News : Driving around with Captain Obvious

Tuesday night found me out and about later than I had planned to be.

Gripping the wheel of my itty bitty car, okay, it's probably not "itty bitty" it's the size of a normal sedan, I slammed through drift after drift on the highway promising myself if I could just get to town, I'd be smart and check into the hotel and not even think about trying to get home.

Lights start flashing on the dash. I glanced down to read, "Possible icy conditions."

In frustration, I growled back at it saying, "No duh."

A few minutes later I could see that there was an orange triangle flashing on the dash.

I'm thinking, "Great something is wrong with the car, I can't see where I'm going, and now something is wrong with the car," but I couldn't look at it just yet.

When I had a second to glance down I saw that in the triangle there was the picture of a car sliding. I think I probably growled, "Are you KIDDING ME???" As if I didn't know that the sliding sensation my car was giving me didn't imply that it was indeed sliding around."

Giving a sigh and trying not to get more frustrated with my car stating the obvious I continued inching to town.

As I squinted and started to sweat, and as I started to think that this is the dumbest thing I've done in a long time, my car gave me a new message.

Every time a new light popped up I was torn between trying to see the road and seeing if the car had a new message that wasn't from Captain Obvious.

This time it warned me that there was "Low Traction."

My dad grew up in the day when people could read gauges on their car. He would sigh in frustration every time he saw the new cars with lights on the dash.

"Idiot lights," he called them, and after last night and today riding around with Captain Obvious, I agree.

As I slid through town today, trying to take pictures of people plowing, digging, snow blowing and kids playing in the snow, my dash lights were flashing and warning me and of course, and stating the obvious.

After getting stuck trying to turn a corner, I thought, "Okay, now you've gone to the dark side, you're trying to play Road Warrior to write a story because, well everything is shut down and there isn't much happening."

I took pictures of kids climbing on a snow bank, the city tractors out moving tons of snow, big snow blowers, tiny snowblowers, people of all ages shoveling and snow blowing and the more fortunate helping the older folks.

I loaded the disk which gave me a "corrupt file" message. Another idiot light.

So I cried, "Uncle" and decided I didn't need pictures to tell you that it snowed.

Nor did I need pictures to tell you that people are kind and helping each other clean the driveways and sidewalks.

I didn't need to tell you that the city and county are doing their very best to get us all up and running as quickly as they can.

Neither did I need pictures to tell you that good parents sent their kids out to play in the snow!

And I sure don't need one of those handy dandy 4X4's with a camera running inside to tell you how bad it is or was out there. I figure my readers are smart enough to look out the window and see that it's bad out there, and when they see that, the lend a hand where they can.

So hey, I sound like my car, I'll end this by, well, pointing out the obvious.

The story, again is, it snowed. And when it snows, we dig out. And when we need to dig out, Vinton helps their neighbors.

Sincerely,

Captain Obvious