Digging from the Snow
Mike negotiates the winter road conditions in Steubenville on his way to pick up his friend Alexis, navigating treacherous streets and repeatedly getting stuck in the snow.
Good morning. This is the real deal — no filters, nothing glamorous — just me running to the store on this miserable winter morning. I am heading to M&M Hardware to get a copy of a key made for my friend Whitney. It is currently about -10° (12°F), and the scene here on Lincoln Heights is very wintry.
While starting the drive, I notice Alexis watching the stream; she lives just one street over on Dresden, so I am going to pick her up for an "Open Mike LIVE” exclusive. Before we get going, a quick safety moment: please be careful if you are driving, as the snow and ice have turned the roads into the badlands.
I am having some mechanical difficulties navigating the snow in this front-wheel drive car. I have to use momentum as a "takeoff pad" just to move one block.
(Alexis emerges and enters the car)
Alexis:
I’m still in my pajamas.
Mike:
Me too, honey. I’m going to drive around the block because I don’t want to clog the street while your husband, Clyde, is sleeping. He worked an afternoon shift and needs to wake up in about an hour to get ready for work at 14:00.
Mike:
Let’s head down Lincoln Hill to show our viewers the terrain. My friends in Dayton have no idea what we contend with; I have to downshift just to get down this hill without riding my brakes.
Alexis:
My husband said the hill was actually clear this morning, even though he had to stay overnight at the hospital because of a "code gray." That meant no one was allowed to leave during the level-3 snow emergency.
As we drove through downtown, we shared some life updates found in the sources:
Real Estate: Alexis and Clyde are in the process of buying a house on Shirley Circle.
Career Hunts: Mike has three interviews next week, including one for a gas company in Cambridge related to shale gas projects. I am currently between jobs and trying to get my money back together.
Library Incident: Alexis loves working at the library, but I had a bit of a "glitch" there during a phone interview. A patron complained I was too loud, even though I was in the "talking part" of the library near the coffee machine. I don't have my own laptop because my desktop is in Portland with a friend who isn't speaking to me.
Mike:
I thought it would be pretty to drive through Beatty Park.
Alexis:
I think you’re going to get stuck.
Mike:
She was right. I got us stuck in the snow. I tried to have a "man moment" by putting the car in neutral and pushing while Alexis steered, but we were immobile. We spent some time trying to dig the tires out with our feet. Fortunately, some Good Samaritans and a snow plow driver helped us get enough traction to get back to the road.
This is why I love Steubenville; unlike Columbus, where people can be snobby or unfriendly, people here actually help each other out.
After dropping Alexis off at her yellow house, I headed back to Whitney’s. However, I was so stressed that I missed my parking spot. While trying to navigate around the plow truck again, I got the car stuck in the snow for a second time.
This is just a normal winter day in Steubenville. I have to end the stream now because I need to manually dig my car out. Stay safe out there.
