The Aftermath

That's a broken pine tree laying against the house. I was lucky. Those are my bedroom windows beneath it, and none were broken. The roof appears to be intact as well.

In my last post on Friday night, I expressed worry about the snow storm we were experiencing. It was a very heavy wet snow, and I was afraid it would weight the trees down, and knock down power lines. Not long after I posted that blog, I heard the first tree snap. I think it was the one above. It's a very distinctive sound. I had heard it several times before, during ice storms and hurricanes. Then at 1:23 AM on Saturday morning, the power did go out, so I went to bed. The snow continued through the night, and all day long Saturday, and I heard several more trees snap. By Saturday morning the temperature in the house was down to 50∘F, and it was becoming clear that the power would not be back on for along time, so I lit the kerosene heater.
This morning I walked around to survey the damage. This was the scene on the road out front, looking toward my two neighbors at the end of the cul-de-sac. A pine tree fell onto the electrical wire above, but it didn't take the wire down. Some men came by later on, and cut the tree down. This area is full of pine trees. They are a major pain during heavy snow and ice storms. They're more like big weeds than trees. They just can't handle the extra weight. Ice, heavy snow, or strong winds will bend them, and then they either break, or fall over.

The electricity finally came back on after 36 hours, and the first thing I did was heat a tank of hot water, and take a shower. I made it a quick shower, because I was afraid the power could go off again at any time, and I didn't want to get caught all lathered up, with no water pressure. After drying off and putting on some clean clothes, I was thinking how nice it was to have the lights, heat, and the computer back on, when the power went out again! Fortunately I hadn't turned the kerosene heater off, because the house had not yet come up to a comfortable temperature. Four hours later, the power came back on again. That was about three hours ago. I hope it stays on this time. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Hunkering down next to a kerosene heater, and cooking by lantern light on a camp stove for days at a time, is not my idea of fun.

Oh, bye the way............they are forecasting more snow for Tuesday! I think I've had enough of winter this year!

Melissa XX