Innocently enough, it had began with a few, lazy and fat snowflakes in the early afternoon. These initial few flakes had recruited friends, though, and the friends had recruited friends, the process continuing until the city was wrapped in a cold, white blanket of precipitation.


Schools were the first to close early, and the students ran out of their classrooms and the school buildings eager to make snow men and snow angels prior to trudging home through the snow to enjoy some hot showers. After the schools closed, the work places of the adults in the city also decided it best to shut down for the day. Sticking to their motto of valuing their employees above all else, bosses wished them a safe journey home as their employees walked through snowy parking lots to dust off the cars that waited for them.

The drive home was slow and treacherous for most. For Trish Garcia, it was no different. Creeping along the highway at thirty miles per hour, both front and rear defoggers on high, and windshield wipers frantically going this way and that, she was still having a tough time trying to see a cautious path for her vehicle to follow. Oh, how she wished to get home!

When she did arrive at her house, she saw her Dave had already beat her home.

“Your work let you out early, too, eh?” she asked him.

“Hey! Yes, they did,” he replied. “Got home about ten minutes ago. Was trying to clear off this driveway a bit so it was easier for you to get up it.”

She stumbled a bit on the makeshift path from the driveway to the house that Dave had made in the quickly accumulating snow. She teetered, trying to shift her weight to the foot on stable ground. It was too late though; she was about to go down!

An arm caught her just as she knew she was going to fall, and steadied her rightfully onto her feet. “Thanks, babe,” she said appreciatively.

Dave nodded. “Was the least that I could do since I’ve invited some friends over tonight without asking you first,” he said.

“Dave!,” Trish yelled. “Tonight of all nights? Why can’t you and your buddies head over to the bar?,” she asked.

“Bar is closed. This storm has gotten everybody scared. You mind, honey?,” he asked.

“No, it’s alright, but you’re cleaning up after them,” she told him.

The group of friends that came over to Trish and Dave Garcia’s house were in good spirits. The snow was coming down thickly now, and they were sure that there would be no school or work tomorrow.

One of the couples that had walked on over to the Garcia’s came up to Trish and Dave, who were busy preparing food in the kitchen.

“Trish. Dave. We really want to thank you for having us here tonight. Ordinarily, we would probably just be at home, sitting on our keisters!,” remarked Natasha.

“Oh, don’t mention it,” Dave replied. “Trish here thought of it and it’s good to have everybody together.”

Natasha’s partner, Leo, spoke next, saying, “Now, there’s a question that I want to ask you two, Trish and Dave. I guess that I’m here on behalf of the whole group.”

“Alright, shoot,” said Dave.

“Well,” continued Leo, “we have a bit of a bet going on downstairs as to where you got this delicious beer that you’ve been serving us all evening. Most people down there say it’s some microbrew. Natasha and I, on the other hand, have noted how fresh and refreshing it is. I don’t think that I can remember having a beer that tasted so fresh, so we think that you went to the trouble of visiting the brewery a few towns over and picking up those suds. Now, who’s right?”

Trish and Dave smiled at each other before Trish answered. “You’re both wrong and you’re both righ!”

“Hmm?,” asked Leo.

“The beer is definitely from a mircrobrewery and it certainly is fresh, so you’re right in those respects, but we didn’t go too far to get it. Cooper’s All-in-one Home Brewing Kits. 6 Gallons of brewery crafted beer that you can buy to use in your own house! We use it all the time…and we fool people all the time into thinking that a wise, old brewmaster made the beer. In reality, we’re your wise brewmasters!”

“Well, I never would have expected it. It sure beats stamp collecting! ” said Leo. “I’m going to have to get one of their kits for myself. You know, the weather people are calling this a perfect storm and I can see why.”

“Why is that, Leo?,” asked Trish.

Takin a sip of his beer, Leo said, “Because it has led me to the perfect brew!”