Winter is NOT pretty.....

I guess I got spoiled with the last couple of winters.  The first winter alone to handle the snow removal I think there were only a couple of storms that left barely enough to plow but I did so, just to keep my plowing skills up to date.  Last winter, I did not even have to put the truck in gear as the few flurries did not require any plowing at all.  I guess it gave me a false sense of security as I did not even factor in snow and plowing when I opted to have my knee replaced.

Snow came in plowable depths while I was still in rehab.  I had folks coming to the house to shovel snow (the plow was still in the garage and not on the truck) so that I could get safely inside the house when I was discharged.

We had another plowable snow after the new year but before I was released to drive.  I was so fortunate to find members of the church I attended who were able to come out and use my truck (the plow was installed over Christmas) to move the snow so the in-home therapist could get in and later the Rover bus could come and pick me up.

Since being released to drive, there have been two more plowable snow storms and it is not even February which has historically been the snowiest month of winters here.

One of the positives to the snow storms is that during the storm itself, the traffic on my busy little highway comes to a crawl until it is basically only the Penn DOT snow plows working to keep the road as passable as it can be.  It makes things quieter but I find I sleep less on those nights as the plows must be waking me up.  Last night I was up every couple of hours and finally gave up around 3:30 AM, turned on Netflix and watched early episodes of The West Wing until around 6:00 AM, when I fell asleep until about 10:00 AM, so about 4 hours of solid sleep.  It will be a long day of being tired, but a short day since I did not get started until later.  I did go out and plow the driveway some.  We had a couple of inches of snow yesterday and then winds overnight, so there were areas where the state plows had piled snow along the driveway, places where the snow had blown deeper and it just made sense to even everything out.  The sun is out, off and on, so I am seeing asphalt, which is good.

I have been making plans for the spring/summer.  I found a lovely Mountain Chalet near Fancy Gap, VA that has a lovely view of the North Carolina plateau that I can rent for a full month for less than a week on the Outer Banks.  I debated and debated in my feeble mind and finally decided that a getaway following this never-ending winter and rehab would be just what the doctor ordered.... Doctor Jane, that is.  So I will be heading there mid-April until mid-May.  I am hoping that I will have guests off and on during the month, but I will be taking my sewing machine and testing out some projects for the fall retreat and travelling around the area to see some of the local sites.






I will be spending my birthday, in June, in Alaska.  Rob & Kate will hopefully be recovered from the chemo schedule and, prayers going everyday.... in remission.  Kate is doing well with minimal side effects and has learned to deal with the ones she is getting.  She sounds good and upbeat whenever I had spoken to them.  I will be experiencing the land of the midnight sun.  While I am there, the days will be close to 21 hours long!!!

I will also be in Atlantic City, NJ at an Embroidery Convention.  My brother and his wife will be attending as well and I will be staying with them in a timeshare nearby.  Come October, I will be on the Outer Banks.  Never too far from home!!!  But travelling and seeing new things.

Therapy is moving along.  Almost at 0 degrees straight but still in the 90's for a bend.  I only have three move scheduled, but am sure it will be extended for another couple of weeks.  The doctor will approve whatever needs to be done as long as there is progress.  So as long as that happens and Medicare approves, I will be doing therapy.... weather permitting!

I hate snow!!  It is days like this that make me wish I had a place in a warmer climate.  But even Florida is not that warm this winter.  And I am much more comfortable only having one house to be responsible for and this has been my home for 30+ years, so here I stay... snow and all.