Met 'er for Eight, she arrived at Nine.

This is clearly a metaphor for something...

The Icy Grip of the Shackles of Destiny?

Or the Chain of events that sets us on the road to Hell which has Frozen over so that the Paving (of Good Intentions) is is all icy, making it the Slippery Slope that it famously is and which is only as cold as the weakest Missing Link.

All I know is that you really shouldn't lick it because your tongue will stick to it.

Err... Or so I was told.