Friday, January 12, 2007

Ice Storm 2007

I don't know how many of you remember The Ice Storm of '98. It was crazy. Parts of Canada and the upper U.S states were blanketed in ice and were without power for up to four weeks or more in places. Farmers lost livestock, businesses closed down, roads were closed, elderly were trapped inside; it was crazy. Thankfully my immediate family (mom, dad, Joe, Laura, grandma and grampa) all survived and unlike most families, ate like kings. We had two deep freezes full of frozen meat which would spoil if not consumed. So every night we fired up the grills and ate as much as we could. Each meal was complete with a dessert choice too: frozen pies, ice cream, cookies...all of it had to be eaten before it spoiled ~ poor us!

The barn, thankfully, had a generator installed the year prior so dad and grandpa were able to continue to take care of the herd while we were able to steal some of that power for our house too! We had about four extension cords running from the barn to the house, giving us some light and some power for our small appliances. We stayed warm from the old wood stove and were able to spend some quality time together as a family; playing card games and having lengthy discussions after our hearty meals! So in a sense it was nice to have shared that time together.

Today, Oklahoma is expecting to be hit by the very same storm -like conditions for the next couple of days. The people here are totally freakin' out. They are not equipped to deal with the same conditions most Canadians and upstaters are accustomed to handling. The last time this town was hit by ice, it shut down for about a week. No power, no food, no gas, nothing! The people here are in a state of panic and are preparing to hibernate until the storm passes.

For the most part I believe we are ready for what this storm may bring. We have our hurricane stash of water left over from living in Florida. We have plenty of batteries from the Christmas rush. We have a radio. We have PLENTY of warm blankets and sweaters and warm clothing. We stocked up on sand and salt for the first snow blizzard we had in December. And our fridge is fully stocked. If we get as much ice as they are predicting our tub is ready to house it to keep our food fresh!!!!

Pray for us...and the locals!! I'll keep you updated!

5 comments:

Alyssa said...

Whoa that's brutal. Hope it isn't as bad as they're predicting. We'll keep you in our thoughts and prayers. Let us know your status!!

Loves...

Sara K. said...

Sounds like your hunkering down. We're getting our first snow of the winter and it's really pretty. A much better alternative to ice. You'll be in our thoughts and prayers. Love ya!

Alyssa said...

I heard it's really bad in OK - are you guys Ok? Pardon the double usage, there... I just heard it's REALLY BAD and want to make sure you're surviving! We're praying for you and thinking about you!

Anna@Exasperation said...

Hmmm...too bad you're not a few hours south. We had some rain that froze a little bit and they cancelled EVERYTHING! I'm driving around going, "PEOPLE, IT'S RAIN!" Oh well. At least we got Chase home for a few hours this morning! Hope you guys are doing great!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Remember....yes i do, we were living together...i worked everyday and you left for the farm! You are lucky a good farm girl....ready for anything!!! I remember hearing of this when we were away...sounds like you made it! miss you LOve Duke xo