PJs Inside Out, Ice Cubes in the Toilet, and a Spoon Under My Pillow

It was about 3 p.m. on a Thursday when I remembered what day it was. I was in my Thursday afternoon class and all of my classmates were commenting about how cold it was that day. One of my classmates remarked, "It's supposed to snow in the next 24 hours—that's how you know just how cold it is."

Snow? That's right! I had been watching the weather as the temperatures dipped lower and lower and finally, one day, snow showed up in the 10-day forecast. And my classmate's comment about the snow was an excellent reminder that the day had finally come. Well, not exactly.

You see, I was counting down the days until the day before the snow was supposed to fall. Why? Let me back up about a week…

The first day that I saw that we were expecting snow, I could hardly contain my excitement. We don't get snow where I live in the U.S., so I was overjoyed that I would be able to experience some snowfall this semester. When I told one of my roommates that we were expecting snow, she was a bit doubtful. She also hoped that there would be snow, but her hopes were not as high as mine were. "But," she said, "I'll wear my PJs inside out and put some ice cubes in the toilet anyway."

I must admit, I have heard some pretty strange sentences in my life, but I had never heard something like that before. When my roommate realized that I was staring at her with a look of utter confusion, she explained that there's an East Coast superstition that if you wear your PJs inside out, flush ice cubes down the toilet, and sleep with a spoon under your pillow the night before snow is supposed to fall, it will ensure that you get snow the next day.

So I decided to try it. The Thursday that my classmate reminded me that we were expecting snow the next day, I wore my PJs inside out, flushed some ice cubes down the toilet, and slept with a spoon under my pillow.

And it worked.

After my German class the next morning, I saw the first snowflakes fall. It was a magical sight. So instead of going back to my apartment like I originally planned to, I decided to go to a Christmas market! I walked around the many stalls and enjoyed being out in the snow. 

Finally, I was ready to head back to my apartment. But when I walked through the park next to the U-bahn station I get off at, I noticed that there were several platforms covered in snow. Perfect for snowman building!

Since there wasn't a lot of snow, I only made a small snowman, about the size of my hand. I didn't have much around to decorate it with, so I used a few blades of grass for arms.

Satisfied, I headed back to my apartment. But when I looked back on my pictures when I got there, I realized that there was plenty of snow left! Why didn't I make a bigger snowman? So I raided our spice cabinet and headed back over to the park to build another snowman. 

I had a fantastic time playing in the snow and getting to experience winter in a different way than I get to experience it at home.