Christmas started early today: shortly after two this afternoon I received simultaneous phone calls from two of my programmer pals. Ellen (who runs Information Services) was letting everyone leave at three instead of five. Most other offices on campus seem to have similar policies, though I won't divulge their names.
It was nice for Ellen to give us this time off, and I called Jean immediately. She had been asked to get some gloves for one of her aunts. I now could run to the mall before five and save Jean the trouble. What's more, some bad weather was expected to start early this evening and I didn't want Jean to get caught out there in traffic. Jean gave me a general description of what she wanted, and I headed off to the mall.
I was hoping that in addition to the gloves for Aunt Alice, I might find something else for Jean. Earlier in the day I'd managed to get her a nice pair of earrings at a jewelry store near campus, but I wanted to get her something else if possible. As I pulled into my parking space the rain had just started to turn into sleet. I knew my time at the mall would have to be short.
After finding two pairs of gloves for Jean to examine, I got her another pair of earrings and some cards, then went to my car. It was covered in a sheet of ice. I sat in my car for fifteen minutes waiting for everything to defrost, then took to the roads.
Richmond is not a cold-weather city. Thirteen years ago when I worked at the mall, it would close with just a dusting of snow on the ground. I had a pretty good feeling that getting home was not going to be easy. One hour later, my car was still within a block of the mall.
I didn't think it would be that bad.
In the end, it took me more than an hour and a half to get home (a trip that usually takes ten to fifteen minutes). When I got home, Jean was relieved (she's very good at killing me off in her imagination every time I'm late). Sadly, it was too late for us to go to The Tobacco Company for our planned Christmas Eve dinner.
Christmas Eve dinner at The Tobacco Company is without a doubt my favorite time out with Jean. It's a pretty restaurant, with great decorations during Christmas. After dinner we walk up to a Christmas display of white wicker reindeer lit with tiny white Christmas lights. There's something about that part of town and the night - it's a time for just we two to be with each other, with none of our daily problems weighing us down.
We had reservations for six thirty, and I didn't get home until after six. From the traffic reports, it was obvious we wouldn't get down there for more than an hour, so we cancelled our reservation and picked up a pizza closer to home. In addition to the lousy weather ruining our night out, our oil heater stopped working, so we waited until ten thirty for someone to come to our rescue (we now have heat!). It was nice to spend our night together, but it was far from the formal night out I'd hoped for.
The sleet is still coming down, and we're expecting between half an inch and an inch of ice on the ground by morning. This may jeopardize our trip to Virginia Beach, but we'll play it by ear. I am happy that we've got the cold weather and maybe the chance of a white Christmas.
watching: PBS Christmas shows (one with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, the other with Robert Shaw)
reading: The Hobbit (J.R.R. Tolkien - Bumpy's bedtime book)
listening: A Joyous Christmas (The American Boychoir and The Atlantic Brass Quintet)
© 1998 Kevin J.T. Creamer