Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Back to work (and I'm glad of it)

Good grief, but I am tired.  It's been an utterly miserable few days here for weather, as everyone knows from the constant news reports.  I now consider 20ºF to be balmy and pleasant, after several days of -15º to -5º.  I've been on an online shopping binge for heavy weather clothing: boots, sweaters, socks, wool pants.  I'm considering browsing the sites for nice long underwear.  (This may or may not be a cry for help.  I'll see what the going prices are.)

I'm additionally dragged out from playing host to a friend who just moved to the area and pleaded to come stay with me until the deep freeze and snow had passed — zi was terrified by the prospect of being snowed in when zi had no internet and, really, no local contacts as yet in case of emergencies.  The upshot of this was two high-strung, stir-crazy people eating too much, drinking too much, and eventually getting into bizarre fights.  I am heartily sick of hosting, maybe even more so than I am sick of this fucking winter weather.

But I am free now, and can enjoy the solitude of my apartment as an asset.  Plus, tomorrow is the first day of my stupid little January term course, so I'll be getting out of the house regularly for work purposes.  I'd actually be thrilled to be going to campus tomorrow, if it weren't for the frightening road conditions between here and there.  I drove to the supermarket this afternoon to replenish my locust-despoiled post-visit refrigerator, and it was honestly scary.  My little Beetle has some good qualities, but road-worthiness in snowy, icy weather is not among them.  I got stuck once in snow too deep for my wheels to get traction, and I was fishtailing at little about 40% of the time thereafter, even at 20 mph.  I've never been so exhausted by quick trip to the grocery store.

On the plus side, a colleague with a sturdy all-wheel drive vehicle has kindly agreed to take me to and from campus tomorrow, so I don't have to fear dying on the road before I even start teaching this calendar year.  I'm hoping that Cornstate will get its act together and have the roads properly cleared off for Friday's commute, for my poor car's sake.

Enough of this f-ed-up winter vacation.  Get me back to the office!

4 comments:

  1. I couldn't believe I was so happy to be back at work today. But three snow days with my kids, and I was ready for a 3.5-hour meeting with adults. Of course, that quickly devolved, too. But you know... at least I had friends to bitch with about it.

    Good luck with your January term class. It sounds like a blast!

    ReplyDelete
  2. You have a Beetle too? I love those!!!

    Also: I think long underwear are (is?) a wise investment and totally acceptable. Where I draw the line is at a Snuggie.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ah, the Snuggie: what a blogger I used to read ages ago memorably called "that whack job blanket with sleeves."

      Delete
  3. And this is why I am so glad to live where I do! Hope that your suffering this winter pays off in the form of a beautiful Spring and a not-too-hot Summer.

    ReplyDelete