BRUTAL WEATHER

We have a VERY serious problem at home.

Last Thursday, Nov. 29th, a major ice storm hit the area. The last one that was this bad was in 1978.

The storm had been building up all day Thursday, and by the time 5:00 got here, things were a big mess. I had to literally chip out my Jeep in order to be able to see through the windows and drive home!

The drive home was nasty - - icy, slick, really treacherous. But I made it home and in to the garage okay.

I was in the process of fixing supper when the lights went out. I looked over towards Steve and said, "This can't be good."

I had no idea how true that statement was going to turn out to be.

We had no power all night. All night long we were awake, hearing crashing sounds as trees and branches fell all during the night. They were so loud! We were scared to death one was going to land on the roof and come through in to the house - - fortunately, none did!

Steve got up the next morning and went in to work, but I stayed home. Ethough I was not able to hear any news (no power for TV, and our battery operated radio was packed . . . SOME DAMN WHERE . . . *sigh*), I figured Campus would be closed.

I sat in the sunroom, all bundled up in layers and layers of clothing, boots, gloves, coat, and watched the storm as it got worse and worse. Steve kept calling and checking on the situation, and it just kept getting worse. He finally got off work at 1:00 and came home. We had no way of heating anything, so we were just basically "stuck" in the situation. Somehow we made it throught the rest of the day and went to bed all bundled up against the cold temperatures.

Our yard looks like a war zone - - HUGE tree limbs down, some split at the trunks. It is very apparent no one had taken care of these trees over the past few years . . . we really have our work cut out for us come springtime!

Saturday morning we went out in search of a battery operated radio, batteries, and anything else that might help us get through this ordeal. We were in Walmart when Steve's cell phone rang - - it was his Aunt and Uncle from Charleston. They had not been affected by the storm, and the Rural King there had 2 kerosene heaters left in stock. Did we want one?

OH HELL YEAH!

They met us halfway and delived into our cold little hands a kerosene heater and jug of kerosene, which was very nice, since the kerosene lines in town were about 2-1/2 hours long!

On the way home, we stopped over by Lovington and checked with Steve's family's farmer, to see if he might have a generator. He did, and Steve's new tractor would run it just fine! So we loaded that up also and headed back to the old(COLD) homestead.

Once we got back, we spent the next couple of hours getting lines ran for the generator and getting the kerosene heater filled and ready to run. We were able to hook up lines for the furnace, the water pump, and the freezers for the generator. We were not able to run them all at the same time, but we could switch off. The first things we hooked up were the freezers, to save all the food we had. While we had that going, we huddled in front of the heater, which felt SO good and warm, and it was SO nice to have some light in the room! Then after a couple of hours, Steve unhooked the freezer and hooked up the furnace and well pump. Ah - - HEAT, even if it just was for a short time. We left it running long enough to take the chill off the house, then shut everything down for the night. We moved the heater into the bedroom to warm up that room before bedtime - - once it was warm, we shut it down and piled down for some sleep.

Sunday we went out by the other house to check it out. Fortunately, there was no damage, just lots of limbs and branches down in the yard. But all the hard work we had put in over the years, trimming, pruning, etc., has really paid off. Damage to the yard is minimal. However, the whole neighborhood out there looks like a war zone!

This morning, Steve got up early, moved the tractor and generator out, and hooked up the furnace and water. At least we can have it on long enough to shower and get ready for work . . .

SO - - that is where things stand for now. Not sure how long this situation is going to last, but there is such extreme damage throughout most of the state, it could definitely be awhile. At least I live close enough to work to go in early and steam out my work clothes in the locker room, fix my hair, and put on some makeup (don't want to scare the students!).

I can't wait for this ordeal to be over . . . .