REGIONAL – Some of us are still looking at huge mounds of snow covering our cars, or backed up against back doors. Those who have snow plows or snow blowers have been busy as can be, almost too busy once you move beyond one's own home and paying business to the request of friends to help them get out of this week's blizzard.

Yes, it was given a name by weather forecasters. And yes, it was termed a "bombogenesis" by meterorologists amazed at its specifics involving a normal storm's "bombing out" when the barometric pressure "drops 24 or more millibars in a 24-hour period."

The governor closed I-84 for over 12 hours. All our counties declared states of emergency. The roof of one of the outbuildings at Williams Lumber's main store in Rhinebeck collapsed. Thousands lost power, and just as many lost phone and internet service for periods.

It started out with a sense of thrill. Kids were looking at some more days off; everyone felt they were hunkering down well in their homes. They had food, water, firewood, candles and, if the electricity wasn't going out, plenty of DVD options to watch. Board games got pulled out, soups started.

It came in during the dark of night before dawn on Tuesday. And then kept coming. Some lucky areas around the region reported 18 inches depths. Others saw drifts that were more than thigh-high. And then, with the gusting winds and plowed-high sides of roads, we're now driving in tunnels as high as young men, and way taller than the leprechauns we're to be celebrating Friday.

Some news reports references blizzards from 1993, or the 1880s. Several weather professionals said it didn't really add up to a blizzard because the winds weren't so bad. Central Hudson prided itself on whittling 11,000 customers out of power down to under 700 in a matter of hours.

Now everyone's dealing with clean-up, and looking to warmer temperatures ahead to help them.

But also the possibility of more snow...

Congrats to all of us for (almost) getting through this latest strange winter of 2017!