My Novels

Monday, January 10, 2011

Snow day...again!

Since last Thursday, the local weather forecasters have been in a frenzy, predicting almost a blizzard for most of the South. Of course, relatively speaking, what qualifies as a blizzard here is any snowfall over a couple inches. Or sleet/ice on top of it.

All the grocery stores were emptied out of milk, bread, other essentials, depending on what you consider necessities. In my case, I always keep "scary disaster" stuff on hand -- can beans, other non-perishable food, water, batteries, hand-crank shortwave AM/FM radio, etc. What I did need was pet supplies -- cat litter for my two indoor cats, plenty of food for them as well as the outside strays. And dog food, chew treats so the dogs could work out their frustration at being housed up with serious chewing!

(As an aside: How I LOVE to watch a dog with a bone or chew treat; the look of pure bliss and contentment as they chew reminds me of a baby with a pacifier. Wish adults could find that in such a simple way!)

Anyway, back to preparations: I also went to the library and loaded up with some good novels, just in case the power goes off. I found a new Thomas H. Cook novel, "The Fate of Katherine Carr." If you've never read Cook, you should start now: He writes the most haunting mystery/crime stories, glorious prose that will cause you to pause and savor the evocative sentences. I could reread his novels for the sheer beauty of poetic prose. He's also a master of the classic "mind-game" or "puzzle" mystery, yet creates a depth of character and setting (usually the South) that leaves you remembering the story long after you put his books down. A MASTER STORY-TELLER! Enough of that though; I rarely praise any modern prose author, the true artists are so few and far between these days.

At any rate, for once it seems the forecasters were correct: The sleet started about dark last night, then switched over to snow. I heard snow thunder also, which I don't think I've EVER heard in my life -- scary strange! It snowed all night but had stopped this morning when I wakened to about 10 inches on the ground! A crust of ice was over the top, which made a crunching sound when you stepped on it.

Rambo had a fit; he was scared to death of the snow, probably due to the crunching sound when he stepped on it and then his feet falling through to the ground. He ran back in the house, then to the front door, begging to be let out. Perhaps he thought the white stuff wasn't in the front yard!? It was hilarious when I opened the door and he looked out to see MORE snow piled on the porch!

Eventually I had to shovel out a path so Rambo & Oscar could get out to do their business. After that brief trip outside, they have been sleeping; Oscar retreated to his crate, and I've not seen him since early morning! Rambo is on my lap -- I've learned how to type around him. (I know, I know...if someone had told me a few years ago I'd have a dog attached to me like Velcro I would have laughed hysterically. Always had cats, all my life...but never under-estimate the allure and addiction of a dog!)

I did get out early this morning and take some pictures. Then I cooked a big batch of vegetable soup, which was yummy. The house is warm, the soup made it smell wonderful, and now I'm about to work on my memoir. Life is good.

The only issue I have now is that I'm still waiting for my new insurance card, then I can get a complete medical checkup. However, the swollen lymph node seems to hardly be visible anymore. I really think it was a reaction to that triple-flu shot. We shall see, I suppose.

Have no idea when the streets will be safe to travel. At this time, there's predictions for a bit more snow tonight. Then tomorrow it'll only be in the low 30s, teens at night...so not much snow will melt, but what does will refreeze at night. Most of the week is supposed to be the same, but with sun returning Wednesday -- which may get life back to normal (everything has closed, schools, local government offices, etc.)

And now, without further ado, here's the photos (click for larger photo):

Across my front yard, looking up the street

Looking in the opposite direction from front of my house. The tire tracks on the street are from a 4-wheeler a kid drove up and down the street very early

My back yard, with snow drifts against the fence.

And lastly, the soup I had for lunch:



With that, I'm outta here.