I slid out of the warm leather seat of my little black BMW, having had the intoxicating seat heaters on full blast all the way. My backside was toasty warm as I made my way around the front of the car and walked to the base of the front steps. Vivi stepped out onto the wide front porch of her old plantation house, drying her hands on her apron. “Hey honey! Get yer ass on in here outta this cold. Did you know they’ve predicted an ice storm this weekend? I miss the milder winters we used to have. What in hell is going on? Alabama gettin’ snow now nearly every year? Don’t make no sense to me.” Vivi was as warm and genuine as always, never worried one minute about what she said. She was in black leggings and a long crimson sweater setting off her copper wiry curls that framed her pale freckled face. I smiled and waddled up the stairs, in through the formal dining room and back to Vivi’s huge oak kitchen table. Tallulah was in her bassinette asleep in the butler’s pantry near the back door.
