Homeless in Vancouver: In the city, night time is winter's time

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      No matter how impressively a Vancouver snowstorm begins, it always ends badly.

      The day after can be something of a letdown; reality kicks in—grimy, dirty, slippery, slushy reality.

      The truth is that snow has no business in a city; it just gets in the way.

      Snow-blown. In our defence, Vancouverites don’t get a lot of practice.
      Stanley Q. Woodvine

      But the snow is really pretty at first—magical even—the falling snowflakes, the perfect blankets of whiteness, the hush that seems to fall over everything. Nice!

      The wonder of a fresh snowfall continues through the first evening and well into the city night, which is nothing like real night.

      Wipe that leaf off your face! The longer you look at it, the better it looks.
      Stanley Q. Woodvine

      Street lights, house lights, and traffic lights hold any real darkness at bay; everything is twilight, long shadows and sharp specular highlights —perfect for snow—perfectly spooky and memorable.

      Where’s this stuff when we need it on Halloween?

      Lucky for us, the temperature stayed above zero overnight; no black ice in the morning—that stuff is really scary.

      Pretty slushy. In a few hours all this will just be getting underfoot.
      Stanley Q. Woodvine

      Stanley Q. Woodvine is a homeless resident of Vancouver who has worked in the past as an illustrator, graphic designer, and writer.

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