaho Falls had not been plowed all day, and he was basically high-centered all day. He even went through a snow drift that was about two feet tall. He took the shovel to prevent himself from getting stuck.

Living in Idaho is for the birds! Hannah, come get yourself some snow!

Addition as of 1:16 PM--there is a kid outside right now with a snow blower--he gave up trying to "blow the snow" off of the side walk in front of my building at the same place the 4-wheeler got stuck this morning.

I watched him turn around and start walking the other way, then went for my camera . . .

Dangit! I hope he comes back!!

Otherwise, the sidewalk will just look like this. Oh, how I'm SO GLAD we're getting out of Rexburg tomorrow!

BTW--I totally feel like a spy--zooming in on the snow blower kid from my third floor apartment . . .