Snowfall

It looks like it is going to be an unusual winter in the Hoosier State. We have just gotten our second major snow fall in just two weeks. It has been a beautiful winter landscape, but I'm going to hate it when I have to get behind the wheel of the school bus tomorrow. I'll be back on the road with the same people who were running 10 miles over the speed limit on snow covered roads yesterday. Yes, I was out in it. It is Christmas, and you have to shop sometime. Just to top off the day, I went to the grocery store for "bread and milk". That is an interesting phenomenon that has been occurring ever since the blizzard of 1978. At the first mention of snow (it matters not how little) the grocery shelves are cleared of both bread and milk. Since I have lived over half a century and given global warming, I don't expect to ever be snowed in for a week again; but evidently many people do. I truly just needed to pick up a few things for the pitch-in dishes I have to fix this week. Add snow panic to the panic that sets in 10 days before Christmas and you have the insanity that was the supermarket yesterday. After listening to the worst case scenario of the weather forecasters the storm for which we were all bracing,in anticipation or dread depending on your perspective, sort of fizzled. Our 8-12 inches is more like 4-6 inches, but there is an added layer of ice that we weren't expecting. It was bad enough for church to be cancelled today and they are asking us to stay off the roads. The winds have picked up and there is drifting. I am still thinking that clear in the morning or not I will be driving the little ones to school. So, say a little prayer for all us drivers in the morning; we will need all the help we can get. Is it Winter Break yet?

Winter Wonders

It has been a tough week for bus drivers here in the Hoosier State. We have had snow, below freezing temperatures, and freezing fog. Today we are getting some freezing drizzle, but today I can just sip my tea and look out the window. I would much rather view winter from the comfort of my living room. My job, however, requires me to be out in it. I am still surprised at how long it takes people to get the hang of driving in bad weather. In the space of a quarter of a mile I counted no less than five cars that had slid off the road. Now, you would think that after the first car hit the ditch everyone would have eased off the gas pedal. Nope!! They just decided to give the first car some company as he waited for the tow truck. That must have been a lucrative run for the two tow trucks that came to pull them out. I know there were two; because I had made it through, safely delivered my students, and got the treat of watching for twenty minutes while the rescue blocked the road. I am evidently a little slow on the learning curve too, or I would have thought of a way to go around that mess. On the up side, the morning of the freezing fog was a visual treat. While it was still dark, the fog banks floated above the ground illuminated by the lights of cars, traffic lights and street lamps. When the sun came up, it showed us trees, shrubs and grasses dressed all in white, covered in rime ice, and sparkling in the light like it was jeweled. It was lovely. It would have been lovelier from the comfort of my easy chair with a hot cup of tea in hand. I wonder what next week holds for us.

Say a Prayer

Please say a prayer for all the drivers in this area. The local Department of Transportation has given them a puzzle they may not be able to solve. What is this confusing bit of newness they have had thrown at them, you ask? It is a traffic circle or round-about. Actually two such intersections, and they are different in their traffic patterns. I know you are sitting there in utter disbelief, but it is true. Though these bits of traffic efficiency are commonplace in Europe and even on the East Coast here in the States, they are all but unknown here in the middle of Indiana's corn fields. We are quite civilized in many respects. I don't want you to think that we are all red-necked illiterates walking around in overalls with a blade of hay sticking out of our gap-toothed mouths. We are most of us intelligent, educated, well read, and somewhat well traveled. But this is new to a huge number of our citizens. I admire the way these circles can handle the increased traffic in our area, and I am lucky enough to be familiar with them in my travels to England. I don't know what possessed the powers that be. After all, many of these drivers have yet to get a handle on the concept of turn signals and merging onto highways. This could lead to a huge increase in traffic fatalities. I get to manuever a 36 foot long school bus through these intersection. If you don't know, most people will do anything to stay out from behind any bus. This includes looking straight at me only 4 feet away and pulling out anyway. Then just to balance things out, there are the confused older people who get to where I am waiting to enter the circle and come to a complete stop, threatening imminent collision. They really should have had a required class. On second thought, maybe classes on the use of something simpler like the use of turn signals; and then we can tackle traffic circles.

First Attempt

Here I am with a soapbox of my own. There are not a few of my family and friends who would shudder at that piece of news. Not that I am opinionated, but they would tell you that I have one on any topic and will share with or without invitation. Why this sterling quality doesn't endear me to everyone is beyond me. I am no woman of mystery. What I think is usually streaming out of my mouth. I will admit that I was nervous of giving this blogging thing a try. I was convinced that I would arrive at a blank screen with a blank mind and that is how it would remain. We will see. Stinking Billy, it is all your fault.