5:30 AM Flight and 10 Inches of Snow

Left for the airport at 4:00 a.m. sigh. The roads were snow covered and icy. Checked the computer before we left, and the flight status showed "on time." We had already checked in online so all we had to do was check in one bag. Headed upstairs and over to the gate. We actually boarded early. Snowflakes were flying madly outside the window. At 5:30 the pilot said they were going to de-ice the plane and that the process would take several minutes. It actually took about 30 minutes as they made 2 separate passes with the de-icing machine. We proceed a bit down the runway after the de-icing and then came to a halt. The pilot came over the loudspeaker and stated that he was going to come in to the cabin and do a visual inspection of the wings. He came out of the cockpit with a large flashlight and proceeded to lean over people and flash the light out the windows to inspect the wings. I guess he approved because he went back in to the cockpit and we took off. It was a little nerve wracking!
The flight went without a hitch and we landed in Sarasota 15 minutes early. It was windy and a brisk 54 degrees. Better than a foot of snow and 25 degrees with 30 mile/hour winds any day of the week. Had lunch Chipolte's, a ff mexican place. Dinner at Wing House on 41. The high reached 57. Tomorrow is supposed to be 63. Yipee. A trip to Ana Maria Island might be in store.