You might feel a lot of ways about the weather we’re having. Today was a prime opportunity to shove my microphone in the face of people who were filling their gas tank.
In a situation like this, I often try to locate the nearest QuikTrip. First, they don’t seem to mind reporters accosting people filling their tank. Second, they have delicious breakfast pizza.
The truck driver in the tweet above was from Rhode Island. He was driving north from Waco and had already calculated a route around this series of crashes in what is no longer known as the Grapevine Funnel because it’s now got 24 lanes.
But it certainly funneled down this morning. Northbound 121 was shut down for a couple hours. Then Southbound 121 and 360 declared they would not be outdone, teamed up and shut down the ramp from 121 to 360.
My greatest concern, of course, was trying to find a photogenic spot for pictures to tweet.
But North Texas is about to spend its longest stretch below 40 degrees in six years. The last time was, as you’ll recall, was during the winter I do not believe actually occurred.
Today, though, I was out and about, doing the exact thing TxDOT was encouraging us not to do.
Similarly to our last cold winter, I made this ice storm about me.
“I’m from Ohio,” I explained to TxDOT’s Val Lopez [without swearing about it].
I also brought up this Ohio situation with the truck driver from Rhode Island. The concern is, with more people moving here from the North, we’re getting soft in dealing with winter weather.
The snow, however, does pose other issues. I haven’t shoveled a driveway since I was home at Christmas a few years ago. In fact, I scored an extra day off work because my flight never got off the ground, so I could relax at my parents’ house.
In less hilarious news, homeless shelters are having to balance the cold with COVID restrictions [and a spike in homelessness during the pandemic]. They’ve been renting hotel rooms, but they only have enough money for a couple more nights.
The winter weather advisory has been extended, so you should stay home.
But in more hilarious news, if you’ve got anything to get off your chest, head to a gas station tomorrow morning, look like you’re not in a hurry, maybe stare off into the distance as you’re filling up, and I’ll be by with a microphone to ask how you feel.
