Dear Billye,

Have a safe and productive trip. You're well prepared to make the most of what Mayo has to offer.

I love storms, including driving in them. Do you have four wheel drive? Snow tires? Chains are a pain, but you might want to bring a set along just in case. You can pick some up on the way BEFORE encountering icy roads. I hope you're leaving yourself some extra time for the weather so you and hubby don't stress out.

Good luck and Godspeed!

===========================

I just looked at the national weather forcast: http://www.wunderground.com/US/Regio...xpxFronts.html . With luck you'll follow the worst of it, but the roads may be icy. You should be under high pressure tomorrow. High pressure makes for cold, clear skies. As it sayeth in the Bible, "Get thee chains and fresh antifreeze before thy needeth them."

you DEVIL you! LOL

Even better...tell Dr. Dyck you are a researcher stringer for CNN! LOLOLOL

I absolutely am requesting a new brain when I get to Mayo. I tried to do this
post twice and keep messing up. Heaven help my poor husband when I try to work the new laptop.

Just wanted to thank all of you so much for your caring and support. Need to straighten out a mess I made earlier:

The doctor I'm seeing at Mayo is Dr. Peter J. Dyck. not David Dyck. I used to work with a man named David ""D..I...C..K.", so the name came automatically to my very overcrowded brain. Thanks Janster, for making me realize this. When you couldn't find him, I realized what I'd done.

The weather is really bad. Sleet, freezing rain, snow all day to day and the temp is in the mid 20's right now. We will be o.k tomorrow here in Texas when the temps warm up tomorrow. But it looks like the storm may dump 10-12 inches of snow tonight in the Oklahoma area we have to go thru. We'll look at the situation tomorrow and we are looking at some way to go around it. We allowed an extra day for the trip up. Looks like we will need it.

Nope, we don't have chain and it's not a 4-wheel drive, but it is a front wheel drive. It also doesn't have the interior the one we tried out and thought we were getting. But we are making do. No time to do anything else. We got the foam bed in today to check it out. Had to rethink it because of the changes, but it looks like it will work.

It's late, and I've still got things to do before tonight.
Thanks for all the support you guys!! I feel like I have a real family here.

Love to all,
Billye

p.s. You are going to get sick of me. But you can just skip this thread.

David:

Hate to tell you this, but no one in Minnesota uses tires chains anymore - they are illegal on our roads. But it is crucial to have a good battery and good snow tires help. Mayo Clinic is in Rochester, MN and frequently Rochester has big snows.

We in Minnesota when traveling have emergency food, blankets, etc. in the car. Jumper cables are in most of our car trunks just in case our battery gets weak and won't start the car. At least one can get to someplace to get the battery charged or buy a new one.

If caught in a bad snowstorm stick with the car - do not try to go for help during a snowstorm here! The weather reports here are excellent and it is best to know what is being forecast for any trip that is planned.

Shirley H. in Minneapolis, MN

Billye,

I am very glad that LJ convinced you to blog about the trip. Hopefully, it will be of value to you - maybe focus your thoughts, not forget things that you need to bring up, venting, etc, etc. And I am quite sure it will be helpful for others. Over the years, we always have folks who are thinking about going there. Now, I don't want to put any pressure on you to produce the DEFINITIVE thread . . , but I will look forward to a good read.

rfinney

Hey, Billye, well, you know where I stand on the blog issue--I want to hear all about this, and more! I'm bummed for you about the weather---just drive safely; I know you'll have blankets in the car, but also--flashlights or candles? and emergency flares and all?

The candles will come in handy in your fancy hotel room!

XO
LJ

We will be thinking of you and hoping you have a very safe trip and get some well-deserved help...

I don't know what blog LizaJane is talking about. If someone knows of a blog, she has, please post a link, so I can read it, too.

I don't know what the temp is going to do here in the Dallas area today. When I was outside a little while ago, it was bordering 20 at my house. The noise I heard in the back yard was the T-Connector at our hose, which burst from freezing and covered the back yard during the night, along with the alley behind the house... You may want to cover your outside faucets... We forgot!

Good luck,
Cathie

I think the last ice storm or blizzard we had here in San Diego was approximately 23,347 B.C. during the last Ice Age.

Chains were legal in Oregon when I lived there. I can't imagine driving the steep Cascade mountain passes without them. I know that they chew up the roads and their noise and vibration make them hard to tolerate on level highways.

I'll worry about Billye until we hear from her. That's a long drive under the best of circumstances when you're ill and feeling lousy.

David:

I can understand how chains have to be used on tires in the mountains with the heavy snows that fall there.

Tire chains used to be legal here in MN and I remember seeing my husband put them on. What a pain they looked like to me - putting them on and taking them off. I guess they did such a number on highways that the State Legislature outlawed them. It's been decades since anyone here used them.

I hope that trip to the Mayo Clinic goes all right. Right now we are escaping all the snowstorms. The radio weather guys are saying we might get flurries tonight but that is no problem. They do warn about "Black Ice though - that is the ice formed on highways and bridge decks by exhaust fumes. Winters here in the Far North can be quite the driving challenge.

Shirley H.

Billye and her husband left Texas today for Rochester, despite the horrible horrible weather. She called me tonight to tell me she's having internet problems and exhaustion, and will probably not be able to post until tomorrow. So this is her brief report. The van was not ideal, and lying on the mattress as it was set up for today did not work well. They had to take a detour around the worst of the weather, which lengthened the time on the road, and the time she had to lie on the miserable mattress setup, with sun in her eyes. They're not ensconced in their motel, both exhausted, and unable to do email, and too tired and shaky to type.

But hopefully, knowing the van setup a bit better, she'll be able to make herself more comfortable tomorrow, and have an easier day of it.

I'm going to put up another posting, instructions on how to set up her computer to get her webmail, as this will make it easier for her when she or her husband have the energy to struggle with this. So, you can all ignore that next post--it won't have anything of interest.

She sends her best wishes to all.