My sister Alissa and her daughter Rachel arrived on Thursday and have been staying with us while visiting colleges in the Boston area. After returning from an extended family lunch I decided to instigate a snowball fight with the girls. First, I coaxed them outside to lend scale to a photograph of the enormous snow pile that sits upon our deck. Then I showed them how much fun it was to launch mortars at Nala (high lofted snow bombs). Finally, I accused them of throwing like “girls” when their attempts at aerial bombardment proved largely unsuccessful. That was all it took to provoke all out warfare. In retrospect, I should have thought longer about the merits of a two against one show down with a pair of athletic teenagers. The girls immediately split up and attacked me with cross fire. One would attack while the other reloaded. Maya would launch a mortar immediately followed by a direct shot making it difficult to dodge both. When the snow stopped flying I was physically exhausted and thoroughly defeated. Our battle had taken us all around the yard and, to Jeanine’s great consternation, through the house, where I had sought, unsuccessfully, to gain refuge.