Snowshoeing in a Heat Wave

I took advantage of today's heat wave to do a little snowshoeing. When hiking with snowshoes, you have to assume a wide stance so that you don't step on the edge of one shoe with the other and fall face first into the white stuff. I think Senator Larry Craig would be a natural at snowshoeing. I'll bet he wished he was practicing his wide stance on a pair of snowshoes during his last visit to Minnesota, instead of in a public restroom.
Today the air was balmy, the sun bright and the snow deep beneath my feet. I left the trail to free roam a frozen wetlands area. Trailing between the dried stalks of last summer's plants were vole and rabbit tracks. The last streaks of the sunset were on the horizon when I finally returned to my car.
After a couple of hours plodding around in the white stuff, I was drenched with sweat. It was so warm outside that it was like snowshoeing in a sauna. On the drive home, I swung into the gas station to fill up the Echo's tiny tank. The little guy was covered in snow scum from the melting banks along the streets. I decided to splurge on a bath for him.
I paid for the gas and wash, then pulled around the backside of the station to find a line of cars cleverly hidden behind the wide building. I squirmed in my damp clothes and looked back over my shoulder. Headlights were already approaching. I was trapped in the line now, with no way to leave the narrow alley.
I wiled away half an hour listening to Metallica on the Echo's MP3 player and feeling sticky before I finally inched into the car wash garage. As a final annoyance, the blow dryer refused to turn on when the wash was complete. I crept forward, trying to trigger the invisible sensor, but nothing occurred. I swore a few times. At home I wiped the car dry before finally showering. Even on a warm Minnesota day, after a couple of hours snowshoeing, the shower water feels sharply hot on your chilled feet. After bathing my Echo, I was content to finally rinse myself off.