Tuesday, March 10, 2009

March Snow



The girls walked to school under a bright winter sun, quite the contrast from the near blizzard conditions yesterday.





The weather created unexpected chaos yesterday. Just as everyone anticipated the arrival of spring, a freak winter blast dumped at least a half a foot of snow over the region. Snow in March is not unusual for Spokane, but normally it turns immediately to slush.

The snow disrupted my world as well.

Shortly after 9:00 in the morning, I drove my daughter to a dentist appointment. We could not cross Division Street because the weather had reached nearly white out conditions and the highway was choked with cars. Instead we drove south on Division and saw the cause of all the congestion. Two cars collided on the hill and blocked at least one lane of traffic. Emergency vehicles were just arriving and re-directing the flow of cars. I remember saying to Whitney, “I hope no one was hurt.” Only later did we learn that a local woman was killed.

At least 135 other accidents were reported by the end of the day.

We drove the long way around and finally arrived at the dentist office where my daughter got several fillings. After more than an hour of drilling under the influence of Novocain and nitrous oxide, poor little Whitney staggered out of the office.

And then the car battery died and we found ourselves stranded without a phone. With no one to call for help, Whitney and I walked home through the snow. The dentist told us the “happy gas” would no longer create any effect, but she still seemed a little unstable as we trudged over the snow and ice.

When we got home, we borrowed jumper cables from a neighbor and succeeded in re-starting the car.

Then this morning, the battery died again, and I ended up walking to school with the girls. The sun blazed with deceptive clarity in the frozen sky, but I still keep hope that spring is just around the corner.

4 comments:

  1. We have had unseasonably warm weather - up in the mid 80s. Tomorrow will bring the last winter guest. Tonight it will dip below 40.

    Sad for the family who lost the loved one. I just hate that...

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  2. Such strange weather. And yes, I feel so sad for the woman who died, especially since my daughter and I saw the aftermath of the accident.

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  3. The snow is absolutely GORGEOUS! Weather here is odd as well. It was 79 Saturday and 26 Monday morning. We had tiny hail this morning at 36.

    Sorry to hear about the accident and the death. I'm glad though that your daughter's first instinct was that she hoped no one was killed. Too many people are concerned with running late and their inconvenience.

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  4. Where is "HERE" for you Krystal? For some reason I assumed you were in Spokane.... maybe I misread.

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