The Boston Public Schools are closed for the fifth day of the last six and the New England Patriots have postponed their Super Bowl celebration until tomorrow. Here in Southern California we miss the one spontaneous surprise of the workweek back east, the snow day. If you set aside the shoveling of snow and scraping ice off the car, it’s one of the few unexpected breaks in the work week calendar.

Sadly, according to Jesse Singal writing for New York Magazine, snow no longer provides a respite from work. In his article, ‘The Adult Snow Day is Dying, and That’s Sad’ he writes “Whatever the case, for many people, a day that would in 1995 have been spent watching the snow pile up against the windowsills, hanging out with the kids, or vegging out with daytime TV was instead spent hunched over a laptop.”

And that’s just plain sad. Because it’s ok to pause the treadmill toward success. Taking some time to flop into a snow bank to create a snow angel is a major expression of creativity. And, losing control, sledding down a hill can be good for your health. It’s hard work to be constantly in charge.

Mr. Singal continues, “The grown-up world has a tendency to strip things of their magic a bit, but the snow day still served as a wonderful stop sign from the heavens for myopic, overworked adults.” In our ever connected, telecommuting world “…snow days were one of the few remaining excuses not to be a worker for a little while.”

Snow days are incredibly quiet. The blanket of flakes smothers the sound of commerce. And you can actually think. Maybe it’s time to yield to the “stop sign from the heavens”, disconnect from the electronic and listen to the quiet. Even if your snow day is only a few hours, take the time to enjoy the break.