The local name for it is “Space Management” — the ritual clearing of snow, not just to the degree needed for unimpeded movement, but obsessively cleaning out snow all the way to the exact edge of the space, whether that be a driveway or a sidewalk or whatever.

Proper space management is the extra 80% level of work needed to clear out the last 10% of space all the way down to bare concrete, and all the way out to the edges. Besides its surface utility, it also serves as a psychological bulwark against wintertime despair. Without it, the snowline creeps in further with each storm, adding to a mounting sense of defeat.

I lost ground early on this year after neglecting to shovel the first light snow, and paid for it later when I bent the blade of my most durable metal shovel in clearing off the 2” layer of pack-snow from the first half of the driveway. This moment was snapped after I’d spent the better part of an hour clearing off the latest several inches of snowfall. I may not have bare concrete on the remaining half of the driveway, but the true-edges of the space are at least clearly visible all the way around.