Taking It One Day at a Time

Just keep it between the ditches.

Yesterday's drive in was worse than I expected. I figured that despite the freezing rain and ice we'd gotten over night and the 6" of snow we had North of Nashville, that the main roads and interstate would be pretty clear. Not the case, despite the plows and salt trucks running around the clock. There are just too many heavily traveled, twisty roads in the Metro area for the few plows. So I crawled along hoping I was in my lane and when the oncoming car came around the turn, that they were in theirs. It took me 38 minutes to get 4.8 miles from driveway to the interstate. Where, as I merged onto the on ramp, my front left tire fell into a missing gap of road where the plow had ripped up the concrete scraping the road. Now the car shimmies badly above 50 mph. Just another moon crater on our crater filled drive to work. Thanks Metro Nashville! To whom shall I send the repair bill?


After doing a complete 360 merging onto the interstate from the on ramp due to the deeper than my car clearance slush, I found the interstate to be just as sketchy. Some parts were covered and lane lines invisible, other areas had one lane clear while the other was control stealing sludge. The worst area was heading back home on 65's bridge over the 24 split, where the road was completely clear until you found yourself in the blind side apex of the turn and it was deep unplowed snow. Several cars lost control as I made my way through the turn. This is the worst snow I've experienced in Nashville. Normally we just get ice storms.

Once at work a co-worker who hails from 72 degrees and sunny every day San Diego told me she was creeping along in her 4 wheel drive on her way home from work when a car flying a Canadian flag flew past her like the pavement was dry. I can see how the snow here wouldn't even make a Northerner blink. I grew up driving in snow. I even remember taking trips despite 8" of fresh snow because it's what we all did. I've often snickered at the mass panic and long grocery lines of Nashville when the four letter S word arrives in the forecast: snow. The thing is, even if people would slow down, the roads just aren't built for driving in bad weather. We didn't have hills or mountain roads in the Midwest. Plus we had armies of road plows and tractors, even private citizens with plows on their trucks would help clear streets and drives.

Please can I go?

Since I didn't have to work Sunday, although H. did, we stayed in, er... out, and spent some time with the horses. H. had so much fun cantering in the snow while I worked, she wanted me to get to play too before the snow was all gone. Here JD is staring at Crow hoping he gets to come along for a run too.

JD, barely big enough to step up on a 2x4.

Speaking of JD. Here he is sitting in the stoop of the doorway behind him in the photo above 6 months ago. Compare it to this shot from today:

JD: Bigger than a 2x4.

H. and Ian with Grampa's saddle. Perfect for winter time bundled riding.

Water break for the pups at the earthen dam.

H. and Ian out for a gallop in the snow.

JD wants to run too.

Yeeehaw!!

Ride'm cowgirl! A little bronc ridin' action.

All smiles cantering away out of the buck.

This'll probably be the last posting for a while. As I was editing this post I got a call from my Grandma about the sudden passing of a family member. So after I can get the car fixed (hoping it's just a bent rim or alignment issue) I'll most likely be heading North for a few days. We've been having some bad luck in the loved one's health department lately. As Grandma said so eloquently over the phone to me, "We certainly take it one day at a time don't we?"