January 2011 Gem Lake Newsletter

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Gem Lake NewsPage 5 of 6 December 11 Blizzard Buries Gem Lake in Snow (continued from page 1) Mayor Bob Uzpen found himself plowing through a huge snow bank at the end of his driveway at 4:30 a.m. on Sunday morning December 12. He was picking someone up at the airport and had to get out. On his return he became stuck in his driveway, necessitating a great deal of work to dig himself out. City Council Member Jim Lindner played dueling snow blowers with his neighbor, as each competed to see who could plow out their own and their neighbors' driveway faster. (There was nothing else to do.) Gem Lake resident Kathy Brown tried not to let the snow storm slow her down. She had to wait for her driveway to be plowed out on December 11 so she could head to the Emergency Room to take care of a small medical problem. However, it proved to be a good day to head to the hospital. "There were only two people in the E/R, no one else could get there! I had almost no wait," said Kathy, who like a true Minnesotan ignored the snow all weekend and proceeded to do almost everything she was planning to do anyway. "I'm involved in a lot of volunteer and other activities. I didn't let the snow stop me from doing what I had to do. My daughter was wondering where I was, but she knows me, so it was okay." Kathy's uncle, Gem Lake resident Dick Arcand lost power during the storm and went to spend a few days with his daughter in New Richmond, Wisconsin. For one resident of Gem Lake who works for the Minnesota Department of Transportation, the storm itself was no big deal. "It was what to do with the snow afterwards that is the big problem."