Today, the drive in to work took almost one and one half hours... much longer than usual. It was because of the terrible fog. For the majority of the ride, I could see the distance of only two and three car lengths in front of me. There were some very scary moments with lots of folks slamming on their brakes at various points, and I saw one wreck occur. Nothing serious, thankfully. What I can't understand is how someone can be out in a situation like that... merging in and out of traffic on a highway with that low of visibility... and not turn on their lights!!! It's been a law for a while now to have lights on when one has turned on their windshield wipers, and seeing cars in the rain is difficult enough. This fog situation is ten times worse. I think some people don't get the point as they think the lights are a waste because it doesn't help them see any better in the fog. The point isn't for them to see better. The point is for all of us to better see them!
By the time I reached work, I had gone pretty far west, and the fog was disappearing in the sunlight here on the Missouri side of the river. And, now, I can see what arrived on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The sections of the St. Louis metro received between 6 and 8 inches of snow over the weekend. The plows have been busy at work. The snow is too dry and won't pack very well for anything bigger than a softball size snowball. So, no snowman for me yet.
Wish I had a water hose. :)Sadly, church services could not be held. And, two churches farther north in Illinois where my family attend also had to call off services because of the ice and drifting snow. But, thankfully, by this morning, many more roads were cleared, and we pray for safety as the snow will surely melt and refreeze back and forth in the upcoming days.
While some of the readers of this blog are not big fans of the snow or "winter cheer", I have to admit that I would love for the snow to stick around a little while. Going home for Christmas while there is snow on the ground always makes the trip seem extra special. Of course, I can't be satisfied, and I have to be picky... as I don't want there to be TOO MUCH snow. I can't help recall two Christmas trips which were quite "interesting", to say the least. Let's see... there was the time in 2002 when it took me almost 7 hours to get home (usually less than a 3 hour drive) through the snow storm (12 inches) on Christmas eve... and I ended up in the ditch out in the country where my cell phone wouldn't work. (I thank God there are good Samaritans.) And then there was the time back in 1999 when I was returning to work on New Years Day after being home for Christmas, became trapped in a blizzard (result of 14 inches), and was snowed in at a hotel in Hannibal, MO for two days before I could be plowed out. (Was thankful for receiving the absolute last delivery of the weekend by Domino's Pizza on Friday the first night, Hardee's being open for a short while the next morning, and the hotel owner's stash of change for the vending machines for the rest of the stay.)
So, yes, a little goes a long way, but it would be great to have just a little snow for Christmas. Just a little.
4 comments:
For some reason I've really enjoyed this snow, though don't tell anyone as it'd tarnish the image I have cultivated of hating winter weather. But it has been nice, and beautiful. And now that the walks are clear at work and home and I don't need eskimo boots to get around, I can enjoy the beauty of it.
I'd forgotten about some of your Snow Adventures of the past, and reading them reminded me of your telling of some of those stories, and the laughs I had about that. Hopefully you won't have any of those experiences this Christmas, and I hope I don't either!
We were driving home from St. Paul, MN on Saturday in all of that mess. It is an extra long trip when you can only drive 20 or 30 mph! We ended up spending the night in Springfield. The road conditions were about the worst I've ever seen!
in a quiet and mousey voice
I've never seen enough snow in one place for a softball size snowball. The one time in the blizzard of '93 we had almost an inch and a half, and we made very tiny little snow balls which flew into powder before they hit anything.
I'll admit that snow is beautiful and I actually like it around Christmas time. According to my calculations that means the snow has exactly 6 days to melt. After Christmas, it's not fun anymore. My problem with winter is not really the snow but the cold. I hate being cold. I don't like not being able to complete full thoughts in my own head. I walk outside and start to think about something, "You know what I think I'll do to--Man, it's cold out here!"
Post a Comment