Snow falls on Allston

Hollywood snow floats down on Allston, fluffy flakes sparkling beneath the streetlights and muffling the traffic sounds. For two desperate hours, cars inch down Brighton Avenue toward the turnpike for a longer crawl to suburban homes. But by evening, the street belongs to intrepid, grinning pedestrians who mince along slippery sidewalks to procure the elements of survival on a snowy night: frozen dinners, beer, DVDs. A shopkeeper sweeps the white fluff away to invite customers inside. Most folks dress as for a polar expedition, but a few women show off their urban winter chic in fur-topped, high-heel boots and pricey felt hats.

A television newscast predictably gives New England winter the “breaking news” treatment, complete with a reporter in a parka standing beside a clogged highway in swirling snow.

A few hours later, the snow has stopped and the spell is broken. Wet pavement whooshes under tires, muddy black strips form along the edges of the pristine white blanket and the neighborhood resumes an ordinary Thursday night.