So at home in Alaska, we had two seasons - Winter and Construction.

 In Vermont, its not as bad.  Today is rainy.  Scratch that… its dried up… but my road is muddy.  The snow in my driveway has melted, and turned, in some places, to ice patches. 

 I live at the top of a hill - what Vermonters might call a mountain… time has worn these mountains into hills from my perspective.  In any case, I need snow tires for my car.  It also needs some other front end work.  But the tires are important.  I ran a guy off the road while driving my dirt road up my “mountain.”  It was his fault.  He pulled out into the one lane road while I was trying my best to make it up the slushy/muddy/icy mess that I call my road.  I pulled as far as I could to the right… he went as far as he could to the left and slipped right into the ditch.  My momentum devastated, I was unable to go any farther up the hill.  Not only that, the FedEx man was trying the same trick the guy in the ditch had just tried. 

Not wanting both of them in the ditch, I backed down the road.  I apologized as I backed past him, even though I knew he brought it on himself.  He walked down the hill to call a tow truck (no cell service on my mountain until you get to the top).  I backed down to get another running shot at the hill.  I didn’t make it.  I parked close to the bottom, walked home and grabbed my jeep.  I put the tire chains on, we hooked up the tow strap and my wife pulled the car up the hill (its stick and she can’t drive stick) with the jeep.  Actually, the first time she tried, she slowed, then sped up and snapped the tow strap.  I repaired it, clarified the towing rules, and we made it.  We discovered that slow and go sound disturbingly similar when you’re shouting them out your window.  I was mildly scared.

Exams are in a couple of weeks.  I’m scared of those also.  But I’ll make it. 

I’m also discovering how much I truly HATE instructor review sheets.  I fill them out with one-word answers still.  Unless there’s really a reason, I don’t understand why people take the time to whine on them.  There’s almost never a real reason.  As in any profession, its all about listening skills and dedicated hard work.  I’m still working on the hard work part.