Thursdays are typically pizza night. With only four of us here, we didn't need to make much. Around dinner time, however, I noticed the power start flickering from the weight of ice on power lines. So I looked up a recipe for stove top pizza and started cooking it. It turned out pretty good, but since the crust was too thick and the burner to powerful, the pizza was burned, but not HOT. Still good, regardless.
I was able to finish canning the beef broth and pulled it from the canner by oil lamp light. It was a pretty image. Not sure why.
This morning I used the French press to make coffee since the power wasn't on yet. I later made some toast in a skillet (like grilled cheese) and some scrambled eggs. It was very good! Hit the spot like a good breakfast should.
Last night when checking on Wendy's babies, I noticed her little boy, Timber, had two feet curled. He was walking around fine which is why I never noticed earlier. So I took him in and gave him a shot of selenium, and promptly returned him to his mother who was screaming for him. This morning, his feet were absolutely perfect and HE is absolutely adorable.
Our little bottle baby, Serenade, is doing absolutely wonderfully! She is strong, active, and beautiful. I plan to put her outwith the two little does so she doesn't get beat up by the other moms. Then when the babies get separated for milking, she will have some friends.
This ice storm has been a great tool to show what things need to be in line for next time. Simple fixes as well as some that might cause more money. One thing is for sure, no animal is worth more than the life of a human. There is no reason to risk well being to get to animals. Al fell two times before he found his boot spikes. Once he found those, it was easier to get around to do buckets. Obviously, once the power went out, all of our birds were vulnerable and heated water buckets froze. This obviously added more work to the load this morning.
So, here I am, sitting down to share the latest...load of towels going, dishwasher going, and most of the sabbath prep clean up done. I have relearned (yes, learned again because I learned it before) that I hate when phone lines are not direct phone lines. I do not like relying on cell phones with poor to little coverage. I can do just fine without electricity because life goes on. But when we are cut off without communication - that stinks. It is nice not looking at social media, or even being online for the many stupid distractions people find.
There you have it...a nice little run down of the past 18 hours of no electricity.
Seems like Arkansas gets a lot of ice storms. Arkansas was where we got stuck in the ice storm coming back from Phoenix that year. I remember calling you to help us find a hotel close to where we were. It was one of the scariest drives ever! We were behind a semi and had the illusion of sliding on the ice into the back of the semi. Not sure what was actually going on, but we just wanted off that road ASAP! So glad we were able to reschedule the trip back down there!
ReplyDeleteAlso I remember the huge ice storm we had here back about 10 years ago (has it really been that long?) We were without power for 10 days. I personally thought it was a great adventure. We did not have the wood stove at the time if I remember right, we bundled up with hats and mittens, piled blankets on our bed, read a lot, played some games and waited for the power. We did eventually have to buy a generator so we would not lose our freezer full of food, but I think that was more than half way through the power outage. They were all sold out around here, but Home Depot in Lexington had one, so Papa Jim went and got it for us. He crammed it in the front seat of his car as it would not fit in the trunk. Dad drove to Lexington to pick it up at their house.
ReplyDeleteDeep down, God has given us what we need to endure hardships, He gives us Grace to make it through whatever He allows us to go through. The most important thing is attitude, either we have a positive attitude and know He walks with us and holds us in his hand, or we choose to be miserable. We learned frm the experience, and if there was another cold power outage, we would survive, thankfully this time with a generator that will run a few lights, the appliances and computers for communication with others. Also we have the wood stove so we would be able to stay warm without so many layers! Generator is not a whole house one, so Dad just installed certain outlets to work with generator. One in our bedroom, one in the kitchen and a couple downstairs for freezer, etc. All he has to do is start the generator and plug it in to a special plug he installed outside. It runs into the house into a breaker box just for the generator.
Glad your power is back on!
yes. I remember the derecho that went through Virginia the year we moved there. Power was out for several days and we ended up in a hotel in Manassas for a day and power came back on. It was so hot and humid the whole time the power was out. Al plans to do the same as he did in Virginia with a subpanel and wired to the generator.
Delete