Beijingers might dodge the snow, but I love it

When I awoke Saturday morning to noticeable snowfall on my windowsill, my reaction was far from annoyance or any type of discomfort. "Good," said to myself. "It sure is needed."

I have been in Beijing three years and seen a paltry combined accumulation of about six inches in that time - and most of that came earlier this winter. Cold, windy weather without snowfall is merely a hardship. It's the snow that makes winter worthwhile.

Where I'm from, winter has always meant snow and lots of it. Beijingers seemed somewhat daunted by the recent weather, but in the mountains of Colorado, last weekend in northern China would be standard, run-of-the mill weather event quickly cleared from the roads and sidewalks and well-tracked by skiers. In a day or two residents would be expecting more of the same.