Last night I drove up to Appleton to pick up my son. There was a snowstorm coming, but originally it wasn’t supposed to start until late. Basically, right when I go to the Oshkosh area (about 30 minutes out) I realized that I had left too late and I got there right in the middle of it. I wasn’t worried though because the roads weren’t THAT bad (I did see a few cars go off the road though) and I took my dads truck and had it in 4 wheel drive. By the time I got to pick up Nolan it was coming down hard. I thought if I could just drive slow and get close enough to Milwaukee everything would be okay. Once you get down in the Milwaukee area it’s no problem driving in the snow because they have tons of plows and put a lot of sand down. (I’d imagine this is due to southern Wisconsin having more money, but I can’t be sure.)
As soon as I was heading south I noticed the roads were a lot better than they were on the way up. I shuffle through the iPod and settle on Use Your Illusion II. Track 1: Civil War. One of the greatest songs of all time. I look in the rearview mirror and notice Nolan is sound asleep. I’m in the left lane doing about 40 mph, same speed as everyone else. I’m in four wheel drive.
D’you wear a black armband, When they shot the man, Who said “Peace could last forever”
Suddenly, I lose all control of the car as it starts to go hard left. I try to regain control, but quickly realized that I was about to start spinning so I just braced myself and tried to ride the way the car was drifiting. I thought if I fought it, I would flip it and I’m not going to do that. So I ended up in the snowbank facing the completely other way of traffic. I am shaking so hard, but the first thing I do is check on Nolan. He just woke up. That’s it. That’s all that happened to him. He thought I just woke him up, didn’t even cry. Who needs a paternity test? I regain my bearings and try to see if I can get out. I put it in drive and make it maybe four feet. I can work with this, I think. So I go in reverse and then forward, trying to rock myself out and up the hill. Eventually the snow is too much (there was like two feet) and the hill was too steep and I was stuck.
The cops came and picked me up. I am pretty sure this is the only time in my entire life I have written that sentence meaning that they actually picked me up to give me a ride. Which must mean I really am getting old. There was a “tow ban” on so I couldn’t get the car out that night and he took me to a hotel. I called my son’s mother to tell her what happened and she came to pick him up. I figured there was no way I could keep him warm in the morning when I got the truck out (which turned out to be BEYOND true). I ended up giving up my weekend with Nolan and spent my birthday morning freezing to death trying to get the truck started in 5 degree, 30 mph winds. Not good times. Honestly, the coldest I’ve ever been.
Right now I feel like I really don’t want to drive ever again. It was scary, but I’m okay. I don’t have Nolan this weekend, but we’re both safe and that’s all that matters. Overall, I just realize that I have to be more careful when it comes to Nolan. On the way up there I was doing about 70 and I remember thinking to myself “I won’t be driving like this on the way home, who cares what happens to me?” And that is completely stupid, but 100% true. Keeping my son safe is really the only thing that matters to me. I care about someone more than myself.
Maybe I am growing up.
