Perpetual Ruminations

Blizzard Today

Last night before I turned in I wrote about an impending storm that could hit this morning. It was supposed to move in this morning around nine, with a ten percent chance for light snow increasing to one hundred percent by noon, falling temperatures through the day, and increasing winds reaching gusts over fifty miles per hour by afternoon. I also wrote that most of the time, they are wrong and we either get better weather or worse. Since our move here in June, it's been better weather, so we are due for worse weather.

We got it! I woke around eight and it was already snowing enough to have covered everything. By nine, the winds had picked up and the snowfall had increased. Now, at ten o'clock, the snow is still falling steadily, the temperature has dropped to eighteen degrees, and the winds are up to twenty miles per hour gusting to forty. Visibility is about a mile but drops to near zero when the gusts hit. We are no longer under a winter storm warning, we are in a blizzard warning until midnight.

We are sitting pretty good as long as the electricity doesn't go out. We have electric heat, cooking, and our water is from a well. I have an indoor propane heater and plenty of gas I can bring inside if we need it for heat, but our propane camp stove is not designed for indoor use. We would have to vent the house to use it inside, which would also make the house colder inside. The power company did trim trees and branches a few weeks ago, so let's hope the power stays on. The only other concern was my wife having to work from nine to five-thirty today, but her boss sent a text telling her to stay home and take a vacation day.

I may venture into town, about six miles, a little later to fill our five-gallon water containers and look for some eggroll wrappers, but only after the plow truck goes by; it will give me a good test of our snow/winter tires. I also have my portable fish shelter set up just off the back deck. I wanted to set it up and take it down a few times before I take it out on the ice. Today is also a good test to see how well it holds in the wind and how warm my heater keeps it in below zero temperatures.

Although I purchased it for ice fishing, which I'm taking up as a winter hobby, it also makes a terrific smoking shack to keep me out of the snow, wind, and cold. Since it goes up and comes down easily and quickly, about ten minutes for me alone, but it will go faster with practice, it's handy for both. Also, since it's not a good idea to pack it away wet, and it does collect a lot of condensation, it's nice to have a place to set up by the house when I"m not using it out on the lake.