Whining in the North

On Christmas Eve I woke up to 12 inches of snow. Then just to add to the mix, I step out my door and stared at a number of huge piles of snow not really knowing which one contained my truck. It wasn’t that I had forgotten where I parked the night before, just the landscape had changed. I started brushing off the snow and chipping away at the ice hoping my car door wasn’t frozen

Occasionally, a pile of snow would whine a few times and then roar to life as a car engine deep within would start. Apparently, remote starters are all the rage up North! I looked around and notice people watching me out the window, remote starter in one hand a hot cup of coffee in the other. I seem to be the entertainment that morning and the show was just getting started.

I, like Travis, religiously defend my ability as a good driver. It was tested today and shattered with my inability to get out of a parking spot. YES, I could not get out of the parking SPOT!

I tried to back out and would drifted to the left. I adjusted the steering try again and drifted to the right. I would periodically jump out, shovel frantically at snow around the tires, jump back in and repeat the process. This went on for some time before I began to noticed more spectators at the windows, sipping their hot coffee and smiling. I swear to God, the Today Show’s rates dropped that morning.

After awhile, I was beginning to accept the inevitable when a mother herding her three kids appeared and began brushing off the snow on their mini-van in front of me. She must have been watching for some time because she came over and informed me her husband and two older boys (must be Catholic with 5 kids) would be out shortly to help. Then piled the kids in her van, backup and drove away like the roads were clear.

Shortly afterward, the promised helpers showed up and I was free of my icy parking spot. I thanked the snickering helpers and headed off to the local hardware store to purchase, ready for this, SAND! I was told to put some weight in the back of my truck so I purchased two 100lb sacks of sand, imported from Puerto Rico and bagged in St. Paul, MN. Now anytime I feel the need to go to the tropics, I will just warm up my truck, mix a margarita, slip into my shorts and relax on the sand in the back of my truck. There is something just not right up North!