Can Haz Spring Plz?

I'm officially over winter. We've been getting so many significant snowfalls in the past few months here in Northern Tennessee. Of course, significant to us is more than a few inches. Other parts of the country may scoff at that, but Tennesseans spazz out over that small amount because a) we don't have the dozens of plows & salt trucks that northern areas of the country have and b) most of the people here have hardly seen snow, much less have any clue how to drive in snow or sleet. Thus a few inches or more makes for a stressful drive.



Fortunately, I have a job that is pretty flexible in allowing me to work from home when the weather gets bad. My daily commute is 2 hours and my job is in Nashville while I live in a northern county which is far more rural and hilly. While I am grateful I don't have to live in Nashville, it makes commuting difficult during weather like this. While Nashville may get only a dusting, we wind up snowed in and with no hope of getting the streets plowed for days (and I live within city limits of my tiny little town). Not only do I have to navigate bad roads to get to a cleared area, I also have to deal with drivers on the interstate who have no idea what they are doing. And since I am still using my parents' car to drive to and from work right now, I can't take the chance of it getting hit and not having anything else to fall back on. So if it looks bad, I just stay home.



More snow is due tomorrow. Fortunately I have Presidents Day off from work, so lets hope it's cleared by Monday afternoon.



Speaking of cars, I am having a horrible time with my insurance company. The jerk who hit my car has no insurance. Fortunately I have uninsured motorist coverage. But, surprise surprise, they are having a hard time getting in touch with him. There is a chance that I won't see a dime out of this claim. My car may be fixable, but it's a total mess and I need a new car for my long commute. I had hoped to use that money towards a new vehicle, but now I'm not sure if I'll get anything. Honestly, I'm not as worried about the money as I am angry over how hard it is to track this guy down. He lives in Kentucky...I have his name, city, drivers license number, license plate number - it's ridiculous. I want some freakin' justice for the fact that he doesn't have insurance. In the state of Kentucky, that can get your license taken away. He gave me an insurance card and acted like he was covered, and that pisses me off more. I have to pay out the nose for car insurance to keep my car & my license (TN has the same laws as KY). Why should he be able to get off with no penalty whatsoever?

Tried calling some colleges this past week. I still want to teach, and my plan was to go for my master's degree in the fall by taking night courses & working full time. If I get it in Education, I could get certified & teach in two years. I'm not sure if this is going to happen, though. So far, the colleges only have M. Ed. degrees in high need areas like math or science, and you have to have your B.S. in one of those areas in order to get in. My B.S. is in Business, which is also what I'd like to teach. So at this point, it looks like I may have to go back and get another B.S. in teacher certification. Since they don't offer those classes at night, I may be waiting at least 4 years to go this route.

I just feel stuck, you know? Stuck waiting on my car, stuck in my job, stuck waiting to fix up the house...I even feel stuck in therapy right now. For financial reasons and other reasons out of my control, I don't feel like I can take a step in any direction to make life happier. I have been slipping into a hole more and more since probably October of last year, and I don't see any way to dig myself out.

And a cold, wet, foggy, snowy winter is not helping at ALL with my mood. Please, go away.