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Hippiekinkster -> RE: Due to wintry weather conditions.... (2/3/2009 12:54:55 PM)
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quote:
ORIGINAL: DesFIP
I have been told that the state of Texas owns one snow plow. With which they propose to clear all of I- 40 should it be necessary. Not sure if that's true but I do know that if it snows there, traffic snarls.
And Washington, D.C. is a byword for places you don't want to be when there's a quarter inch of white stuff. Here, we aren't getting any more than two inches total today, not even a two hour delay.
I rememberback around 79 I was working with my brother delivering business supplies in the DC area. My route was basically some of the intown buildings like Treasury, Commerce, etc. and NW, out to Gaithersburg; Georgetown, McLean, some Fairfax, some drops out Cabin John Parkway, etc. (I recall National Geographic's HQ was in Gaithersburg. Maybe Rockville).
I had a load of 50 boxes of Xerox paper had to get out to Dulles and get shipped to Ghana or Uganda, whatever. The roads were covered and there were small snowbanks on the sides from where they'd plowed. The streets in town were still pretty good. Snow was still coming down heavily. Central Business machines was, IIRC, on 13th down around K St. We packed the load in the back of the Dodge long-wheelbase van I drove, and had a little marching powder on the elevator (my brother always had, and we lived on coffee, coke, steaks, and White Russians back then). Don't remember the route I took, probably 66 out to the Dulles Rd. I left at dusk, and it got dark on the way. The snow really started coming down about halfway out there, so I slowed down. That's when I realized I had a problem. See, when we loaded the boxes, some of the weight went back past the rear axle; just enough to make the front end a little light. As I used gas, the weight balance changed. On the snowy, icy road, steering became a real adventure. On occasion, the front end would leave the road entirely. So I'm doing from 5 to 10 miles and hour, white-knuckled and VERY alert [8D], at night during a semi-blizzard in a barely-steerable van, on a road I'd never been on, and PLUS I had a deadline. I have no idea how I found where to drop my freight. I recall it was transferred straight to one of those baggage carts to go out to the plane. Don't remember driving home, either (off Colesville RD. Silver Spring, just inside the beltway). No White Russians that night; Scotch.
It does occasionally snow in DC. [:D]
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