Two seasons: winter and construction (1986); OT: photo

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TWO SEASONS: WINTER AND ROAD REPAIR/CONSTRUCTION

TWO SEASONS + WINTER AND CONSTRUCTION--1,400 Google hits, 412 Google hits
TWO SEASONS + WINTER AND ROAD--369 Google hits, 358 Google Groups hits

I was going through some Chicago weather stuff and this came up. Is it a Chicago phrase? A Minneapolis phrase? How old is it?

I don't know what Fred Shapiro or JL (not related to my ex-wife JLo) have for "two seasons." The digitized CHICAGO TRIBUNE (up to 1953) doesn't have it. Newspaperarchive has a few Chicago newspapers now.


(PROQUEST HISTORICAL NEWSPAPERS)
Going Nowhere
ANNA QUINDLEN. New York Times (1857-Current file). New York, N.Y.: Jun 23, 1993. p. A23 (1 page):
Like-minded women sighed and said, "It's going to be a long summer." In Minneapolis and St. Paul, where people joke that there are only two seasons, winter and road work, you don't hear that line very much.


(WWW.NEWSPAPERARCHIVE.COM)
 Daily Herald  Friday, April 14, 1989 Chicago, Illinois
...perspec- tive on are TWO SEASONS WINTER AND CONSTRUCTION consider one.....would be like if there were more than TWO SEASONS in Illinois says the golf..

  Daily Herald  Thursday, April 11, 1991 Chicago, Illinois
...about there being two seasons in Chica WINTER AND CONSTRUCTION' Here's the.....or letting driv ers drive through the WINTER with no striping at all As that..

  Chronicle Telegram  Monday, June 24, 1991 Elyria, Ohio
...C-5 Saskatchewan only has 2 SEASONS, WINTER AND ROAD construction Outside my.....farm progress show. "There are only TWO SEASONS in said my young Canadian..

  Herald  Monday, December 06, 1993 Chicago, Illinois
...you truly believe there are only TWO SEASONS in the Chicago area WINTER AND.....bridges all WINTER long unless we get TWO feet of said Ken resident engineer..


(PROQUEST NEWSPAPERS)
Light-rail transit is an alternative that the Twin Cities should pursue; [METRO Edition]
Phyllis McQuaid. Minneapolis Star and Tribune. Minneapolis, Minn.: Feb 24, 1986. pg. 11.A
Abstract:
The old adage that "Minnesota has two seasons - winter and road repair'' has probably never been more fitting. Can anyone recall road construction and repair as extensive as last year's? And the Highway Department expects matters will only get worse. Interstate Hwy. 94, for example, is scheduled to be resurfaced in about two years.

Making highway work less of a trial; [NORTH SPORTS FINAL, C Edition]
Charles McLean, Former operations manager, Illinois Department of Transportation.. Chicago Tribune (pre-1997 Fulltext). Chicago, Ill.: Mar 16, 1992. pg. 20
Yes, we'll soon be hearing that tired annual phrase: "There are only two seasons in Chicago-winter and road construction."

HEIR ENTHUSIASM NEVER FLAGS AT WORK ON THE TRI-STATE; [LAKE FINAL Edition]
Anne Gowen. Tribune Staff Writer.. Chicago Tribune (pre-1997 Fulltext). Chicago, Ill.: Jun 26, 1994. pg. 1
Who was it who said there are two seasons in Chicago: winter and construction?

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COMPLETELY OFF TOPIC:

A photo of me and someone who makes even less money (he works for the city for one dollar!):

http://www.barrypopik.com/article/2/about-the-site-editor