I got a snow day today. Three or four inches of snow topped with a layer of ice have effectively shut down this town.

My wife did, however, have to go to work. I drove her in.

It’s ugly out there. The sleet has changed to rain. The rain combined with the snow melt results in lots of standing water that has nowhere to drain. And its still pretty cold so it’s trying to freeze as it sits. Tonight as the temperatures drop a lot of it will probably freeze up.

Some parts of the world seem to get these winter wonderland kinds of storms.

Here, we get mixed precipitation. Sleet, freezing rain. Slop. It’s ugly. The kids can’t go out and play in it.

And the roads are far more treacherous than the would ever be with just snow. Deep water, unexpected patches of ice, snow. And Mid-Atlantic drivers. Any thing that resembles weather puts these people in a panic. They brake going down icy hills. The don’t get enough speed to make it up slippery slopes. The can’t drive in this stuff. (This shouldn’t be surprising, it’s not like they drive great in good conditions.)

I would be lying if I said that I didn’t enjoy having an excuse to drive today. The truck did great. The Four wheel drive on it, is automatic. I don’t have to turn it on. It is front wheel drive anyway. So it drives with just the front wheels engaged, if it senses that either of those wheels is spinning or slipping, it will kick in the four wheel drive. It works like a champ. Besides that, it was nice just to have that extra height to the vehicle as I had to drive over spots where they had plowed side roads closed or through twelve to eighteen inches of running water.

I like my truck.

And I should, it cost me enough. (I would put a picture of it up, but would you believe I haven’t gotten around to shooting one.)

I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that all of this slop is probably appropriate for Valentines Day. It’s a stupid holiday. Just an excuse for the Chocolate, Flower and Greeting Card industries to get more of our money.

The last few years I have helped the boys make a Valentine’s Cake for their mom. But that may not happen this year. Unless I decide to make a trip to the store. Besides It makes one huge cake. That would be a diet buster for sure.

Since at least one person cares about the back packing, I will see if I have it in me to write about it.

Oh! I did something nice again today, I may need to go see a doctor or something about this.