Winter is Wrecking Us

Just when I thought Mother Nature had handed us her worst blows, I was shown otherwise.  Monday, January 25, 2010, was by far the worst day for us this winter.  Looking back, I think it was because the blizzard we received that day took us by surprise.  We were expecting snow, but never dreamed less than two inches of the stuff could stop us in our tracks.  I don't know if the weather forecasters were just sick and tired of giving us bad news, or they assumed that by now we were smart enough to figure out that gusting winds with a little snow automatically means blizzard conditions. 

Drew is the one I am always most concerned about.  He has to drive about 100 miles in the dark to get to work.  Like us, he has no idea how bad the road conditions are until he is on them.  Monday, visibility wasn't the only worry.  Snow drifts were streaking onto the highways which were already patchy with ice and snow.  Add to that gusting winds and you're in for a white-knuckle drive no matter how far you have to travel, even in the light of day.

Drew called me around 7:00 a.m.  I answered the phone by saying, "I'm worried about you."  He said, "you should be, I just rolled my truck on the Interstate".   Fortunately he was not injured beyond bumps and bruises, but my nerves were as wrecked as his vehicle and there was no promise of them being any better until he was safe at home.

 

Glen said he would go get him and I said, "not without me!"  There was no way I was going to be able to concentrate on anything at work anyway.  I think Glen agreed to let me ride along because I've been doing a good job of being a passenger lately.  I'm okay as long as I keep my eyes closed because then I'm able to keep my mouth shut.  

 

Thanks to a great deal of luck and Drew's friend, State Trooper Kastner, who just happened to be traveling (off duty) on Interstate 80 at the time of the mishap, Glen and I only had to travel as far as Harlan to retrieve our accident victim. Still, it was a feat in and of itself getting all of us back home.  The one mile of gravel road that runs from the highway to our house was drifted shut by the time we got back.  Our neighbors were kind enough to invite us into their home while we waited for another neighbor who was kind enough to drive his tractor several miles over here to open the road for us.  Goodness, but we were a needy lot that day.

 

Tuesday morning it was same stuff, different tractor.  This is the neighbor who opens the road so he can get to his hog unit for chores twice each day at dawn and dusk.  We are extremely grateful for all who have come to our rescue over and over and over again this winter.  

Guess what.  It's supposed to snow this weekend.  Ug.