Like my late Dad, I'm pretty much a weather forecast hound--especially in the winter. Unlike a lot of people, I actually enjoy winter. I find it exhilarating and full of adventure when the weather forecasts are considered bad by other people's standards. Right now, we're recovering from a beaut of a winter storm and the roads have been a nightmare. Even this storm hasn't dampened my love for the harsh elements, so I guess I'm a hopeless romantic when it comes to winter.
The whole region I reside in goes really bonkers at the slightest hint of an accumulating snow or ice forecast. We mob the grocery stores, descending like vultures to pick the shelves bare of staples like bottled water, bread, milk, and of course, nobody's going to be snowbound without a load of soft drinks and frozen dinners! I couldn't even find one can of Wal-Mart tuna left on the shelf!
Usually all this snow forecast shopping hysteria is for nothing, and we wind up getting a dusting of snow to no more than an inch...
But not this time
This time, the forecast was extra bad, with wild predictions of 4, 8, 12 inches of snow, followed by ice and fire-breathing dragons for the area, and everybody really freaked, especially since the weather forecast dire predictions ballooned unexpectedly. For once, I was caught off guard and actually hadn't shopped for awhile. Our supplies were legitimately low, so off we went on a round of critical errands, leaving home much later than we intended.
Unfortunately, I'd let the errands stack up, and by the time we got to Wal-Mart, it was already snowing.
Now for others, that's not really a reason to panic, but we live in a rural area and were 50 miles away from home. By the time we got out of Wal-Mart, it was really snowing and the roads were getting covered.
I had pulled out of the parking lot with my heart in my throat, mentally planning the safest route, praying we'd get home safely while driving very carefully. I started up a hill, lost all traction, spun and slid into a guard rail.
Thank God, neither Mom nor I was hurt. Thank God I hadn't hit another car or living thing. I jumped out of the Suzuki to inspect the damage, which was considerable, to the front bumper on the driver's side. The adage about never leaving the scene of an accident whisked through my mind, but it hit me that I'm blocking the road and another vehicle could very likely slide into our Suzuki and cause far greater damage, and not just to us. I also remembered that I'd just dropped down to nothing but state required liability only car insurance, and there was utterly no point in contacting the police or the insurance company. The guard rail certainly didn't care whether I called the cops, either, so I popped back in the Suzuki, thankful and shaken, backed up, and drove to a side street to call Husband John.
Husband John lives and works in town all week and rarely comes home mid-week, but I was fervently hoping he'd make an exception, meet us and drive us the 50 miles home.
I informed Husband John about the demise of the bumper and told him nobody was hurt. I asked his advice about putting the Suzuki in 4 wheel drive, a function with which I'm not familiar. He advised me that 4 wheel drive on the Suzuki must be done only if the pavement was wet or snow/ice covered, otherwise it automatically reverts with a resounding WHUMP to normal drive. He also said I couldn't drive over 40 m.p.h. in 4 wheel drive without throwing the Suzuki into a spin. I don't know what fool would drive over 40 m.p.h. in those conditions anyhow, so the speed wasn't a problem.
Facing a 50 mile drive home with my ailing elderly Mother, deteriorating road conditions and the unfamiliar 4 wheel drive function, I was purely terrified. I started to say something about if I never talked to Husband John again, but he interrupted me, assuring me he'd get home to run the wood furnace and keep the place warm.
So much for chivalry. I said goodbye and hung up.
Thank God, next to the side street was an empty parking lot. I put the Suzuki in 4 wheel drive, with the car moving and cussing me in shrieks because I did it wrong, so I stopped the car and tried again. That time the 4 wheel light popped on. I hesitated, then decided to practice a bit before getting back on the road.
