Tag: Winter

November 19, 2024 – Preparations for Travel

November 19, 2024 /

We are going on our first ever Thanksgiving road trip. This year, we are headed to Montana for a week. The way the weather is shaping up, this could be a miserable doozy of a trip. It is a long way to go in winter weather and we are expecting feet of snow at the higher elevations this week.

The problem with cold weather is all the additional gear you need. Add to that a dog and two extra passengers, we will be pushing our space even in a full sized Navigator. I had to break out the car carrier for the first time in quite a while. This thing is great for extra space, but it also adds a lot of extra height to an already high vehicle.

At the hospital, we already hit the 6’7″ bar warning that a crash is eminent. I happen to know after years of experience that I am just fine. But, I don’t know how fine I am. So, I don’t push it and keep in mind that I may be a bounce away from some very expensive body work. I can say that my wife has tried to drive into our garage Fortunately, I was outside to stop her. The carrier stays on only as long as it has to be on.

A smart man would have gotten the car to a mechanic before we leave. I really didn’t give it a thought until last weekend. By then, it was pretty much too late. That is not to say that I have done nothing. Recently I started getting a ‘Tire Pressure Fault’. I have checked the tire pressure multiple times and chalked it up to more electronic gremlins that have been plaguing this vehicle its whole life.

But, I wanted to check on chains for our upcoming travel. My wife had been told that chains would not fit on the vehicle due to wheel clearance concerns. So, I asked about the tire sensor. I was educated that it was probably a battery. Who knew, inside the wheel has a sensor that communicated with the computer. After fourteen years, two of the sensors are dead. I always wondered how that was done.

All this being said, I would think that this would be something the tire shop would do with new tires. It turns out, no. Now, I have to break down each wheel and replace the batteries. It was suggested that we could wait until new tires are due, but with the Navigator’s reduced role, it could be years at this point. The best motivation is that my wife want’s it done.

Besides the obvious luggage for a week long stay, it would be good to take some extra precautions. The first is be prepared for extra time. The highway’s may be closed until the storm blows through and the snow plows do their jobs. This can effect the start time and the return time and there is absolutely nothing that you can do. Keep your schedule flexible.

Part and parcel with keeping your schedule flexible, make sure your vehicle is stocked with food and drink. You could spend significant time in slow traffic following a plow, an RV or in a snowbank waiting for a wrecker. If something does happen, stay with the vehicle. Leave a plan with someone you know so that they know where to look for you and having food, water and shelter significantly increases your survival odds.

There is all kinds of recovery gear you might want to have. But, if you don’t have it and likely have never used it, probably best to skip. That being said, stick to major roads for safety purposes. These will be the best plowed and most travelled roads anyway. A much better chance to be found or get help if you need it.

I am going to bring a portable CB. I am not expecting a whole lot but it gives a possible way for secondary communications. My past experiences have been pretty ho-hum, If things get ‘western’ than maybe it will be an option to get ahold of a trucker. Plus, it gives a little more experience on the road with a potential tool. It would be better if I had a permanent mount.

End Your Programming Routine: This is supposed to be fun. It is a week of vacation for me and the first whole week this year. I’ll admit that I have a few doubts but it should be alright. I would much rather gear up and not need it, than need it and not have it. But, you have to go through these what if situations and test them to really be ready for the situations.

February 2, 2023 – Happy Groundhog’s Day

February 2, 2023 /

I had a co-worker that loved this day for some unknown reason. He would play this movie on loop and bring in donuts. Maybe it is because some years, we were reliving the same day as the last day. One year specifically, I was in the middle of a huge snowstorm. I had been on-site the entire month of January and I was going to be there the whole month of February. Things were not going well and we did the only thing we could do, just keep going.

Believe it or not, I have never watched this movie. I have seen clips on YouTube and I have seen the loop but I have never sat down and watched it beginning to end. Supposedly, the protagonist lives his day over and over again until he gets everything right; I guess according to the universe. Maybe today is the day?

Of course, I am not a big believer of the whole Puxatawny Phil concept. It would be impossible to have the same weather in Pennsylvania as I have a whole country away. That being said, tradition is a good thing, nonsensical or not. The good news is that Spring is on the way weather we like it or not.

I look at February as a transitionary month. We sometimes get 60 degrees and sunny. We sometimes get snow storms. But what I really look at is the light level. By the end of the month, we will see it getting dark around 6pm or after the traditional end of the workday. To me, this ends the dark to work and dark when leaving days. I suppose that if I lived in Alaska, I would say the end of ‘Dark Winter’. There is a dramatic difference in the light levels from the beginning of the month to the end of the month.

Of course, I am going to spend half the month away from home. I will miss my son’s birthday and Valentines Day once again. Not only will there be hell to pay for that, this new debt that I owe but also this is the prime time to get some stuff done around the house. For instance, President’s Day is the target for getting roses pruned. And speaking of pruning, there are fruit trees, grapes, etc that need to get done before bud. This is another sign of transition.

In my climate I will likely see three more months at least of rainfall and mostly sub-sixty degree temperatures whether Phil saw his shadow or not. That doesn’t mean that there won’t be some good days too. The same as with the concept of the movie. It seems like I am living the same day over and over again, but then there are some days that are downright pleasant.

End Your Programming Routine: Like Yin and Yang, winter and summer are separate but interconnected. It is not a duality like described in Atlas Shrugged but a duality like light and dark or fire and water. Our downtime is quickly slipping away as the light is coming and then it is time to hit the ground running again.