I'm still waiting for a good snowfall, but late yesterday an ice storm passed through our area. I had the tv on all day watching between the local channels for annoucement of school dismissals and the Weather Channel. (I have never watched more of the Weather Channel that I have in the past three months.) School was dismissed early, but that storm took a long time getting here; by the time it did it was too dark out to see anything. It wasn't a heavy rain, but I guessed combined with the low temperature, it became ice as soon as it hit the ground.
So, this is the first time for me to experience Black Ice.
When we looked out the window this morning it didn't look much different than having rained overnight, but when we stepped outside, uh-oh! Everything has a thin layer of ice that can't be seen!
James was first...on the way to the garage he slipped on the first step off our back deck. Noah and I use the front door to get to the school bus stop. Noah's good idea was to take "stomp steps" and it helped that the soles of our shoes had some traction (unlike James'). Stomping helped break the ice on the steps but not as much when we got to the concrete sidewalks. Noah's other good idea to walk on the wood chips or strips of lawn near the curb. The street was still mostly covered with ice too. Every step was potential for slipping. I had to keep telling Noah to stop pulling on my arm when he felt like he was going to slip; we would both fall. I felt like we had to take Geisha-like small steps. The corner, with the handicap ramp and "visual warning surface," was the worst. Instant slippage! We were never so happy to reach the big lawn that we had to cross. The sound of crunching grass was very welcomed.
When I was a kid, each time I saw the commercials for the "Slip 'n Slide" outdoor toy, I wished I had one. But our lawn was too small and it's surely a waste of water in Southern California.
Slipping and sliding around now is not fun at all.
So, this is the first time for me to experience Black Ice.
When we looked out the window this morning it didn't look much different than having rained overnight, but when we stepped outside, uh-oh! Everything has a thin layer of ice that can't be seen!
James was first...on the way to the garage he slipped on the first step off our back deck. Noah and I use the front door to get to the school bus stop. Noah's good idea was to take "stomp steps" and it helped that the soles of our shoes had some traction (unlike James'). Stomping helped break the ice on the steps but not as much when we got to the concrete sidewalks. Noah's other good idea to walk on the wood chips or strips of lawn near the curb. The street was still mostly covered with ice too. Every step was potential for slipping. I had to keep telling Noah to stop pulling on my arm when he felt like he was going to slip; we would both fall. I felt like we had to take Geisha-like small steps. The corner, with the handicap ramp and "visual warning surface," was the worst. Instant slippage! We were never so happy to reach the big lawn that we had to cross. The sound of crunching grass was very welcomed.
When I was a kid, each time I saw the commercials for the "Slip 'n Slide" outdoor toy, I wished I had one. But our lawn was too small and it's surely a waste of water in Southern California.
Slipping and sliding around now is not fun at all.
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