Front Steps

During the winter just after snowstorms, Leo, Eddie and I, shovels on shoulders, often hit the streets looking for work. Shoveling sidewalks and walkways was our game. We found the side streets of Tremaine, Elmwood and Waverly some of the more lucrative stops to find work. They were streets on Leo's evening paper route, so he had some knowledge of where we were stopping. We weren't fools though. The long driveways on certain houses were left for others. Front steps, walkways and sidewalks were where we made our money. We usually got between a buck or two each per stop, depending on our time and snow moved. In light snow and three of us furiously throwing snow, we could make some serious spending cash that never saw the marble floors of local banks. There were some casualties though. One 'hit' home to me when Eddie's shovel went astray and caught me just above my left eye. I was tough though. A little snow on the mitten, dabbing the eye area a few times and all the was left was a trace of bloody snow at my feet... and we were off to the next stop.