Flurries Saturday afternoon blew up into a full-fledged storm, burying campus in a foot of snow by yesterday morning.
The storm brought the first large accumulation of snow this year, and with midterms approaching, those outside yesterday were the few and the proud.
Wharton senior Raymond Win stood among them. He said his friends wait for each year's first snow to play football.
"We're all seniors here. We've been doing it since freshman year," he said. We "come out here first snow, and it's a blast."
On the field next to Gregory College House, Win's teammates stomped through the snow to make a tackle. Football games raged on across campus, from College Green to the Quadrangle to Superblock near the high rises.
On the field in front of Harrison College House, College junior Lynn Haimowitz took cover from a flying snowball.
Haimowitz, who is preparing for midterms next week, said going outside was the perfect way to blow off steam.
Engineering sophomore Chelsea Specht said she loves snow, but today's storm takes second place to her two midterms.
"I really don't think any amount of snow could get me outside. I just have way too much work," Specht said.
The snow deadened traffic on Walnut and Spruce streets, but local eateries said they didn't see much of a slowdown.
At 40th Street Mexican restaurant Qdoba, Manager Lamer Steptoe said business was slower yesterday than on most Sundays.
"The businesspeople in this area and the teachers, they can't make it," she said. "But the students are always there and they're always hungry."
Taoufik Eklathi, who delivers for the Greek Lady on 40th Street, said the restaurant saw an increase in delivery orders. But with his feet cold and his car unsteady in the snow, runs were treacherous, he said. Fortunately, students seem to have acknowledged his efforts.
"They're tipping well," he said. "I mean, 50 percent. Nice people tip more."
The storm also caused power failures for about 500 local residents and cancelled half the flights at the Philadelphia International Airport.
