On The Other Hand...

You know, sometimes I can get all touchy feely in this here blog. Like my last entry. I dazzled all of you with my descriptions of Minnesota as the winter paradise that it can be, having convinced myself that I am becoming a native of this here Upper Midwest Popsicle.

Let me tell ya something, though. Just because I have convinced myself that I am fast becoming a native doesn’t mean that I cannot complain about my adopted home.

After I got over the first enchanting snowfall, I was then treated to eight more inches of the stuff, which has accumulated over the past two days or so. Enchanted no more, I am glued to the traffic report on television in the morning. I have envisioned my own imaginary encounter with a tractor trailer while driving these sometimes treacherous roads.

Being cautious is important to me. However, I don’t think it bears as much weight on many of the drivers around me. Yes, you have witnessed my diatribe on other drivers before: http://heffalumpseye.blogspot.com/2005/11/open-letter-to-my-fellow-motorists.html But now you have to take my prior rant out of its original context and couple it up with ice and snow. I mean, WTF people? So there. I am not so totally brainwashed that I would actually enjoy the whole “driving in it” thing. I just don’t.

I’m not bad at driving in it. On the way home from Thanksgiving, I lost control of the Xterra on very icy roads about four hours Up Nort. I lost control, and then I got it back again. But not before I had fishtailed into a full spin, which I believe I executed twice before managing to point ‘er forward and pull over safely.

Tim was in front of me with his buddy Pete, watching his rearview mirror in horror until I was at a safe stop. I had a small dog, a fourteen year old girl and a borderline hysteric in my vehicle with me at the time. I remember talking through the whole incident as if I were some 60’s stewardess: “Okay, it looks like we’re going to fishtail a little bit. Don’t panic, we are still on the road. Okay, we’re going to spin around. We’re still on the road, just hang on.” And then it was over. The fourteen year old girl wanted to do it again. I just wanted to vomit.

The point being that I would not have spun crazy out of control had the road not be ENCASED in a layer of ice. A Zamboni could not have done a better job. Once pulled over with Tim in front of me on the shoulder, he got out of his truck to check on us and SLID to our vehicle. So there you go. Minnesota, although lovely and glorious with its amazing sky (blah blah blah, Jenn) is also a death trap.

I have to mention as well that I have been socked into an episode of Seasonal Affective Disorder as of late. This place is bleak in the winter. There are maybe two hours of sunlight a day in deep winter. Alright, alright, I exaggerate. However, sunlight hardly counts to me if I can only enjoy it trapped behind glass on the 29th floor of a building downtown all the while fearing the cold outside. It would be nice if I caught a glimpse of sun in the morning and had a couple of hours of it to do with as I please once my long ass commute has come to an end in the afternoon.

Ah Spring. I barely knew ye.

After the winter solstice December 21st, though, I am looking forward to milking every added on minute of every day that passes until probably February.

Then there will be an entire extra hour to play with.

Whee.