Rain, But that is a good thing.

We have had sunny sunny days. Hot sun, cool air. It is a great combination. I am looking out on a wet street for the first time in days. We have not had a typical winter. Very little pesipitation of any kind.

I love those snow days. Those days when the world stops. As a kid it took lots of snow, more like several feet of snow and good strong winds to ground us. In Seatte, the words "Snow in the forecast" bring the world to a halt. You cannot get near a store, the tire places are jammed and the kids negotiate for a later bed time. This town comes to a screeching halt.

For those of us that were raised with real snow it is a funny thing to watch.

When I first moved here, I scoffed at the reaction. I could not believe that any amount of snow under 2 feet could keep me inside, afraid for my life. I would venture out on foot or by bus or even use my car. I knew how to drive. I knew how to stop. I had snow tires and chains and years and years of experience. No problem. What I did not understand was the I was not alone on the roads. I was surrounded by people that had little or no experience with driving on anything more slippery than rain.

Like with many things, I was very very wrong. I headed out on the bus and soon found that the bus people forgot to put on the chains. They did chain up the buses but only after they were stuck. As we headed down the hill, I saw no less than 6 buses stacked on Pine Street waiting for the chain people. I figured it would be all over and I could get back home. Thank God I was younger then. I had to hike home. Oh, well.

Then it froze. The snow became lots and lots of Ice. It was ugly. Since there were no plows, the ice was terrible. It was possible to still get around but it took some thought. One of the important things to do when the ice is on the hills is to avoid the hills. Evidently that is not taught in basic drivers education in this part of the world. I lived on a hill and marveled at the number of people that thought the way to handle a steep and ice covered surface is to start at the bottom and try to power up the hill. Spinning wheels and no traction are not evidence of lack of ability to climb a hill to the novice snow driver. I marveled at the number of people that tried and tried and could not be deterred. There was one old beat up old Ford Taurus that tried and tried and then slipped and hit a car parked on the hill. Then it tried again. I wondered why they did not go one block south to the flatter, much traveled hill that was bare and dry and passable. Again, I don't always understand.

My favorite snow story comes from being down by Pike Place. We have a street that has a steep slope of no less than 45 degrees. There was a gent in a Mercedes that tried to climb the ice and snow covered street. He made it half way up before his very expensive car began to slide backwards. His car door flung open and he jumped out and tried to hold the car on the hill. His valiant effort was for naught, as the car slid down and struck many similar and expensive cars that were in it's path. It was a sad sight.

I have thought over the years about that man. I guess as humans we keep trying. We get an idea into our heads and we just keep at it. I think about Edison and his light bulb efforts. They tried hundreds and hundreds of different elements and substances to make a filament. There was so much failure but finally a good result. I think about the people that tried to fly and those that send man to the moon.

M-E has exhibited that spirit. She keeps going through all of this. She is determined and keeps her spirits up. I think about all the kids that have tried and succeeded to fight this disease and those that have failed. They all were troopers. You always hear about the kids that succeed and the ones the don't . There are no stories about quitters. I hope that we are not trying to climb a hill that is too steep in bad conditions. I think that we have a better vehicle for the journey. A tank, a HumV or more importantly, the knowledge about how to find the right hills to climb.