Michigan Avenue was the old Chicago Road long before it was neon and traffic, and it still carries Dearborn to work every winter morning. When a clipper comes down out of Alberta overnight and leaves four inches on everything, Al's Mow & Snow is out plowing driveways and lots so the first shift never has to think about it. Salt goes down at the apron and along the walk to the door, where the ice likes to hide. There is no applause for a drive that is simply open at six in the morning — that silence is the work. Storm after storm, the route runs until the last pass is finished.