My morning so far

Kitten's morning, December 20, 2008 (all times approximate):

5:30: Wake up naturally, without the aid of an alarm or noise. Turn on TV to confirm it's not 4 AM. Realize I fell asleep on the couch last night--without the TV on. Greeted by Maggie, who senses my first subtle movements, leaps onto my belly, and commences massage therapy.

6:00: Turn on the news to see what's been delayed/canceled. Also to see if there are any road closures. At 17 degrees, there wasn't gonna be any melting today.

7:00: Head to shower and dress after checking up on E-mail, Facebook, and the first blog post of the day. Dress in head to toe layers.

7:30: Put Christmas cards in purse, photo to scan at CVS in purse, grab keys and my shovel. It's time to dig out.

7:32: Commence digging out. Brush off the 8 or 9 inches of snow that fell on my car yesterday. Dig out from behind my car. The plowman came to clear the snow off the parking lot, but left a barrier of snow, trapping in all the cars in the lot.

8:26: Start car. Warm up for four minutes.

8:30: Put car in reverse. Car will not budge. I hit the gas. Nada.

8:30:30: Get out of car. Grab shovel again. Shovel under tires.

8:31: Attempt to back car out again. Still nothing.

8:31:31: Get out of car. Grab shovel again. Dig out the snow on the passenger side of the car.

8:36: 3rd attempt to put car in reverse. Still nada. Hit the gas all the way to the floor. Rubber starts to burn. I start to curse and pound the steering wheel.

8:37: Get out of car. Slam door. Kick tire. Get shovel again. Thinks I've finally found the culprit: lots of snow around the passenger front tire. Digging commences--again.

8:40: Backed out of parking space. At last!

8:42: Leave parking lot. The state highway is a mess. Plenty of blacktop, but lots of slush and icy spots. Drive 20 mph down hill.

8:45: Arrive at Mobil station. Pull into gas pump. Realize that I pulled in on the wrong side. Decide, "Screw it," and head to the Shell station.

8:48: Arrive at Shell station. Put gas in the car. Filled tank for under 20 bucks--first time in years that I've done that.

8:54: Head across town to post office. Take the back roads. Main Street is usually the worst plowed street in town--then again, there isn't a well-plowed street in town when it snows. At all. Snow starts to fall again.

9:19: Arrival at post office. This is normally a ten-minute drive from my house.

9:24: Leave post office. Spent enough time there to buy stamps and mail Christmas cards. There was no line (!) and I got right through. That was a first!

9:25: Debate whether to go to the CVS near the post office for the scan or to the one closer to my house. I decide on the one closer to my house.

9:46: Arrival at CVS. Learn that the scanner's broken. Decide to head to Walgreen's instead.

9:49: Arrival at Walgreen's. Scan photo. Photo will be ready at 10:27 AM. Do some shopping: get Mama Cat one last Christmas gift, buy some magazines in case of snow-boundedness tomorrow, and some snacks and Kraft Mac n' Cheese. There's something about the cold weather that makes me crave the blue box. Comfort food. Ahh.

10:45: Leave Walgreen's.

10:49: Arrive back at the condo. About to turn in when I realize everyone's pulled out of their spaces. The plow's now going to clear the parking spaces. I get out of the left turn only lane and head westward.

10:49:49: Decide to head to church. The roads in Middlefield and Meriden aren't any better--they're actually worse. You would think that a New England state would know how to plow. I see people digging out everywhere.

11:19: Arrival at church. The parking lot's plowed; a good sign. Looks like the social will go on after all.

11:19:19: Commence the drive home. Pray that the spaces have been plowed; I'm sick of being in the car!

11:23: Feel comfortable enough to turn on the radio for the drive home. I decided I can concentrate with some background talk/music. Decide on NPR. Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Mavis Staples is the guest. She is a riot!

11:46: Arrival back home.

Now I've gotta bake cookies for the church social tonight. If it gets canceled due to the weather, I will seriously cry.