Spring into Winter

Delays, delays

Mar 04, 2023

March 3, 2023

Dear Reader Friend,

Yesterday, from the Spring weather of Nashville where redbud blooms are beginning to unfold on tree branches and pollens are beginning to disperse, I drove away under overcast skies and five hours later, arrived in Cincinnati at sunshiny dusk.

This morning, I packed up the car in the rain. I dreaded the four or five hour drive ahead of me. As I ventured north, light rain thickened, splattering on my windshield in volumes too great for my wipers to flick away. Traffic slowed. Construction narrowed the lanes, making it challenging to squeeze by big trucks dousing my car in 12 foot sprays from the road’s pooling water. I couldn’t clearly see the tail lights on the cars in front of me.

My hands and arms were sore from gripping the steering wheel. Accidents on both sides of the highway pulled traffic to a standstill. Ambulances cruised passed us on the left shoulder to get to two crashes.

I had driven for three hours and do you know how far I made it? 68 MILES.

Ugh! At this rate, it would take me 12 hours to get home.

From here, I would have been traveling north into an expected forecast of more heavy rain ‘til I reached Michigan. Then the final stretch would take me through the national weather service’s warned winter storm.

No. Thank. You.

I desperately want to be at home in my own bed, but the madness of Old Man Winter’s gusts trying to toss me into 18 wheelers and the tension in my neck from white knuckling it for three hours made me feel seriously nauseated.

So here am I in glorious Piqua, Ohio at the nearest (less than desirable) hotel I could get us to. Ruby and I immediately crashed for two hours. We’re so relieved to escape the storm. Hotel cable tv has been a comfort while we’ve been unwinding from the intense drive, in spite of the stink bug crawling across the screen.

The rains have subsided. Tomorrow, partly sunny skies will follow us on our morning drive. A (hopefully) two hour drive will carry us back to winter again, where a heavy snow will have fallen all day and night. I anticipate the last hour’s drive through Michigan will be manageable, that the roads will be cleared by then.

Have I told you I love the snow? The hush of a freshly laid blanket of crispy white fluff has the most calming effect on me. I want to lace up my snow boots and get out into the woods, pronto, before the twigs shake off their snow linings, and make fresh tracks on the trails. I want to lose myself in the magic wonderland there, stopping to capture its striking beauty for you to see.

Once again, my blog plans are rerouted, just like this icky trip home. It’s Friday, though, and I promised myself and you a post. Perhaps its more an excuse than a letter. The writing I started Wednesday about my time in Nashville will have to wait. The captured images of beautiful Sewannee trails will stay put until my nerves have unraveled and I can reconnect with what has been a great week of recharging my batteries. I’ll try my hand at putting together a special video, too.

Not much Wonderworld here in this short missive, except the odd relief of crashing on an over-pillowed king-sized bed in front of a large screen tv with a million cable channel options. Plus, a delivered order of Chinese comfort food. And, best of all, this darling furball copilot leaning on my leg as I write to you.

I hope this post won’t bore you too much and please stay tuned, because I promise the next post will be worth the read, the look and the listen.

Til then, I hope you are staying safe and dry inside, that your power is on or you can get to a place where you’re warm. I wish you that deeper warmth inside your souls even in the midst of crappy weather.

And I’ll pop in your inbox again soon.

Your comments affirm that my words are reaching people, so thank you for dropping a note or a silly face below. I love having you here.

Excerpts from Wonderworld

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