The snow had pretty much stopped, but the sleet was still falling, sometimes at a fairly brisk pace.

As I drove through downtown with my daughter Pitt, I saw a man operating a snowblower in front of The Flower Shoppe.

I pulled over into the parking lot on Campen Street and made my way to where the man was working.

Turns out, it was Rick Mustian, one of the town's public works employees.

The collar on his coat was turned up and his shoulders were hunched as if to keep the blowing snow out of the coat.

He pushed the snow blower back and forth across the sidewalk, then turned around the corner, throwing more snow off the sidewalk.

I stood out there long enough to get several pictures of Rick doing his work. I wrote down his name in my notebook then hurriedly tiptoed accross the street to my truck.

I'm not sure how long he was out there doing that work, but if you've never operated a snowblower, it does blow the snow with a pretty powerful burst. Most of the snow - but not all of it - travels out, away from the machine and the person operating it. Some, is blown back right into the face of the operator. It doesn't look like that much fun, even if the sight is one that catches the attention of every passerby.

Rick Mustian wasn't the only person out working Saturday. Others were cleaning off their driveways. Emergency scanners crackled with activity, although there wasn't nearly as much as I expected to hear.

The folks getting those calls got out in the snow and sleet and tried to help the folks they went to see. Still others, like Rick, were clearing streets as part of their work. Rick Holst, another public works employee, spent the early hours Saturday trying to keep the streets from getting covered in the snow. About 4 a.m., falling behind, he stopped to let Mother Nature take its course. Later in the morning, he was back at work, trying to clear the streets again.

I asked Holst how the town decides which streets to clean first. His answer made sense. They clean off the road near the police department, fire department and rescue squad first.

Then they clean major thoroughfares. Residential streets come next, one neighborhood at the time.

I was relieved to hear him say they won't leave the ice on any streets to melt on its own.

It's hard not to marvel at a winter storm. They just aren't all that common around here. They inspire all sorts of fun and plenty of trepidation among those who must drive in it.

But a winter storm also means a lot of extra work. I'm glad it's a job someone's willing to do.

Their hard work meant more time for lazy people like me to play and enjoy the winter wonderland that our yard became Friday night.