Snow Day

Today's "My Two Cents" is brought to you by the Jeep Wrangler--The World's Most Capable Four-Wheel Drive.  This is one of those days when I chuckle at Prius and Smart car owners--thinking about how they are effectively trapped within their houses--unable to go anywhere today and possibly tomorrow as well.  (Actually I laugh at Prius and Smart car owners every day.)  You know those commercials were they show the Wrangler or the Grand Cherokee blasting its way through the wall of snow?  That will be me getting back into the driveway after work today (if they bother to plow our street today)--and I'll be doing it with a big smile on my face.  As the stickers say "It's a Jeep thing...You wouldn't understand".

I've owned Jeeps for about half the time since I got my driver's license.  I've gone to Camp Jeep and learned the operating limits of my vehicle and how to handle it in just about every situation that could arise on and off the road.  I wonder what our vehicle crash numbers would be if all of the other manufacturers put their owners through their paces after buying a car or a truck?

Today is also a very frustrating day to be at work.  Those of us who work on the air made it in--where is everybody else?  How do those people feel when they get the email that all "non-essential" staff do not have to report to the office?  This will also be a crazy busy day on the phones in the newsroom--as those calling in cancellations for events affecting four people mix with those calling to see if something has been canceled.  When people call in to ask "Is such-and-such closed today?" I always like to ask them "Did you call them?"  That is usually met with a moment of silence followed by "Oh, I guess I could do that."

Days like today also make me think about how much I am looking forward to early retirement.  I have NEVER enjoyed winter (save for the fact that it does bring us basketball and hockey seasons).  And since I've become obsessed with golf, the five months that we cant' play around here becomes even more frustrating.  So every time I consider busting the budget and not putting as much as I should into savings for the month, I picture playing myself playing a round under bright sunshine with shirt-sleeves and shorts on--while everyone back here is digging out from 15-inches of snow.  You'd be surprised how powerful an incentive that can be.

Finally, I would like to thank the people who still have to go out in this mess to keep us safe.  There will still be emergencies requiring police, fire and ambulances to respond.  And plow drivers will be putting in LONG hours the next two days in incredibly dangerous conditions--made even more unsafe by people blowing by them because they just can't wait the extra ten minutes to get where they needed to go safely.

So unless you are driving a Jeep, enjoy your day stuck in the house with the kids.