Committed in 2011...

So far, I've only committed to updating my blog more frequently this year... when I post this, I'll have succeeded! There is some logic in keeping expectations low so it's easier to meet them, hmm?

In my last post, I mentioned 'talking ourselves sick'. The roads here are nothing to brag about, and many of us have been saying, "I'm sick of it..." I've been trying to catch myself when this thought pops up, but it is a pretty accurate assessment of the road conditions over the past several weeks - ever since the freezing rain, followed by snow and a drop in temps.

Salt doesn't do much good, in that we haven't warmed up enough to make much difference. The main highways (i.e. 210 and 371) are better now, but all side roads, secondary pavement, and in-town streets continue to be challenging. (Nicely put, that.)

I called the plow-guys personally, and they kindly dropped off a 30-gallon can of sand at the end of our drive, which has trapped more than usual number of vehicles this year. I chiseled ice off for 4 hours yesterday, and it's still packed; if I can get a 'running start' out the drive, I can almost swim the car up to our back road and gingerly creep to one of the main highways.

It isn't just me, and I am trying to make a point - not just whining. 371 is a 4-lane road, and the 'fast lane' was scooting along at 45 mph earlier this week after the plows had been out. I heard the highway department finally 'spread some stuff on the road' after a lady crashed into a state trooper driving on it.

Now, we all know that feeling of driving 30 - 40 miles an hour on a road that should be good at twice the speed (okay, 60 mph then), clutching the steering wheel and scanning every few feet of road for 'complications' while bouncing in ruts and slipping around curves and aiming for every inch that appears 'clean', wondering if the oncoming vehicle will let us hog the inside lane where there's a bit more sand or if we might end up sliding into their lane...

These ARE 'the good roads' lately? The 'bad roads' slow me down to 10 - 20 mph, depending on if I'm going up a hill or around a corner, if I need to plow through several inches of snow or if it's packed glaze. Towne's about the same way, and has been for weeks. Yeah, I logged several hundred miles of these roads this month, earning a paycheck and just wishing the weather would break kindly here while gripping the wheel and staring fifteen feet in front of the car.

And... I was thinking, "I'm sick of it... sick, sick, sick..." I kept correcting my thinking, but my body said, "Hey, you need a time-out and you can't justify it unless you're 'sick' - so voila! - you're sick!" I did take a day of down-time, but realized 'getting sick' just makes life more difficult, so sweated it off by chiseling ice in three layers of clothes for many hours.

I don't have to 'be sick' and I don't really have the patience for it, but I can readily admit I have a whopping case of Spring Fever that won't be cured soon. Weather predictions continue to be 'cold / snow' and I am now avoiding the Weather Channel. If anyone mentions the word 'green' to me, I become delusional and start fantasizing about trees and birds and sunshine on bare arms.

Yeah, and I bet you could take this mental break too, so... picture a spring day in a field, with daisies and tulips and violets, apple trees blooming profusely in pink and white, blue sky with small clouds gliding across it, a brook softly gurgling nearby; watch a bumble bee flitting in amongst the apple blossoms, darting from tree to tree... kick off your shoes and dabble your feet in the water, rolling up your pant legs even as you know they'll still get damp... feel the sun on your arms and face while you listen to the bird songs... kick back, watch the bee, and take a trip on me...