West: Ice & snow ... give it a rest

By MIKE WEST

So what did you think about all the ice and snow?

Personally, I say ice AIN'T too nice and all this snow ought to go blow.

Back in the day, I had a Jeep and later a four-wheel-drive pickup and loved it when it was snowy and icy.
Nothing stopped me in those days!

Well, actually, there was the time when a young, blonde woman ran me off the road and the Jeep slid into a ditch right on its passenger side. But that was on a perfect summer afternoon with no snow, ice or rain. There was nary a casualty except for my nose, which got broken for the third time. Yep, seat belt was on, but the rear view mirror managed to detach itself and hit me square in the nose. The Jeep was soon ready to roll again.

That little CJ-5 was perfect in bad weather! No hill, no matter how icy, could stop me. Remember that famous ice storm several years back? I made it safely to Nashville and back again when other folks were just abandoning their cars on the roadway. It was just a matter of locking the hubs and kicking it into four-wheel-drive.

Yep, she was great Jeep. But for no apparent reason, I decided to trade her for a sporty, slick Nissan 200ZX. Yes, the Nissan was a beaut ... fast, comfortable with a great sound system. She even talked to me, often saying, "fuel level is low" in an assertive feminine voice.
Then winter hit! Chains didn't even help.

Didn't take me too long to trade for a little, gold pickup truck equipped with four-wheel-drive. Once again, nothing could stop yours truly.
Cruising in a record snow was no problem.

But modern cars and trucks have a way of wearing out. (Sorry, I'm not very mechanical and when I look under "today's" hood, I can barely distinguish the motor).

Now days, a little Ford Focus is my choice of wheels. Generally, 360 days a year, she's great but....but, when it comes to ice she's awfully light on the road. Snow is OK, but ice (like I said earlier) AIN'T too nice! So, here I sit in my sweat suit typing away on a laptop right on the kitchen table.
OK, go ahead and say it! Maybe my sense of adventure is gone? I used to crave the challenge presented by ice and snow.

Or maybe I've finally gained a bit of common sense? (That's doubtful.) Or just maybe, technology has advanced to the point where a newspaperman can work from home?

That's it...blame it on technology.

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