What if it Snows?

As much complaining as I've done today....glad I'm not in Texas right now.

 

Used to make this sandwich. It is some serious eats.

2 slices of good sourdough bread.
2 slices each of, Cheddar, Swiss, Jack and Muenster
4 to 6 Nice Tomato slices.
8 strips of Bacon.

Heat a large pan to a medium setting.

lightly butter one side of each slice of bread.
Place in pan.
Layer 1 each of the cheese slices on the bread.
Place the Tomato slices on one of the slices of bread.
Tomatoes need to cover the whole side.
Place the Bacon strips on the other.

when the bread starts to brown and the cheese is starting to melt, flip one side on to the other. Cook to your desired toasted level, flip the whole sandwich, and cook to your desired toastyness.

EAT. You could cut it into half or quarters.

 

This is making me hungry again, and I just ate.

 

I forgot I never got a chance to tell the story of me trying to escape Michigan back in this past December 30.

Anyways I had been stranded up north in Luther bumfok Michigan trying to cram my semi and all my Krap I had moved up from Florida into my ex mother in-laws pole barn.

I know Ex. Seems like there’s a pattern there

Anyways her place is up on high ground and the only 2 ways out of there are comparative to a ski slope.

I knew that snow storm was coming in and Luther doesn’t plow or sand their roads until Spring because of budget cuts, so it was now or never.

I had friends I had to meet down in Key West in a week and I was loaded down with tools and hoists in the van and the boat and felt I had some weight for traction.

But the Boat trailer has surge brakes which are totally useless on ice.

Anyways I get out of the house about 2 hours behind schedule and there is already 2 inches on the ground but I make a run for it because I had too.

I crept down one of the ski slopes and made it to level ground 8 miles from the 2 lane backwoods highway m-37.

Now it’s 9 pm and really coming down and I realize I only have a 1/4 tank of fuel and no way to get back uphill to the barn 2 miles away and that I made a Big mistake leaving in this worsening weather. .

So I trod along m-37 with not a clue where the road is at 20mph feeling like I am in HyperSpace the way the snow is coming down at 25mph from the south.

In bumfok Baldwin I manage to get fuel and decide I need to get out to 131 if I am going to make it the next 80 miles to Grand Rapids

An hour later and 15 miles of white knuckle driving I am on 131.

Big mistake. Highway is not plowed of the recent wet 6 inches and every 15 minutes you have the lone semi that wants to blow by you as you claw down the road with frozen wipers.

Not many exits on that stretch so sitting on the side of the road clearing the wipers I felt like a target for the random semis.

I get into GrandRapids at 3 am 100 miles and 6 hours later in need of food and the 2 beers I have in my cooler.

In GR the roads are a mess and now it is half freezing rain and snow. The roads are a ice rink and I barely made it up a long shallow climb coming into town.

I make a change of plans due to the roads and decide not to head for my friends house out in the country and treacherous Hilly roads but instead head to my buddies shop that is right around the corner.

Claw my way a few more miles and come around the bend a block from my buddies shop at a pretty good clip trying to keep my momentum going As I start a 500 foot Long climb trying to clear the summit that I didn't remember being so steep .

Within feet of clearing the summit I lost traction. I locked up the brakes but a surge brake trailer has no brakes in reverse.

The boat and trailer weigh about 8000 and the van is loaded down at about 7000.

I proceed to slide down the hill on the brakes but gaining phenomenonal speed.

Glancing in the side mirror I see the only thing stopping me now is the main power pole or me going through the wall of a commercial building at the bottom of the hill.

I decide to get off the brakes and try to gain some control and put it in the ditch. Somehow I did. This all occurred in no more than just a few seconds.
The second I lost forward momentum the slide down hill began as if someone kicked me off the top of the mountain .


After a deep breath I got out into the pouring rain and took root of the situation. I missed a giant well head by 3 feet that fed the fountain to the big pond 10 feet away.

I had a large tree a foot from the front fender of the van but I was still on the roadside bank of the ditch .

Also I was still a 150 feet up the hill so if I could rock it I might be able to build some momentum and get out of the ditch.

A little Rocking and the rig is moving I get it going in reverse and stay on the pedal.

Life is looking good until the van tires hit the icey road and the van immediately jackknifes.

Now I have the trailer totally blocking the only road to the neighborhood with the tail of it hanging off a 15 foot drop into a ravine.

Now my buddy that shop I was heading for owns a snowplow business with 6 trucks, so I send him a text to see if he is going to be in the neighborhood anytime soon, no response.

I figure he is hammered with work since this is the first big snowfall of the season and I am facing a big tow bill to clear the road.

5 minutes later he comes limping into the neighbor hood with a broken front plow and gets out and yells at me for blocking the road and why am I not in Florida already. .

We throw a strap on the tail of the trailer and he jerks it from going off the cliff.

Halfway straightened up I start giving it hell with the van. After 5 minutes I am totally straightened up and back the rest of the way down the hill and drop the trailer at a shop who his buddy owned .

I made another run at the hill without the trailer and crest it And met my buddy at the shop and helped him fixing his plow while I sipped on my well deserved beers at 5 am .

Sorry for the novel but figured you guys needed some Stupid entertainment.

Very very scary losing traction and sliding backwards.

 

Clear rolling all the way up I5 today in the car.

Did notice some street lights out in Portland though. Where will the homeless plug in their X-boxes?

 

. Don’t guess you want crawfish then.

 

I booked this load thinking it picked up in Detroit. Nope, Toledo. Had to run 60 miles home, pickup dinner, take wife’s car home. Slid into a snow bank 2 blocks from home. Cars leaking WW fluid and antifreeze. Ate dinner, ran 85 miles in 2.5 hrs. Got here 1.5 hrs late. No problem, 3 trucks ahead of me, they’re still making product. Goes to show, ain’t worth sweating it. Pretty nasty weather. 1-75 snow on ice. 35-40 mph tops, slipping and sliding all the way empty. Fun Fun. Oh well, ’m taking a nap. Probably take 8-9 hrs to do the 340 Mike trip.

 

It’s 16 degrees, with a good 20 mph wind hitting the front of my truck. Heat barely working. Put some cardboard behind the grill. Takes care of that. It’s good to have heat.