my body was a little sore from all the shoveling i did yesterday morning, but it wasn't too bad. both my upstairs neighbors were outside helping another neighbor dig out her car that was stuck in the snow. the unpleasant sound of failing wheels spinning in the snow was what caught my attention. later i saw steve making an attempt to dig out the last of his cars (an SUV no less). he stopped a few minutes later, probably figuring that with 2 cars already freed, he didn't really need a third. i wonder how many of my neighbors know how many cars he has? if i posted an anonymous notice on telephone poles, would incensed neighbors rise up in mob violence and torch his vehicles?

despite the temperature hovering in the 20's, it really wasn't that cold today. however, when i dipped my hand into the snow, it began to hurt after a few seconds. not sure how hailey managed to withstand the cold in her bare paws. dogs must get frostbite too, right? her feet did feel cold even hours after returning to the house.

my mother made some more of that tasty chorizo-potatoes-egg breakfast combo i had yesterday.

even though the season ended for the patriots last sunday, and the fact that i cursed out football for being a stupid game, i still watched the two conference championship matches that were happening today. football is easier to watch when i don't have a personal stake in who wins or loses. the 3:00 game was between the packers and the bears. i was rooting for green bay because 1) they were the visiting team so naturally assumed the role of the underdog (when in doubt, root for the supposed little guy), and 2) should the packers ultimately win the super bowl, it would be the cherry on former packer QB brett favre's worst-season-ever. green bay ended up winning (and chicago played musical chairs with 3 different quarterbacks).

the 6:30 game was between the jets and the steelers. there was a boston globe article today about how we should root for new york because it'd set the stage for an epic matchup between the jets and the patriots come next season should new york be crowned the super bowl champions. i personally like to adhere to the philosophy that you root for the team that beats you, because it hurts less to be defeated by the eventual champions than just some team that will end up getting eliminated themselves. i must admit though, when the game was 24-0 close to halftime with the jets yet to score a single point, i did feel pretty good, even though it meant new england lost to a crappy team (which, if you ask any patriots fan, they'd tell you that in a second). i actually started feeling bad for the jets, so in the second half i was sort of rooting for them. amazingly enough, they staged a gusty comeback: pittsburgh didn't score at all in the 3rd and 4th quarters, but their 24 point lead was enough to trounce the new york rally.

i'm rooting for green bay over pittsburgh in the superbowl, because i don't want the steelers to match the patriots in superbowl victories within the past decade (new england has 3, pittsburgh has 2). don't let me down packers! and never forget brent favre!

my father gave me a ride back home after dinner. temperature was already in the teens, but i was excited to see how much more it could drop. we're supposed to see some negative numbers later tonight. can't wait!

i'm watching bicycle thieves, the 1948 italian classic ranked amongst one of the best movies ever by critics and listmongers. i'm more interested in the bike than the actual story: chainguard, fenders, rear rack, north road handlebars, and a dynamo-generated light. pretty sweet bike, no wonder somebody wanted to steal it! i've only watched the first 15 minutes, i hope it has a happy ending (i know at one point the bike gets stolen).