There was freezing rain in the forecast. Unfortunately, I had an appointment with my dentist. Now, one wound happily postpone a dental appointment. Right?
But I got a really good dentist. Those are hard to come by. One of their major drawbacks: they have long waiting lists. Postponing the appointment would mean another five to six months waiting for another one. Impossible, since we have plans to spend a major part of the summer … well, we’ll talk about that later.
It barely snows in winter here in the lowlands
Coming from the Alps I brought snow showers with me. At least that’s what folks here claimed.
You can see more pictures in a slide show on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcKnatb8-LA
People in this region are not good at driving in snow and slush.
I’m checking the forcast again. More snow is supposed to come – and that freezing rain.
I might get to the dentist with just a load of snow falling. I don’t mind snow. The temperature is well below freezing that makes it more like driving on sand.
I remember too well that one trip from New York to my home in Maryland in winter.
It started out okay. The first snow flakes were falling in New Jersey. In Pennsylvania it developed into a blizzard. I shared the Highway only with the snowploughs treating the road. Everyone with a brain stayed home. Well, it was a tedious ride.
On the route south into Maryland, snow turned to freezing rain. The windshield started to freeze over. On the defrost setting with the heat at full power the car turned into a sauna, but it kept two spots on the windshield ice free. Unfortunately, I had to stoop down to look through one of these holes in the ice. What a pain!
Eventually, I made it to the parking lot in front of my house. I found myself trapped the car, which was enclosed in a shell of ice. I had to throw my full weight at the door to get it open.
Could it be that bad this time? According to the news, Frankfurt Airport just shut down. That is 30 miles to the west. The storm is approaching from that direction. I have to go east. 15 miles. Still time until it hits here.
I decided to go early. Lucky me. Some patients cancelled their appointments due to wheather. So, I moved up on the waiting list. That bought me time enough to get home before things got nasty.
Well, this was my little adventure for this week. Was it foolish or did I act within the range of “calculable risk”?
Let me know.
1 thought on “Freezing Rain”
Definitely within the range of calculable risk! Much the same in the U.S. if an appointment is missed.