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My thoughts released; a mind set free |
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These pages contain my thoughts, from meandering ideas and persuasions to deep cerebrations and serious mentations. Why, for what purpose? To release my mind and set creativity free. Somewhere inside the constraints of my mind dwells a writer, a poet, an artist who paints with words. In here I release those constraints and set the artist free. Perhaps, lost somewhere in the depths of thought, is a story or a poem, waiting to be written. |
| As I posted in the Newsfeed, we are under a windchill advisory until Wednesday. We stocked up on supplies today trying to get our shopping done before the temperature dropped and the winds moved in. We almost made it; the temp held at 2oF until we made our last stop. The wind had started blowing, but it wasn't strong yet at that time. But, as we left the town we were shopping in and started our forty-five minute drive home, the temps began to drop as the wind picked up. About halfway home, we came upon a vehicle on the side of the road with it's flashers on. I stopped to assist and found a young woman and her very young daughter in the car huddled together. Neither were dressed for cold weather; light jackets, not hats or gloves, and regular footwear. The woman told me the car had started to run rough and then died, they were also almost out of gas. I suspect the fuel lines froze up, but it could have been a lot of other things as well. The woman had forgot her phone at home and the daughter's phone was dead and they didn't have a charger in the car. They were as unprepared to be out on the roads in Minnesota in the winter as they could possibly have been. And, she told me they had sat there in the cold for almost an hour already, no one would stop. Of course, it's not a busy road and being Sunday and very cold, there wasn't much traffic. There was nothing I could do for the car, but we had decided to take the Yukon shopping so the dogs could ride with; we had plenty of room for two more even with the dogs and groceries. It took a few minutes to get the dogs settled down and then I drove them back home. They thanked me and offered money. I turned them down asking for something else for payment. "What?" The woman asked with a slight hesitation. With a smile I told her, "I want you to set up a winter survival kit for your vehicle with extra cloths and some of those disposable hand warmers in case you and your daughter ever get stranded in the winter again. "Sure, I will do that." She smiled, thanked me again and they went to the door. I waited in the driveway to make sure they got inside. But, after a few minutes of trying, they couldn't get the door open. The woman went around back through the deep snow and vanished. I got out and asked the daughter to sit inside where it was warm. she didn't hesitate to jump back in. As she did, her mom reappeared around the house. "I can't get the doors open." I had her get back in out of the cold, but with her slip on shoes in the snow, she had gotten snow into them and her feet were already starting to lose feeling. She explained that the key would not go into the locks and turn. I put on my gloves, my facemask, and buttoned up my coat to my neck. Then I took her keys and tried the doors, sure enough the locks were frozen; the gusting wind had blown powdery snow into the door lock where it must have melted until the temps dropped and it froze. I didn't have a lighter with me and doubt if I would have been able to get it lit in the wind if I had one. I thought for a minute about my options, then put her house key in my shirt pocket to warm it up, I re-buttoned my vest, re-zipped my sweatshirt, and then buttoned up my coat again. I thought I may have to take them to my house if I couldn't get the inside of theirs. I let the key warm up for a few minutes with my back to the bitter wind, then got ready to take it out and use it. But right before I did, I took my gloves off and wrapped my hands around the doorknob to warm it as I blew warm breaths into the lock. After I thought I may have melted the ice enough, I hurriedly stuffed the key into the lock and turned it. It resisted at first, but then I felt it turn a little. I turned it back and forth, feeling it move a bit more each time. Then, click, the lock tumblers turned and the door was open. I double checked that the door was still unlocked and would reopen before I closed it and stuffed my already frozen fingers back into my gloves and returned to the Yukon. Once inside I remembered the hand-warmers in our survival kit, I could have used them to thaw the lock. Oh well, it was done, my hands were cold, but not frostbit, and they were able to get inside. She thanked me again, offered money again, and again I turned her down. After they were inside, the lights on and the door shut, I backed out and went home to put groceries away. I hope she will take my advice and put a kit in her vehicle and dress accordingly before going out in the winter. |
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