I just finished doing something that I've only done one other time in the past 30 years. For you wisenheimers, no, it's not having sex that I didn't have to pay for. I just spent more than two hours shoveling snow off my driveway. Yesterday the forecasts were revised upward for an accumulation of 8 to 12 inches. The original forecasts of 5 to 7 inches made last Friday were closer to the mark. I went to bed last night with no snow and got up this morning at 6:30 to about 3 inches. Another inch or two fell during the morning.
Those of you living north of the Mason-Dixon line probably see a 5-inch snow dump as not even worthy of shoveling. Here in South Carolina, where they break into TV programs to announce it's raining, 5 inches of snow is a major weather event. Although the snow has probably stopped, we are still supposed to get sleet and some sort of an ice storm. I'm not enthusiastic.
The last somewhat-serious snowfall here was two years ago when we got about 4 inches. That started coming down about 6 PM and was all over by 11. By mid-afternoon the next day, the roads were virtually clear. Because temps are supposed to stay cold, this snow could be more stubborn.
Very little traffic is moving, at least in my neighborhood. Of course, that could be because its very hilly. If you don't have four-wheel drive or chains, the chances of you traveling from in front of my house for the two or three blocks to the main drag without incident are slim indeed. Three or four vehicles are abandoned at the bottom of the hill; several more were all over the place going up and down.
As I shoveled, I stopped every once in a while to enjoy the show. One poor sap in a late 60s GMC pickup truck slid off one of the side streets to the road in front of my house. He was determined to work himself free. When the klansman who lives across the street from me came out to clean off his vehicles, our adventurer walked over and borrowed a shovel from him. He went back and continued to try to free himself. At one point I looked up from my labors to find him well off the road and into the woods. He continued working his way in reverse until he managed to exit the woods nearly to the main road where he promptly got hung up. Some guy in a 4WD pickup stopped and pulled him out onto the road. Our adventurer returned the shovel, got back into his truck, got it rolling and immediately slid off into the woods on the other side. No kidding; I'm not making this up. No doubt he's still stuck there.
I can't imagine where I might have to go sufficiently important to get me out on the road today. Neither vehicle I currently has is armed with AWD. One is front-wheel drive, which helps a little. Nope, I'm going to stay hunkered down in my toasty little house. I am actually getting some work done. Later I'll get a fire going and have an Irish coffee or three to celebrate the snow. It'll be like a hurricane party only with snow.
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