Winter & Dad are Here!

Mendenhall Glacier

The fall was quite tough with the never ending rain.  I wasn't sure how I was going to make it through another few months until the dryer season arrives in March.  However, this past Monday, we got 16" of snow and Juneau is now a winter wonderland.  The scenery has drastically improved with snow everywhere.  All of sudden everything is looking up.  This means trails will soon be snow covered and not muddy from the rain.  I can try out the snowshoe that I just ordered!  The slopes will also open in a week's time so that is also something to look forward to.  The downside of all of this snow though, is having to dig your car out from under the snow if you don't have a garage.  Oh, and driving in icy conditions isn't too fun either.  However, the main roads have been pretty clear the last few days so it's not a huge deal if I don't have to drive often.  Perhaps if I lived up one of the mountains like many people do, I might have difficulty with my Corolla.

Another bit of news I have is a bit of a switcheroo in the household.  My husband is now back in England for the forseeable future, so my dad decided he is going to come here for the winter to keep me company.  He is retired and seems to have nothing better to do for the winter, so might as well I guess.  He's agreed to take Millie for walks on days I work, and I am really glad for that because I hated walking Millie in the dark.  Ever since day light savings time ended, it has been dark by the time I got off work, and I expect it will be that way until March or so. 

My dad and I haven't been all that close since he was away most of my life.  We get along alright, but we've never spent more than a few days together.  I do know we're both pretty set in our ways.  It'll be a challenge, but I think we'll be ok.  It'll be a good opportunity for us to spend some quality time together.  I plan to drag him out on my days off for walks, snowshoeing, and skiing.  He's looking forward to it all too - the opportunity to be outdoors and get fit.  Today is day 1 of 134 days together.

Road to Alaska: Columbus to Springfield

Ice at rest area

Today was a 6 hour drive (plus stops) to my dad's in Springfield, IL.  It was supposed to be an easy drive today but I was sleepy the whole way.  I suck at long distance driving. I think I stopped at every rest stop along the way.  I'll have to make sure I caffeine up for the 10 hour drive tomorrow.

Road conditions today was actually pretty good.  Aside from the sun and snow blinding me, it was good driving conditions.  There was a short stretch of highway that had some snow cover, but mostly it was clear.  The side roads and such weren't so clear, but it wasn't too much worse than what we had back in Virginia last week.

I'm at dad's now waiting for dinner.  I skipped lunch (couldn't be bothered to stop in town to get food) so I am starving.  Chili mac for dinner.  And trying not to get hooked on NCIS marathon.  Gotta get up early tomorrow for the drive.