Winter Weather and Writing Prompts

I am happy to report that my car now has a new windshield wiper motor.  It cost a pretty penny, almost $1,000 to get the part and have it installed, but it's far cheaper than buying a replacement car.  So far, in the past two months, I've spent a lot on this car, but it's still far less than buying a replacement car.

Yesterday I headed down the mountain in the newer car, the Nissan Rogue, the car we bought when the December flood of 2019 destroyed the other Prius that we once had.  When I got up in the morning, there was a dusting of snow and nothing falling through the air.  By the time I left, the driveway and neighborhood road were covered, and there was a lot of snow blowing through the air.  There were moments when I wondered if I had made a mistake, but the interstate seemed clear of snow and ice, and I decided that I was safer continuing on to school and heading home later in the day.

Much to my surprise, later in the morning it was also snowing in Spartanburg, snow that wasn't in the forecast.  It was the best kind of snow, big flakes, but nothing sticking.

Before yesterday, I had planned a snow/winter weather theme for my Advanced Creative Writing class, and having snow drifting by the window was the perfect touch.  On Tuesday, I read Dave Bonta's Poetry Blog Digest, on his Via Negativa site, as I do most Tuesdays.  He linked to this post by Kristy Bowen, which concluded with ten wonderful poetry prompts for winter.  They're the best kind of prompts, the kind that work not only for poetry but for all kinds of creative thought.

I put each prompt on a slip of paper and had them put the slips of paper face down on their desks.  Every five minutes, they turned over another slip and wrote for five minutes.  At the end of five minutes, they could keep going, or they could turn over a new slip.  

They were all writing on laptops, which was fine with me, although I did realize that I had no way of knowing if they were really working on prompts.  But from observing them, they did seem engaged, and they did turn over slips.  At the end of the process, I had them select one line from their writing and put it on a blank slip--and then I read all the slips as one poem, an interesting experiment.

I did a variation of the writing too, although since I was the timekeeper, I couldn't lose myself in my writing the way I might have.  I did come up with some interesting lines that I hope to continue to work into a unified poem. 

By the time I got on the road to drive home, the sun was shining, and while it wasn't warm, I wasn't afraid that the roads would freeze--it's the best kind of winter weather, the kind that doesn't disrupt but does inspire.

Broken Wiper Motor, Broken Newspaper

Yesterday was a very strange day.  I headed down the mountain to Spartanburg Methodist College, reflecting on the fact that we have yet to have a full week of class meetings this semester.  The gas station a mile from campus had gas for $2.39 a gallon, far cheaper than gas in North Carolina; I amuse myself by keeping track of these differences as I drive between North Carolina and South Carolina and Tennessee each week.

As I drove away from the gas station and waited at the traffic light, I decided to try using the windshield wipers.  They swiped up and stayed there.  Hmm.  I had hopes that it might be an easy fix, turning the car off and on, so I tried it once I got parked at campus.  Nope.  My spouse had hopes that it was a matter of waiting for possibly frozen stuff to thaw, so I a few hours later, I trooped back to the car and tried the wipers again.  Nope.

I decided to hope that the rain in the forecast wouldn't be falling when I drove home, and happily, I caught a break there.  I drove back to Arden, straight to my mechanic, with a windshield that was grimy (lots of snow melt droplets from the road) but navigable.

It was no surprise to learn that I do need a new motor for the windshield wipers.  What was a surprise is that it's hard to find.  My mechanic said, "That's one of the problems with these older cars."  I would have thought a windshield wiper motor was fairly standard, and my car is only 12 years old, a 2014 Prius C.

Earlier in the day, I said that I hoped the motor wouldn't cost thousands of dollars, as recent car repairs have cost me.  But I didn't anticipate that I wouldn't be able to find a motor at all.  And it's possible that the Toyota dealership will be able to supply what the car needs, that the mechanic was just explaining why it took hours for him to call me with a progress report, and perhaps preparing me for the cost to come.

It was also a day where news broke about the layoffs at The Washington Post.  I've been a subscriber for a long time, and before that, The Washington Post was one of the first newspapers, and really, the only newspaper that shaped me, as a writer, as a citizen, as a reader/thinker.  This batch of layoffs is not the first.  The paper is a shadow of its former glory.  But I'm no longer sure it's worth what I pay for it, and I think I'm still getting an educator discount rate.  

When my credit card was compromised, I had to update various automated bills, and The Washington Post was one of them.  I was surprised by how much I'm paying a month, and now I'll be getting even less.  No Books section?  Really?

I'll wait and see; some of the writers I like are still there.  But still, it's like the difference between seeing through a grimy windshield and a clean one.  For my whole lifetime, The Washington Post helped me see more clearly; I'm not convinced that will still be the case going forward.

Another Week, Another Tuesday Snow Day

I have the gift of another snow day.  We didn't find out that we would have today as a snow day until 4:30.  As I said before, as an administrator, I understand.  It was good to see what the rate of melting would be.  As the afternoon went on, and more Spartanburg public schools announced they would be closed today, I thought we would be having remote learning today.

My first thought:  I am determined not to squander this snow day.  But let me be fair to myself.  IYe haven't squandered the past snow days.  I just haven't gotten as much done as I hoped--and honestly, that's my mental state most days.

I feel lucky as an English faculty member.  It's easy for me to create remote assignments.  I have lots of flexibility, in terms of what needs to happen in a given semester.  I know that colleagues in other departments must be frustrated by having to adjust again and again.

I do want to be intentional today in getting my gradebooks created for my in-person classes.  I use Brightspace, as do most of us at Spartanburg Methodist College.  I use the LMS for other things too, mainly as a place to post announcements and handouts.

I hope to go for at least one walk today, or maybe several short ones.  

Yesterday I made it up to Dedication Altar and down to the lake.  I was struck by all the shades of neutral colors and swirls on the lake's surface, like it was some map I couldn't read.

Of course, my mind went to all the scenes in all the books and movies about people falling through the ice.  I had heard the various public safety advisories that no lake in North Carolina is safe enough to walk on, regardless of how frozen it looks.  This lake at Lutheridge did not look safe at all; I could hear and see water gurgling underneath.

We may get more snow tomorrow, but it won't be like this past week-end's snow.  The weather forecast could change.  Let me stay alert.

The Downside of a Snow Day Cancellation

Despite it being a snow day, I feel a bit scattered this morning.  I was hoping we'd get a morning notification about tomorrow morning, but that decision won't come until afternoon, when the school's Emergency Operations team sees how the melting proceeds throughout the day.  My administrator self understands.  The me who wants to plan the rest of the week wants the information now.

I will try to settle in here soon and get some of the work done that I need to have done.  For my in person classes, I need to do the final setting up of course shells.  It's not as pressing a matter in the early part of the term, but I do use the LMS to record grades, and this week, I'll have the first work that needs to be graded coming in.  I also need to create some assignments. 

I know that the sensible thing would be to assume that we need to report back tomorrow and get the work done.  Or another sensible thing:  decide that my Tuesday classes will be remote regardless.  But I would be happier if the whole campus shut down.

Snow Day: The Fluffy Snow Variety

I woke up this morning with a house at 67 degrees.  That's not an unusual overnight temperature for the inside of our house, but when there's a threat of power outage, we don't turn the thermostat down at night.  Last night, it was set at 70, so I felt a bit alarmed to find our inside temp below the thermostat.  I decided to have the oven do its self-cleaning cycle, which usually heats the house up so much that I rarely want to do it.

I also turned on the ceiling fan that's set to the winter cycle.  In the living room/kitchen part of the house, we've got a vaulted ceiling, so in some ways, I wasn't surprised that the space is cold (our bedroom was so warm we were sleeping on top of the covers).  But it made me anxious.

Happily, the inside temperature is now back where I set it, and I set it a few degrees higher, at 73, just to see.  The oven is over halfway through its cleaning cycle.

We've had a night of wind, which has also made me anxious.  I will always wonder if I would be as anxious as I am when the winds pick up had we not been here for the remnants of Hurricane Helene.  Before the fall of 2024, I thought that all trees stayed upright unless something unfortunate happened, like a lightning strike or an insect infestation.

But let me write about more pleasant things.  Our snow day yesterday was delightful.  

The snow was light and fluffy, as promised.  Mid-morning, I decided that I wanted to take more of a walk to see the winter wonderland for myself.  I bundled up but then I decided to add my winter jacket on top of this winter coat; I added it less for reasons of protection from the cold than because I wanted an easy access pocket for my phone.

The snow was at least 3 inches when I went out, but it felt deeper.  There was a set of tire tracks on the road so I walked beside them.  I thought about going on a longer walk, but the wind was picking up, and the temperature was already in the low 20's, so I decided to be safe.  I was more worried about slipping and falling and breaking a body part than I was scared of frostbite.  I took a selfie before I went inside:

I also took a closer picture of the front of our house.  I always love this Christmas card look (well, the way it would look like a Christmas card if I moved the trash can at the side of the house):

I spent much of the rest of the day cooking.  On Friday, I bought a whole chicken at the grocery store, and then three hours later, my spouse bought a whole chicken too.  So we cooked one of them on Friday, and then we cooked the second one yesterday, along with roasted potato chunks and carrots.  We made some chicken stock out of the bones, and then I made a chicken pot pie, which turned out to be a bit more like a chicken veggie soup with some puff pastry on top.  The sauce will be thicker today.  I also made snow cream.

I used the snow off the top of the table on the deck.  Before I collected it, I mixed milk and half and half and sugar and a bit of vanilla extract.  I'd like to make more today, but the snow is not as clean.  It has tree debris, not the other kind of dirtiness.  The picture below shows the snow in its more pristine state:

It was a good snow day, but I'm a bit concerned about the aftermath.  How long will it be before the roads are clear?  I'm guessing that it will probably take until Tuesday or Wednesday when the highs get back into the 40's.  Classes are already cancelled for Monday, and I'm hoping they'll be cancelled for Tuesday too, since I am unlikely to be able to make it down the mountain.

Living the Dream!

I am distracted by the beauty of the snow.  I woke up at one point in the night and nothing had fallen, and then, an hour or two later, we'd gotten a dusting.  A few hours ago, we may have had an inch, but barely.  And now, there's enough snow on the patio table to make snow cream later.  We are forecast to get 3-6 inches before the snow ends tonight, and I think we've already gotten 3 inches.  Let me go measure.

We are at 2.25 inches, and as promised, the snow is light and fluffy--hopefully less likely to break branches and power lines.  I plan to make snow cream later; we've never had enough snow to do that before.  I saw a weather story on a Fox news Facebook site that gave recipes for snow cream, along with the advice that this recipe is an eat right away recipe, not a save for later recipe.  My first thought:  "People save snow cream for later?"

But I'm not here just to write about the weather.  Let me record some other parts of the week that I don't want to slip away.

--I got my teaching schedule for Fall, which includes three Creative Writing type classes:  Journalism Workshop I, Creative Writing (a 200 level class), and Studies in Nonfiction. More than once yesterday afternoon, I thought, I am living one of the dreams of my younger self, who yearned to teach more creative writing.

--Before she assigned me the Journalism class, my department chair reached out to me by way of e-mail to see if I'd be open to teaching it.  Here's what I wrote back:  "I am open to that, although I haven't taught it. But long ago, in my Newberry College undergrad days, I was an essential part of the student newspaper. We went looking for hot stories, a la Woodward and Bernstein. We never found them, but we had fun just the same."

--Yesterday one of my Fall English 101 students asked me to read his short story he'd been working on, and I did.  I also had an interview with a student who was supposed to interview someone working in a field he would be interested in as a career--another English faculty member referred him to me when he said he wanted to be a published writer.  It was a great interview.  And again, I thought, I am living the dream--of both my younger self and my current self. 

And now, I'm living the dream of having seasons and a beautiful snow.  Let me go out and explore!

Yearly Intentions Report: The Poem Revision Edition

You would think that with two snow days this week, three actually counting cancelled church on Sunday, I wouldn't feel desperate for some early morning writing time.  And yet, at 1:30 when I couldn't fall back asleep, I decided to get up for a bit.  I've enjoyed this early morning writing time so much that I didn't go back to sleep.

I've done a bit of writing in my offline journal.  I went to my first online class for this semester, the one I'm taking not teaching, the Lutheran Foundations class at United Lutheran Seminary.  I wanted to do some offline journaling about my anxiety around the class, anxieties that have turned out to be mainly scheduling and logistics anxiety.  Those anxieties lifted a bit, at least for this week, as the class progressed yesterday.  It also helped to write about it.

Then I turned my attention to a poem I've been revising.  I first started writing it on January 15.  I was inspired by Jan Richardson's poem about wise women also coming to the baby Jesus.  Here's the first stanza I created, as originally written, complete with automatic capitalization that I go back to correct as I revise:

The women stay behind
While the wise men head west,
Following a star,
Hoping for regime change
Or at the very least, control
Of the narrative. The women melt
The old candles into something new.

On January 24, I did some work on the poem, enough work to justify creating a new document that I labeled as an intermediate draft.  Here's the intermediate revision:

The wise women stay behind.
The wise men head west,
following a star,
hoping for regime change
or at the very least, control
of the narrative.

The women keep
the lamps lit. In the long winter
afternoons, they melt
the old candles into something new.
The children decorate the new creations
while the grandmothers
tell their tales and fill
their hearts with hope.

This morning, I decided that it was time to actually finish the draft.  I was partly inspired by the end of the month approaching and my intention to end the year with 52 finished drafts.  I was successful, and then I thought about revising another poem--that would mean I am on track for the year, not slightly behind.  

I've decided that my intention to finish drafts can extend to rough drafts written before 2026, so I went back to my folder of rough drafts.  I pulled out a rough draft from December, about Noah's wife looking at Realtor.com and seeing her old house.  I should be able to finish that revision by tomorrow.  I'm waiting to see if some final lines come to me today as my brain works on the ending.