walk in the snow

English

Etymology

From a remark by Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Eliott Trudeau (1919-2000) on February 29, 1984, describing how he made his decision to retire.

Pronunciation

• (Canada) IPA^(key): [ˈwɒ(ː)k ɪn ðə ˈsno(ʊ̯)]

• Audio (General Australian):

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• Audio (US):

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Noun

walk in the snow (plural walks in the snow)

1. (Canada, chiefly politics, idiomatic) An occasion when a momentous career decision is made, especially a decision to resign or retire.
   • 1984 March 1, Charlotte Montgomery, Thomas Walkom, “Pierre Trudeau steps down. New leader likely by end of June”, in Globe and Mail, Toronto, page 1:

     Mr. Trudeau told reporters yesterday he made the decision to put an end to almost 16 years in office after a long, solitary walk Tuesday night through a blinding Ottawa blizzard. . . . "It was a great walk in the snow."

   • 2002, “Shuffle in the snow; Politics in Canada”, in The Economist, volume 362, number 8256, page 49:

     "I went for a walk in the snow last night—and I'm staying." So said Jean Chretien on January 15th, varying the phrase with which Pierre Trudeau announced his sudden resignation as Canada's prime minister in 1984.

   • 2006 December 4, Mike Blanchfield, Norma Greenaway, “Ignatieff takes his own walk in the snow”, in Calgary Herald, Alberta, page A9:

     Even in defeat, Ignatieff could not shake even one more Trudeau comparison. Trudeau's historic long walk in the snow came in February 1984.