Blowing a little snow

CaroGirl · Nov 14, 2006

What should it be? Every winter, after the first snowfall, he snowblew/snowblowed/snowblowered her driveway.

Or should I just cop out and say: he used a snowblower to clear her driveway?

What say you?

FennelGiraffe · Nov 14, 2006

He cleared the snow off her driveway.

He blew the snow off her driveway.

He grabbed his snowblower and cleared her driveway.

But please don't use 'snowblower' as a verb.

TheIT · Nov 14, 2006

Agreed, I don't think snowblower should be used as a verb, either. It's not a copout. The snowblower is a tool which he used.

I like all of FennelGiraffe's suggestions except for "he blew". Without mentioning the snowblower, it makes him sound like the Big Bad Wolf (huff-puff).

Trivia for the day. I'm from Illinois originally where we shovel snow and scoop ice cream. I know someone from Iowa who instead scoops snow and shovels ice cream. Talk about having the right priorities.

Freckles · Nov 14, 2006

How about this: Every year, after the first snowfall, he dusted off the thin coating of snow with his shny snowblower?

arrowqueen · Nov 14, 2006

I read the title of the thread and thought you'd taken to snorting cocaine.

TrainofThought · Nov 14, 2006

I think this 'snowblowing her driveway' thread needs to be moved to Erotica.

veronie · Nov 16, 2006

I agree that a lot of people use the "just write around it" argument as a cop out. But, It's not a cop out if it makes it read clearer. I also think snowblower should not be made into a verb if it can be avoided, although a lot of other tools have met that tragic fate: hammered, sawed, etc. So it's probably a matter of time before snowblowed is accepted. (And I'd choose snowblowed out of the three.)

Unique · Nov 16, 2006

"...he used a snowblower to clear her driveway."

Nothing wrong with that - it depends on the tone of the rest of the piece.

Is it formal? Folksy? Plain speak? Technical?

He used a snowblower to clean her driveway after the city had blocked in her vehicles.

He wrestled the snowblower out of the garage and went to clean out her driveway.

Snowblowers are modern tools used to assist in snow removal.

How you say what you say depends on whom you're saying it to -
Ugh. It's early. I'm going back to blowing smoke. YMMV.

Haggis · Nov 16, 2006

Shoveled?

veronie · Nov 16, 2006

Ewe. It was late when I did some of my last few posts. Maybe snowblowered is best out of the three, but it does sound awkward.

blacbird · Nov 16, 2006

Haggis said:
Shoveled?

I was about to say the same thing. Point being, how necessary is it to the story to specify the tool used?

caw

Siddow · Nov 16, 2006

Is anyone else thinking about the movie Clerks?

Sandi LeFaucheur · Nov 17, 2006

blacbird said:
I was about to say the same thing. Point being, how necessary is it to the story to specify the tool used?

caw

If someone uses their snowblower to clear the 2 feet of snow from your drive, he's a good, friendly guy. The whole street loves the snowblower guy. (I live over the road from one.) Now, if he uses a snowshovel to do the job, he's a prince of a man who really likes you. And if he uses a teaspoon to do it, he's either off his trolley or needs to get a life.

See, it makes a big difference!

C. L. Richardson · Nov 23, 2006

I don't care if "snowblowered" is an actual word, it'll ruin the sentence.

veronie · Nov 23, 2006

Hah. You're probably right.

Blowing a little snow

CaroGirl

Living the dream

FennelGiraffe

It's green they say

TheIT

Infuriatingly Theoretical

Freckles

Oooh, the Rainbow Connection

arrowqueen

RIP, our sarky besom

TrainofThought

A flowering bud of bitchiness

veronie

practical experience, FTW

Unique

Agent of Doom

Haggis

Evil, undead Chihuahua

veronie

practical experience, FTW

blacbird

Siddow

I'm super! Thanks for asking

Sandi LeFaucheur

C. L. Richardson

veronie

practical experience, FTW