It was fairly late Wednesday evening, and Bureau County had just a day earlier experienced its first major snowstorm of the season. Go figure ... the last few days of February — just when we were about to think we had it made — and Mother Nature pulled some shenanigans. What an unpredictable old woman she is ...

Anyway, most of you who know me also know I’m not a fan of snow. I try not to complain too much because after all, I’ve made the conscious decision to set up residency in the Midwest. If the snow is up to my elbows ... well, it’s nobody’s fault but my own.

But back to Wednesday night ... It was relatively late by my standards ... probably close to 10 p.m., and I remembered I had left something in my car. Ugh! The last thing I wanted to do was trudge through the cold and snow and retrieve the belongings I had left in my vehicle. Mumbling about my own forgetfulness, I threw on my jacket and headed to the garage.