Regarding Ice, Door Knockers and Staying Put

My strategy for today's storm was to stay put, catch up on calls and paper work and do a bit of Christmas wrapping until after lunch. I supposed this would allow the ice of the night time storm to melt with the rain. That apparently accomplished, about 2:15 PM, I was packing my bags when a knock came at my kitchen door. This knock on an icy day brought back a memory of another icy day a few years ago when a nice young southern man, just out of the military and dressed in his black leather jacket and dress shoes, got lost on our road. He too had knocked. He was driving a truck, a brand new, small metallic grey Toyota as I recall. He was stuck. He was unaccusomed to snow and ice, being from the South. So, on that occasion, he pushed while I drove, we spun his little truck right around in the road and I drove it down the steep twisting road and past Patsy's for him.

Today the one knocking is a bearded man dressed in blue pants and a shirt, work boots and wearing no coat. It takes me a moment I but recongize him, a town highway worker. I swing the door open. Yes, it is true, he reports, the sander itself is stuck on our road and his truck radio doens't work in this territory. This time the knocker uses my phone and calls for help. He is not lost. He is accustomed to snow. I will not drive his beast, nor will he push. A rescue truck will come. It will take over an hour he explains. It is not warm enough to melt the ice on the road and the sand keeps getting washed away by the rain. Two thoughts flash through my mind: "I think I will just stay home." and, "All that sand and salt is being washed into our precious stream...better line that road with hay bales, fast!" I only speak the first as I wish him well, close the door, turn up the music and throw another log in the woodstove. Time to make a fresh pot of tea.