Friday, April 07, 2006

Rain, Rain, and More Rain

Today's post is dedicated to my new little SUV.

In the 24 hours between 10:00 p.m. Wednesday and 10:00 p.m. Thursday, we received a near record rainfall--almost 2 inches. Now keep in mind that our average yearly rainfall is only 12 to 15 inches, and you'll have some idea of just how much water is still sitting on our streets and in people's basements. My basement fared quite well. We have a little water in one corner of our wine room, but since it has a concrete floor and walls and I have a Wet/Dry Shop Vac, nothing has been damaged.

The worst part was that I had to make a 240 round trip to a seminar yesterday. I left before the sun rose. It was pouring rain, and the highway was covered in large puddles of water that were really hard to see in the dark. Can you say "hydroplane"? I also had to go over a mountain pass, and as the road climbed upwards, the rain turned to slush and then snow and then lots of snow. Fortunately, the pass had been plowed and sanded.

Up until recently, I've always driven cars--mostly smaller, front wheel drive Chevy models. Then last summer, I bought a Chevy Blazer. It's better for my work and for hauling my babies around. Yesterday, I was digging the one-touch electronic shifting into 4-wheel drive. I remember as a young girl, the 4-wheel drive vehicles we had required one to get out and lock the front hubs--ususally in deep snow--before trying to force the lever on the floor into another position.

Ahhh, technology.

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