On Monday morning, the Green was covered with a blanket of snow! Might be tough to shovel this car out. Margaret Smith spent Monday morning shoveling a path through the sidewalks on parts of Chapel and Park streets. As a blizzard hammered the city with more than 16 inches of snow Monday m orning, Margaret Smith was out shoveling. Smith, 55, worked to carve a walkable path through the sidewalks along Chapel and Park streets, extending from Book Trader Café to Viva Cantina. “I’m not afraid to work,” Smith said, while shielding her face from gusts of icy wind. With a laugh, she added, “But I’m crazy!” Smith said a friend hired her for the job. While that friend drove her to Chapel Street, to get home, she’ll need to trek two miles by foot. After that, she said, she plans to collapse into bed and “take a long nap.” A few blocks away, the Dunkin’ at 1179 Chapel St. was one of the only businesses open on Monday morning. Inside, two customers — Christina and Julia — ordered a strawberry frosted donut. Christina had been visiting Julia, a medical student who lives nearby, when the blizzard began. Considering their plans for the rest of the day, Christina said, “We’re just gonna stay cozy and do crafts.” “I probably need to study,” Julia added, with a sigh. Behind the counter, an employee said she drove through the blizzard to make it to her shift at Dunkin’. “I didn’t want to stay home,” the employee said. “I’m not used to it. I have to be at work.” Within an hour of opening, she said 10 people had come through the door. “People run on Dunkin’, for real,” she said. “I’m gonna go home, watch TV, and relax with my kids” after closing up shop, the employee said. As I headed home myself, Mallika Okert stopped me on the street, scolded me for being outside without a hat, and invited me upstairs for tea. Over Sri Lankan tea, bananas, and homemade bread, Okert, 64, spoke about spending years between the U.S., Oman, Kuwait, Dubai, and Sri Lanka. After her second husband died in 2016, she moved back to New Haven, where she’s lived ever since. Now she shares her home with two cats, a small turtle, and Eswaran Patnam, who emigrated from southern India more than 25 years ago. (For that entire time, Patnam has been on an employment-based visa. Due to the long backlog of Indian migrants seeking permanent status, Patnam’s green card application is still pending.) Okert said she often invites strangers in from the cold for hot tea and homemade food. “It’s too cold outside,” she said. “I want to help.” She recalled once seeing a man eating out of a garbage can near Dunkin’. “It was too much. My heart broke,” she said. She stopped her car and gave him bananas and biscuits. Patnam, too, gives away money and food, often to people back home. “Life is a journey, and during this journey, so many humans touch base. It’s part of God’s plan,” he reasoned. Okert nodded in agreement. She added, “I don’t have [money], but that’s okay. Whatever I have, I give.” Mallika Okert loves to give people warm food and beverages through the cold weather. Kiki, after being moved off the radiator, curled up on a chair next to Okert. The post Shoveling For 1; Dunkin’ For 2; Tea For 3 appeared first on New Haven Independent. ...read more read less