The Journey Begins At The End

The Winter Freeze Of Texas 2021 The meteorologist reported on the news that we were supposed to have a snowstorm coming in a few days. It started with sleet and freezing rain, and the next morning, I got up to head for work. About a mile down the road, I realized it was too slick to continue, so I attempted to turn into a parking lot. However, my car slid into the parking lot instead. I called the manager of the call center and informed her that I was heading back home because it was too slick out there. “Oh, it’s okay don’t try to come out here if you don’t feel safe,” she said. “Oh, now you tell me,” I said. She said to call the weather line for the office to get updates on whether the call center would be open or closed for the rest of the week. I managed to make my way back home without incident. I don’t know why I even tried to get to work that day. No job is worth risking your life in bad weather. I was hoping the major streets would be plowed and salted like they did back in my hometown of Kansas City, but there was not a snowplow guy in sight. I turned on the morning news and watched the traffic report, and saw a major accident on I-35 with a bunch of cars and semi-trucks piled up right where my cousin Tracy lives. I called Tracy to make sure she hadn’t tried to go to work, and she confirmed she was at home safe and was not going to work. The following morning, I called my job’s weather line, and the voice recording stated they would be closed. Later that evening, after the ice had melted some, I decided to go grocery shopping since we were going to be in the house for a few days. The meteorologist had announced that a snowstorm was coming, and that the streets were going to refreeze overnight. When I got to Kroger it seemed like everybody had the same idea because the store was crowded. I don’t know why we wait until the last minute to take care of business. Despite the crowds. I bought several days’ worth of food and water and headed back home. Finally, I was set and had everything in place. I’d had enough of the snow from growing up in that mess. Having lived in the Arizona Valley for 20 years, I got spoiled and didn’t have to deal with it. However, when I woke up the next morning, it had snowed. Putting on my jacket, I went outside and noticed our apartment complex hadn’t treated the sidewalks. Then I remembered, Texas is not big on salt for whatever reason. In my mind, I was going to be able to chill and relax for a few days. Little did I know we were going to be chilling, literally. Later, around two in the morning, I woke up to use the bathroom and realized the power was out. It must have just gone out because it wasn’t that cold in my apartment. I like to sleep with the temperature a little on the cool side anyway. I looked outside and saw that the streetlights were out. Then I remembered on the news they mentioned something about a rolling blackout. I got back in bed, wondering when the power was coming back on. As I got back out of bed and looked outside through the blinds, the streetlights came back on. Whew, thank God! I went back to sleep. I woke up around 6:00 a.m. to go to the bathroom, and the room was freezing. I didn’t want to get out of the covers. The power was out again and must have been out for quite some time. The toilet seat was ice cold. I grabbed some more covers from my closet and layered them on my bed before getting back in. With at least five covers on my bed, I managed to stay warm. I stayed in bed until around 10:00 a.m., but then I needed to charge my phone. As I got dressed, I couldn't help wondering how long it takes for hypothermia to kick in. Not wanting to find out, I decided to go to my car to charge my phone and warm up.