Hugging The Wall

The snow came during the night, actually the snow came this morning shortly before I left for work. The snow must have start following 0430 hours because I noticed no snow when I got up and went in for my shower. I looked out the window into the back yard and noticed how bare the yard was; but when I left the house to head up to the train station a fine dusting of white stuff coated everything. It was more then a dusting it was a coating of snow: cold and slick. I usually don’t pay attention to how slick snow surfaces might be since I’ll be traveling in my power chair. Power chairs I have had in the past have been heavy, dawdling monsters which has giving me a false since of security. I must keep reminding myself the chair I now drive is much lighter then other chairs I have had and though the chair is fast it enjoys much less grip on the surfaces I drive on. This morning this was keenly brought to my attention as I headed down the ramp, which was covered with a white powder layering of snow. I was first shocked then sort of terrified when I realized I charging down the ramp way too fast for the condition the ramp was in. I pulled back on my joystick thinking this would stop me but now, I just continued my forward motion with no control what so ever as I slowly slid off the side of my ramp! The event happened so fast I barely had time to grab the railing and hang on to stop myself and power chair. Luckily for me the rail was there and I was only over the edge of the ramp by my front tire but I was hanging there with one wheel of the ramp and the snow so slick I could engender any traction I needed to pull my self back on the ramp.

I started shouting for help, as loud as I could, which is not very loud at all and luckily Dianne heard me and came out and righted me back onto the ramp. I fished tailed a couple of times as I powered myself to the train station. Remember that he over pass I must negotiate each day I ride the train? There is sidewalk the goes up and over the over pass. There is a concrete wall on the side of the walk which butts up against three but there is nothing on the other side except weeds and steep embankment ending at a chain link fence designed to keep things on the over pass. For some reason during my accent I started sliding, nothing dangerous, thank goodness, but enough to know that I could easily slide right over the edge if I was not careful. I think it would be easy to slid over the edge and though steep I think I would probably survive and I wondered if that should happen I probably would not have access to my cell because I think the cell would be thrown free of my chair and there I would stay—maybe trying to shout for help until someone would happen by.

The snow is all gone now—the days heat vanquishing the snow but I best be careful—Frank thinks I need to rethink about where I carry my cell and maybe Frank is right. But for the time being I am just going to “hug” the wall of the over pass far, far away from the