And the verdict is...

...I'm staying home today. But it's a bit more complicated than it sounds because this morning was kind of chaotic. Well, okay, maybe I made it a little bit worse than it should have been but I was frustrated beyond belief. This post is going to be long so you might want to settle in for a few minutes.

So I wake up to my alarm and immediately call the inclement weather hot line for the courthouse. What do you know, they had the same message running from last night. No new info about possible closings. Great.

I look outside and yes, it's snowing. But just like they predicted there was only a few inches on the ground so far. The bulk of the blizzard is scheduled to dump on us all day long. I flip on the news and they are covering the "storm of the century" from every angle. Stationary cameras across the city are snowed over blinding the view of the chaos. The whole city is practically shut down: Milwaukee Public Schools, Marquette University, The Public Museum [no work for Nate today], the City Municipal Court is closed and "all county workers are urged not to come into work today, unless it's absolutely necessary." Hmmm, the County Courthouse should probably be closed then, right? Wrong. Keep reading.

I take a shower already a little ticked off at the whole situation. Why can't they just announce that the courthouse is closed and everyone should stay at home and pack up for a major move to a free duplex? Seriously.

So I continue getting ready while simultaneously stalking the hot line. Finally they've updated the message and it goes something like this: "The County Courthouse is OPEN today. If you are a juror and feel uncomfortable coming in today, you may call and reschedule your service for another date." Well that doesn't make my decision any easier because it's very inconvenient for me to take off work. They have to find coverage for my caseload--it's always a hassle and we just found coverage for me today and tomorrow. I didn't want them to have to find MORE coverage in the future for the same damn jury duty.

I went back and forth over my options. Experienced some major "inner turmoil" as Nate says and felt extremely indecisive in general. Indecisiveness ticks me off. Nate didn't help matters because he kept saying, "Well, you could go in or you could stay home." Thanks, honey!

So he says, "Why don't we just test out the roads since you are ready to go. I'll drive you down but can't promise I'll be able to pick you up later." Awesome, so I could just wander around the streets of Milwaukee, during a storm and find a random bus to ride? After scraping the car for a few minutes we hit the road and it's not pretty. Slick, slow and generally crappy. The whole way down to the courthouse I wear the worst "Julia bitch face" you can imagine---for those of you who know me in real life would appreciate this fact. I don't want to do this but I don't want to deal with rescheduling, either.

We get to the courthouse and yes, it's open and people are actually going inside. I have a minor breakdown and exclaim, "I am not going in!" with a quiver in my voice. Nate handles my instability well and says, "I didn't think we should drive down here in the first place," and a few harsh words were shared between the happy newlyweds.

I call the line to reschedule my time and you'll never guess what the chick says.

Lady: "County Courthouse."
Me: "I am supposed to be a juror today and need to reschedule my time."
Lady: "Oh yeah, we are actually sending everyone a completion certificate and canceling today's events."
Me: "So I don't have to come back again?"
Lady: "No, Ma'am, not for 4 more years."
Me: "And the people who showed up today, do they get sent home?"
Lady: "Yep."
Me: "Thank you very much."

Thank God I didn't jump out of the car when we drove past the courthouse entrance. And thank God I won't be called on for four more years. I feel slightly guilty for not going into work to help out there, but I cannot imagine driving out there and getting stuck. Tomorrow is a whole new ballgame--even though I have coverage I should probably ask if they still need me. But packing might take priority on that one.

So here is what our street looks like right now. Not too bad, but I'll take more pictures later:


Henry somehow managed to get snow-dingle berries attached to his paws during his walk. He spent the better part of the morning eating the dingles off his fur.

After the intense [and pointless] car ride downtown this morning, we decided it was in our best interest to make a stop for some liquor:)
Starbucks cream liqueur! We've never had it before but it's too beautiful to pass up. And that is the purple coffee mug Nate purchased the other day. Totally purple, right?
Here are the two lucky boys that get to spend the day with me. I'm such a peach sometimes they just can't get enough of me:) Sorry, guys! I'm in a better mood now, I promise.


And to end this wordy post, how about a classic Nate quote?

Driving back home this morning we noticed a car speeding past us on the highway. It had a spare tire [or a "twig" as we call them] on the front wheel, which in addition to looking totally ghetto is also very dangerous...on an icy highway, going 50 mph.

What does Nate say about this car? "That guy is driving on a spare tire that is probably as bald as me." Then he turns and looks at me, "Are you going to post that quote on your blog? Because I'm really funny."

Yes, dear. It's been an all-around funny kind of day:)

Now we're off to pack up our lives and stare out the window in amazement! We might not drive over to the in-laws today if the roads are a nightmare but we have plenty to do here anyway. I'll keep you updated.