No`sh

Well now. Home at last to our little apartment after spending the past 5 days stuck in Madison County. If I ever see snow again, it will be too soon. We got a foot - A FOOT - of snow in Madison, and my car was conveniently buried under all 12 inches. To make matters worse - or funnier - my car was at the tippy top of the mile-long driveway, off a back road.

So what happened was this:

I had work last Sunday, and was scheduled for work last Monday but called in sick due to one of my joyful migraines. I had been planning on leaving here after work on Monday and heading up to Boone to spend some time with my mama, but due to the hangover I had from my migraine, I didn't. I left some time Tuesday after getting some much needed darkness and sensory deprivation. Spent Tuesday and Wednesday with mom and had loads of fun. Had a grand old time. Quality bonding with Ian (the son of my mom's boyfriend - John) whom I had not seen since... at least 2 years ago. We went to high school together, and I think we might have even been in the same grade. I know I had Earth Science with him, with Mr. Dixon. Loved that man. I wonder if he's still teaching? He was funny... had a sort of Canadian-sounding New York accent.

Anyway.

I intended to leave Boone around 9am on Thursday morning, but I ended up leaving around 11am because I got all wrapped up in this fascinating conversation with Ian and mom over coffee. But as soon as I got back to Asheville, Poncho and I departed for Madison County to spend the rest of the day with his mother (Kathey), stepfather (John) and younger sister (Charlotte). We decided to stay the night with them and leave for work early Friday morning so Poncho would a) have more time with his family, and b) get back home in time for work Friday evening. Well, turns out Poncho was able to figure out a way to use some PTO for Friday and we stayed with the family one more evening.

This is where things start to unravel.

I was scheduled to work Saturday evening, and by the time the festivities were over Friday night it was dark and I decided we would leave for Asheville the following morning. I awoke at 11am to find 4 inches of snow on the ground. I called in to work. It kept snowing. All day. All night. More snow. Called in again. Freaking out. No way to get out. Trapped. So much snow.

Man. That was fun.

So all the while that we're stuck in Madison, my dad's kind of upset with me. I'm not entirely sure why, since I don't control the weather. But he wanted Poncho to get out in this mess with no snow-appropriate wardrobe to his name and shovel the damn driveway. I'm sorry, but no. That driveway is curvy, unpaved and a mile long. Even if he did manage to shovel the whole thing clear in a clearly counterproductive downpour of snow, my car is not equipped to drive in those conditions and we would not have made it out anyway. And why is that? Because he didn't see fit to buy me a car with 4-wheel-drive because - and I quote - "I shouldn't be driving in those sort of conditions anyway".

So we were stuck and I was stressed out about it.

And what's funny about it is this: my dad hadn't even been able to make it up to the cabin as scheduled either. The roads in that part of Georgia were highly treacherous and they were still at the townhouse until things cleared up. They're still there now. I'm calling tomorrow before heading down there because the roads might not be okay for driving yet. But it's my fault we're snowed in and Poncho needs to resort of manual labor and yada yada. Gimme a break.

****As an aside, it took me nearly 3 days to work up to this level of dismissive sardonic anger. Before that, I was fighting back tears.****

Oh! And Meredi and Frank are in town. Surprise! They get into town tomorrow afternoon. We're supposed to be leaving for Dad's cabin at 10am since he wants us there by 2pm. I guess I could do what Poncho jokingly suggested and blow off dad, but I still kind of feel bad about running 3 days late and I don't think I have it in me. So unless it turns out that the roads in Big Canoe are still treacherous, I won't get to see my friends.

Here's hoping everything works out for the best.