I have a lot of fun with the roads around my home in the foothills of the Georgia mountains.  They’re curvy and fun to drive.

On the other hand, they do present some challenges.  Like the time I drove over Blood Mountain.  I left in the morning and didn’t have lunch.  As I was driving home in the late afternoon, I munched on the Kit Kat bar I’d picked up to stave off starvation.

And, I learned a valuable lesson.  Don’t eat chocolate on an empty stomach and drive down very windy mountain roads.  After breaking into a cold sweat, I pulled over for a short break.  After some deep breathing, I convinced myself I wasn’t really going to die - or get sick - and finished the last few miles to home.

I learned another lesson the other day.  I was driving back over that famous mountain - on a full stomach this time - with two friends.  We got a bit turned around trying to find our destination, and determined that we needed to turn around.  While the road was a bit curvy, I chose a relatively clear area, stopped briefly, then started backing into a small store’s driveway to turn around.

The drive was a u-shape.  Directly behind the car there were a few flimsy trees, then the drop off the side of the mountain.

About the time I was almost completely off the road, the person in the back seat screamed.  Of course, my initial reaction was that we were facing impending doom, and I briefly accelerated.  Then, of course, I caught myself, thinking of that “small” drop off behind me. 

I turned to look at the road ahead and saw no immediate danger, so I asked the back seat driver what had happened.  She had caught sight of a car that had appeared coming around the curve in the road and decided that we were about to collide with it.

So, she screamed.  Swell.

If I’d been a bit more enthusiastic with the gas pedal, we’d have had a real problem.  But, of course we wouldn’t have had to worry about it since we’d all probably be dead.

So, the moral of that story is: if you scream while in the car, you’d better be darn certain that any reaction by the driver isn’t going to get you in worse trouble.

You should also consider that the driver might just wring your neck if you all survive.

Update:  2-25-10 5:30PM

I thought the end of the meeting was rather interesting.  Whether you’re for the Democrat or Republican position on healthcare reform, you may agree that something needs to be done.  And, the President has set out a challenge to both sides to work together to come up with a reasonable plan now - not another few decades from now.  Odd, that’s just what I’ve been saying to my elected officials: stop fooling around and being all political and get something done!  It will be fascinating to see if anything actually happens. 

Update:  2-25-10 3:30PM

Well, I’ve been listening on and off since this morning.  From what I’ve heard, it’s unfortunate that this meeting has not been used to resolve issues.  It’s been used as a platform for everyone to explain why they don’t want to do what the “other guys” want to do.  It’s no wonder the legislature can’t get anything done.

Guess this post isn’t too Whimsical, but I think it’s important.

President Obama and a host of Congressional leaders are meeting tomorrow to discuss health reform.  To start the discussion, the President is bringing a proposal that combines many of the ideas proposed by legislators on both sides.  You can find out exactly what is included in the proposal to ensure you have the real story.

I’m hoping that something definitive comes out of this meeting.  As an individual healthcare policy holder, I’ve seen my premiums raised 168% over the past five years.  It’s way past time, in my opinion, for reform.

According to WhiteHouse.gov, the video below will be showing “the live video of the meeting”.  Anyone who is concerned about health care reform owes it to themselves to find out whether our leaders are actually moving toward some meaningful legislation.  Stop back at 10am EST tomorrow, Thursday, to see the meeting!  I know I’ll be watching!

[Live stream video removed]

About the meeting:

When: Thursday, February 25, 2010, 10:00AM EST
Where: The Blair House in Washington, DC
Invitees: 

Senator Harry Reid, D-NV, Majority Leader
Senator Mitch McConnell, R-KY, Republican Leader
Senator Richard Durbin, D-IL, Majority Whip
Senator Jon Kyl, R-AZ, Republican Whip
Senator Max Baucus, D-MT, Chairman of the Finance Committee
Senator Chuck Grassley, R-IA, Ranking Member of the Finance Committee
Senator Tom Harkin, D-IA, Chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee
Senator Mike Enzi, R-WY, Ranking Member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee
Senator Christopher Dodd, D-CT, Member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee

Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-CA
Representative Steny Hoyer, D-MD, Majority Leader
Representative John Boehner, R-OH, Republican Leader
Representative James Clyburn, D-SC, Majority Whip
Representative Eric Cantor, R-VA, Republican Whip
Representative Charles Rangel, D-NY, Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee
Representative Dave Camp, R-MI, Ranking Member of the Ways and Means Committee
Representative Henry Waxman, D-CA, Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee
Representative Joe Barton, R-TX, Ranking Member of the Energy and Commerce Committee
Representative George Miller, D-CA, Chairman of the Education and Labor Committee
Representative John Kline, R-MN, Ranking Member of the Education and Labor Committee
Representative John Dingell, D-MI, Chair Emeritus of the Energy and Commerce Committee

Well, OK, I can tell what day it is.  I just have to look at my online calendar, and the day is highlighted for me so that I don’t get confused.

What I am having a hard time with is interpreting dates that I’ve written down here or there.   Is anyone else noticing this issue?

Ever since I can remember, figuring out the date was pretty simple.  I realize now it was because all the elements of a written date were unique.  If you saw 5-17-96, it was pretty obvious it referred to May 17, 1996.  Even if you wrote 5-96, you knew right away that the date was referring to May of 1996.

And, that pattern has held true right up until 2009.  For example, 8-09 means that something happened in August of 2009.  Now, it’s all gotten messed up.  Why?

Because we are moving into the 2nd and succeeding decades of the 21st century!  Now, if I look back on notes I wrote a while back and see 1-10, I’m not sure what I meant.  Is that January 10th of some year, or January of 2010?  See the problem???

So, I’m considering changing the way I write dates.  If I mean just a month and year, I’ll have to use 2-2010.  I think sticking with 2-17-10 is still going to work because it includes the day and year.

Good heavens!  I have enough stuff to think about with confusing myself with writing a simple date.  But, I think that small change will work. If I remember to do it that way.  If anyone else has a better approach, I’d appreciate hearing about it.

Maybe that’s why the folks in Star Trek used “stardates”.  It was just a number as I recall, so each day had it’s own unique identifier.  Maybe we should be thinking about using that system before we all start showing up places at the right time, but the wrong day!

I know the situation in Haiti isn’t news to anyone.  But, for me, it is the most destruction I’ve ever seen.  I just can’t imagine the pain, grief and hopelessness that must be almost palpable for those poor people.

Now, they’re talking about scammers coming out in full force to get people’s money - and NOT send it to Haiti.  I made a donation to Bill Clinton’s organization before he and the last President Bush joined forces.  The reason?  Mainly because 100% of the money collected will go directly to the Haitians.  And, it’s getting there now, not someday - see the email I received below.

Click on the email below to get to President Clinton’s donation page.  And, look in the right column of this blog for other ways to donate.

The people of Haiti will remain in my prayers.

As I’m sure you’ve heard, if not felt, a good portion of the US has been experiencing below normal temperatures.

I’m not really sure what normal temperatures are any more.  This summer, the Atlanta area experienced higher than normal temperatures - this winter, lower than normal.  So, I’m wondering if the definition of “normal” is going to change.  But, I digress.  Again.

Here in the South, 2″ of snow will close everything down.  And, it’s a good thing, too.  Many Southerners don’t know the first thing about driving in snow or ice.

Last Friday we got 2″ of snow.  Under normal conditions, everything would have closed down Friday, and then opened up when the snow melted on Saturday.  However, a bit of snow can turn into a disaster when you have an extended period of below — way below — freezing temperatures.  I didn’t venture out until Monday.  Why?  Well, silly things were happening on the roads!

On one exit ramp TWENTY SEVEN cars ran into each other sliding in snow and ice.  Drivers admitted that they were going about 40 MPH.  Any Yankee will tell you that you probably shouldn’t be going that fast on an off ramp anyway, and certainly not in icy conditions.

Other drivers who were interviewed after sliding into other cars or smashing head on into trees said pretty much the same thing: “I slammed on my brakes and the car just locked up”.   Well, yes.  That’s what happens when you slam on your brakes on an icy road.

As a Yankee myself, I don’t ever remember being taught how to drive in snow and ice.  I don’t remember that as a chapter in the driver’s education class I took.  I guess it must be knowledge that is just handed down from generation to generation.

Unfortunately, the word never seems to have drifted down very far south.  So, for anyone who is still wondering what to do, here’s the deal:

• NEVER slam on your brakes on a slippery road - pump your brakes when necessary.
• Use very small movements of the wheel to adjust your course if you’re about to run into something. 
• Otherwise, just enjoy the glide. . .  I mean ride.

If you do run into something, odds are you won’t be injured.  But, please!  Remember that the reason you’re in that mess to begin with is because the roads are slippery!  Do NOT leap out of your car to check the damage and start doing an impression of a newborn giraffe.  Ending up on your (how does one spell tookus?) isn’t going to fix anything.

For the moment, the disaster is over.  Temps tomorrow are predicted in the high 40’s, which should get rid of any last vestige of snow.  However, I’ve heard predictions of another artic blast or two happening before the winter is out.

So, please, everyone, do some studying up on winter driving before the next one hits.   Practice pumping your brakes, using a low gear (yes, even automatic transmissions have low gears, you probably just never think about them being useful for anything), and changing lanes using a series of small adjustments with the steering wheel (only on an empty road, of course).

Let’s all bone up on our winter driving skills and maybe we’ll be able to avoid disaster during the next 2″  “snow storm”!