What an eventful trip!! I did make it through Blizzard '09 to Mama's here (in the only part of Virginia that didn't get ANY snow, I might add).
Friday evening I had a great last girl's night with Pamela & Sarah. We got in plenty of gabbing while we got our nails done, then headed off to dinner at Puleo's Grille. Didn't have a great waiter, but he made up for it by taking the appetizer off our checks. Good guy!
Saturday I added a few more items to the car, including gas and air in the tires. I hit the road about 8:30. I knew that snow had fallen in Virginia fairly nonstop since Friday afternoon and was supposed to go well into Saturday as well. According to a few friends in Roanoke, by Friday evening there was already a significant pile of snow; therefore, I intended to only get as far as Roanoke and stop for the evening. I had high hopes that the roads would be salted & fairly clear - at least on the interstate - due to the expectation of snow (it had been in the forecast since Wednesday at least). I ventured forth. It was overcast and a tad drizzly throughout TN, but I didn't get to see any real snow until just past Bristol, VA. By then there were light flurries, and I could see evidence of a dusting on the ground. Still, as I'd hoped, the interstate was fairly clear. Through the 77 interchange there was a bit of a mess - some slush on the road narrowing down the lanes into just one or two preferable lanes. That was the roughest patch for awhile, though. There was no precipitation after that. I was fairly on time and was just coming up on signs that I knew indicated I only had about an hour left of travel. Glance at the clock: 3:25. Perfect! I might be a little earlier than I had expected. And then...oh, and then.
About exit 107 - just before, really - traffic slowed significantly. So much so that we came to a stop and were in stop & go traffic for wayyy too long. Every now and then there'd be a clear bit of road where we'd actually get up to 35-40 mph; I'd think "We're clear!" only to find (to my chagrin) more brake lights ahead. From 3:30 to 3:50, I sat. I was getting increasingly frustrated because the traffic radio breathed not a word about what was going on; if I had only known what was ahead of me, I could have perhaps settled in, accepted my fate. More stop & go traffic - time dragged on - the sun began to set - and cabin fever set in. We would crawl forward - stop. Crawl forward - stop. Sometimes we would SOAR and get up to an unimaginable speed of 25 mph only to be met again by brake lights. Oh the humanity!! I texted my point of contact during one of our sitting-and-waiting stints and tried to explain what was going on. My gas was at half a tank when all this hullaballoo began, so I wasn't too worried about that. After being trapped for 2 hours, though, I was dancing in my seat. I had to pee SO. BAD. I was on the phone with Nathaniel off and on during this time, and when we turned a bend in the road and I saw the unending stretch of red lights, I burst into tears. I had to pee and there were NO exits in sight. The last sign I had seen indicated that the next exit was at least another 4 miles. (I was sitting between mile posts 111 & 112) Friends, here is my act of desperation. I peed into a Wendy's cup on i-81 and I filled the entire thing (what are the smallest sizes, 16 oz?). I didn't pull over on the side of the road because I was afraid of losing my place. At this point it was dark outside, I was in the right lane, and I wasn't positioned directly beside someone (I don't think I could have done it if I were). I put my coat up over my left shoulder. It draped and covered most of me. And then...I peed in a cup.
Let me tell you, I felt A LOT better after I filled that cup and dumped it out on the road. I was shaking from the adrenaline, but a lot better. After that, I was able to face the traffic. Which was good, because unbeknown to me, I still had 2 hours left.
The major hold up was from Blacksburg. Apparently, despite the fact that they knew about this incoming storm a few days in advance, they decided not to salt the roads at all. As a result, there was only one lane open through that interchange - and if you know the area, you know there is between 3-4 lanes open there! Ugh. That was one of the few places it was truly messy. There was frozen snow tracks through that one lane, even. Snow plows and crews of workers dotted the highway, but I didn't see them making any actual progress. Once we got through there, it was smoother sailing.
And then I got off the highway. Again, it's like they didn't expect the snow to even come! No salted roads = the bottom layer of snow wasn't slush but ice by this time. It was a matter of just following whatever tracks had already been laid down. I had the misfortune of getting in front of a Jeep who had no compassion for my tiny non-offroading vehicle. He was TAILGATING ME down a road of 6 inches of ice & snow! Then he was honking at me madly as he attempted to pass me in the left lane...except there WASN'T a left lane, so he was mad that I was straddling the road because, hello, just following the tracks already in existence. Sigh. I managed to brake enough to let him get around me; I was in the final stretch. Turn right at the light, and go over the slight slope of the RR tracks...no...losing traction...ok. No big deal. Reverse it up a bit, adjust wheels on road to better track, shift into lower gear, head up the slope again....and I'm stuck. Fabulous. I managed to wiggle my "butt" back enough so I wasn't taking up too much of the road. At this point, though, I just about lost it. I held it together enough to call my point of contact - any ideas? - and as I spoke with her, a police car pulled up behind me. YAY! Help is here! Maybe he'd have some kitty litter/salt/shovel to help me along.
Nope. The cop got out of the car and basically played Captain Obvious. Yes, I am stuck. No, no one can come and get me. I stared at him in disbelief as he said, "OK, well we better call a tow because we can't have you sitting in the road." NO. Really?!? Because I WANTED to sit here all night. Then I said, "Well, I'm a member of AAA, I planned to call a tow." "OK, but they'll take 3 hours," he said. Did I detect a note of accusation in his tone? I'm sorry I'll be sitting here for three hours. How thoughtless of me. "Do you have a local preference?" he asked. I asked him to repeat that. "Do you have a local preference with a tow company or else I'll just call the next one on the list." It was all I could do to stammer out a "no." I have a Tennessee license plate. DO YOU THINK I HAVE A LOCAL PREFERENCE?! He went back to his car to make a call, I closed the door, called Nathaniel, and lost it. I burst into frustrated tears of desperation. "I'm stuck in the snow just around the corner from Holly's house, and a policeman stopped and he didn't help me at all, and I've been sitting on 81 for 5 hours and I just want to get out of this damn car!" I sobbed.
And then. Cue the Hallelujah chorus. A passing truck slowed to a stop and a man got out. If his name wasn't Jesus or My Guardian Angel, it is probably something close to that. He pulled a shovel and a tie out of his cargo and asked if I needed help. I got out of the car, still slightly crying incoherently, and he set to work. He asked where I was going and kindly confirmed, "Oh, yes that's just past the tracks. I can get you to the neighborhood and you take it from there, okay?" I nodded, wiping away tears. God bless him!!! He was so kind and patient (I'm sure he was thinking, "Oh great, a helpless, sobbing female!") but he was my shining beacon of hope and human goodness that night. The police man got out of his car when he saw Guardian Angel and engaged in more Captain Obvious observations. When Guardian Angel got the Focus all tied up, he instructed me on my actions and then that beautiful Toyota Tacoma pulled me up and over the RR tracks and onto the first street of the neighborhood. Glorious day!! I asked him if I could give him a hug before sending him on his way. He bashfully accepted.
I crawled up the road to the appointed bottom-of-the-hill meet location, where I managed to get somewhat stuck again. No matter. I was going to park in this general vicinity anyway. I managed to maneuver the car off to the side and then called my friend who made her way down the hill to come and retrieve me. She had hot lasagna waiting inside.
And that, my friends, is the story of the drive that tests one's soul. I cannot say enough good things about that man in the truck. Thank God he came along when he did!! I was at the absolute end of my rope and *ALLELUIA* there he was.
Just so you know, I left at 8:30am, expecting to get into Roanoke about 4:30pm. I gave my ETA as a conservative estimate of about 5, factoring in 1 stop for gas/lunch and maybe some slow travel in case of bad roads. When did I actually arrive? 8:30. That's the same amount of time it would have taken me to drive straight through to Mama's. Was I glad to get OUT of that car!!
mood:  grateful |
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