I sat at the edge of my bed, hoping to start the week off finally kicking this cold. A little congestion, but I always have some, especially in the mornings. As I looked out the window, watching the day get brighter, it started to snow, and then snow heavily.

I dressed and encouraged the boy child to get dressed. Kids are home today for President's Day, or Washington's Birthday if you prefer. I suggested donuts, as an old downtown favorite has a new branch in the nearby mall. It took a bit to get consensus, but I set out.

I also had to move the wife's Jeep into the garage, and try to park mine in the "driveway" as the forecast calls for a few inches, potentially to more than a foot, of snow in the next day or two. I took my Jeep out, went the other way from where the garbage truck was stuck in the alley (the ice walls on the sides have built up too much for the width of the giant garbage truck). I parked behind the wife's Jeep on the street, dusted hers off, and drove back to the garage.

I've been horrible about fighting the plow berms that came in previous snows, now turned into little glacier walls with the melting and rain followed by freezing temperatures. I managed to get her Jeep in just like mine has done, the front wheels turn over the berm fine, which isn't as deep as I thought so I didn't bottom out her car at all, and the first back wheel spins, turning the Jeep until the other back wheel is also trying to climb the wall. By that point, the Jeep is pointed straight into the garage, so the aligned wheels all find enough traction in the 4x4 mode, and in it went.

Her Jeep is a bit longer than mine, even though mine has a big wheel stuck to the back of it, but it fits, just enough to let the door close.

I went through the house to my Jeep, and set out for donuts and maybe fancy coffee, before I started trying to park mine. I cringed at the thought and tried to imagine the angles I could take to try to get my car to fit in the short drive way we have. Since I've been so bad at clearing the drive way (why should I be so good, when the Jeep powers over it just fine?), it's going to be a wall of ice until we have a week of 50F° days! Knowing that I can get the front wheels over is nice, but knowing that the back wheels spin and reorient the whole vehicle is not as nice.

The drive was fine. Not a lot of traffic jammed up despite the heavy snowfall still. The surfaces were all snow-covered, and no plows had been though (it just started an hour before), so it was just wheel ruts where cars agreed to go. It turns out the donut shop isn't open yet. I chuckled still because it strikes me funny that they moved into where the health store moved out. The donut shop will be much more successful for a while, I'm sure. I headed back toward home, but stopped at the grocery store between and got some of their donuts, since I was out. The queue at the coffee shop there was too long, and I decided against stopping again in the snow, so I just headed straight home.

The alley was clear of any garbage trucks, so I went in the way I thought I'd have the most success. I failed to get the Jeep in perpendicular to the normal path in the garage. I failed after trying a few times, and a few times in reverse, too. I even tried in 4L, where all the wheels are locked and traction should be even with no spinners. I exited the alley and turned around, nosing the other way. I wanted to park pointing North, so the driver's door would go right to the garage, but was successful backing in, parallel park style, facing the South. The ice berm, glacier wall, helped ensure the Jeep is out of the way of cars in the alley, by sliding it a little over as I jostled it back and forth into its resting place.

It's trash day (thus the garbage trucks), so I made sure to park back far enough to move the bins to the edge of the drive. The truck previous had already emptied one of the bins, so I brought the other two to the edge of the glacier. I'm sure one other truck was out there when it started snowing, so they must have skipped my drive because of the berm, leaving the compost bin alone. There's plenty of room in it, so I don't even mind.

I brought the donuts inside, to a cheering crowd of staying home people. The wife and I finished ours and filled our coffee cups, adjourning to our offices.

I think I'm ready to work. We'll see how the day goes.

Everyone seems healthy today.