Dorothy Brush "Random Thoughts" Published Jan. 22, 2003

I was on the Reality Plateau last week

Television is flooded with Reality shows which hold no interest for me. I, and thousands of others in this area, lived through Reality Plateau last Thursday. It was as wild as anything offered on television and it was the most unreal Reality I ever encountered. It wasn't that we had not been warned but in the blink of an eye the storm hit so fast and with such force it turned into a long nightmare. Anyone unlucky enough to be on the road that day has a story, including me.

A 10 a.m. appointment took me to Crossville on Thursday. When I entered the windowless office the skies outside were grey but clear. An hour later I emerged to see snow falling by the buckets and the wind was howling. Already the roads were snow covered and the temperature was heading down forming icy spots.

My mission, I said to myself, is to get home slowly and safely. It was just at that moment I was driving down a slight incline when my car started slipping on one of those icy spots. My trusty Ford Focus headed for the deep ditch. It lurched on the way down as though it was going to turn over but quickly righted its self and there we sat.

A woman in a van stopped and helped me climb out of the ditch. Then she went back down to turn off my lights, get my purse and lock the car. This good Samaritan then insisted on taking me to a public building where I could start calling for help. I learned she is a teacher and lives in Holiday Hills but I did not get her name. A big thank you to her for her kindness under terrible weather conditions.

A call to Ford garage brought a tow truck which picked me up to drive to the site of my stuck car. Eventually the car was pulled out and towed to the garage. It was put on the rack, inspected for any damage and was pronounced sound. Tony, who drove the tow truck, was uneasy about me driving to Fairfield Glade in my light car. Calvin agreed and gave him permission to drive me home in his four-wheeler.

The storm continued unabated as we negotiated the treacherous road to access Peavine Rd. When we reached Peavine all was quiet. A single line of cars stretched as far as the eye could travel and there was no movement. The time was 2 p.m. Occasionally the line moved a foot or so and stopped. After about an hour Tony recognized a fellow employee's car. He too was headed home to the Glade. It seemed sensible for me to transfer to his four-wheeler so Tony could get back to town.

So it was hello, Jeff, and there we sat not knowing just what was causing all the delay. The afternoon wore on and darkness had fallen by the time we finally reached Fire Tower Road. On the hill in the distance we could see tail lights moving up the hill slowly. We could only guess that after so many cars had slid off the road on this hill the law enforcement officers on duty had stopped all traffic and allowed only one car at a time to go up or come down the hill.

By the time we reached the bottom of the hill things had improved and traffic was flowing without stopping. From that point on we moved steadily, but cautiously, until we reached my street. Then again it was a slow ride as we traveled up and down perilous hills leading to my home. The Peavine Rd. ordeal which began at 2 o'clock ended four hours later at my house at 6:15.

My most sincere thanks to my nameless woman rescuer and to Ford employees Tony, Cal and Jeff. I have never watched any of TV's Reality shows and after this personal Reality adventure I never will.

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Dorothy Copus Brush is a Fairfield Glade resident and Crossville Chronicle staffwriter whose column is published each Wednesday.