If you don’t live in the northeastern or midwestern United States, consider yourself lucky. Not only did this week begin with snow, but it’s been followed by brutal temperatures. Wind chill readings during the warmest part of the day on Wednesday were expected to dip into the -50s in some areas.
I am one of the (un)lucky ones dealing with the snow and cold in Michigan, and though I do love winter, let me tell you, it’s cold. The entire state is currently in a state of the emergency, and the whole “dangerous wind chill” thing hasn’t even happened yet.
Most schools and a surprising number of businesses — including restaurants, stores and even doctors’ offices — closed on Monday and Tuesday, and many schools remain closed Wednesday. That includes the Swartz Creek School District who, on the second day of closures, decided to make the best out of the situation.
Going above and beyond the standard phone call, email or social media post, superintendent Ben Mainka and high school principal Jim Kitchen took to YouTube for their school closure announcement. The video, titled simply “SCCS Announcement,” seems like it will be pretty serious at first, but it soon takes a turn.
“I know that one of the things that’s been happening — which is an epidemic across our country — is that superintendents and other administrators are coming up with ridiculous songs,” Mainka says in the video. “And they’re playing music and putting on sunglasses and making absolute fools of themselves trying to cancel school for a snow day.”
Kitchen then says they will not be humiliating themselves by “singing a snow day song” — right before they, of course, beginning singing a snow day song. Their version is to the tune of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” but I don’t want to spoil any of the brilliant lyrics for you.
You can watch it for yourself here:
Sure, the sunglasses and lyrics are pretty silly, but those voices? I definitely got chills — and not just because I’m freezing (but that too).
The video earned more than 300,000 views as of Tuesday night, about 24 hours after its initial posting.
Oh, and just in case you were wondering just how cold -40 really is, the forecasted temperature for the same time of day in Antarctic’s biggest city, McMurdo Station, is 22 degrees — above zero.
Who knew laughter was the best way to keep warm?! Until these temperatures let up, I’ll be watching this on repeat.