I love in Texas and like much of our state, we had a rough time with the Arctic Blast that hit us in February. I grew up in upstate NY and Colorado and I love winter and snow, but this made me realize how much I take for granted.
The first snow came on Sunday, Valentine's Day, effectively nixing our plans to get takeout. I cooked instead - a shrimp, spinach and pasta dish that tasted excellent. We had been warned to expect rolling blackouts, so when the power went out at 7:45 am on Monday morning, I wasn't worried. We have a gas stove, so I was able to make breakfast. We also have a gas fireplace, so we lit that and settled in to wait for the "rolling blackout" to end.
The snow was pretty. It rarely snows in Texas, so I was pretty happy at this point.
Except it didn't. And the temperature inside the house kept dropping. My daughter, who lives about 12 miles away, never lost power and she urged us to come there since it was going to drop to 5 degrees F that night with a windchill of minus 12. We didn't want to leave our home so we declined. We were worried about pipes bursting. Our swimming pool started freezing over and we have two greenhouses outside that we heat with electric heaters. If the power didn't come back on, we were going to lose our plants. I was especially worried about a huge Sago Palm tree that I'd grown from a baby and had over 20 years.
That night, still no power. We kept the fireplace going but it really didn't help much.
When bedtime came, we put the dog's sweaters on them. I loaded up our bed with two more quilts on top of the comforter and blanket, then we allowed the dogs up there to sleep with us (covering them with blankets as well.) It was surprisingly warm, except for our faces. And getting up to use the restroom in the cold and dark was an experience, to say the least. The dogs seemed warm.
In the morning, it was 37 degrees INSIDE THE HOUSE!!!! We gave up and packed to stay with my daughter, who still had power. Another snowstorm was coming that night.
In the end, we didn't get power back until late Thursday afternoon. We came by the house to check on things and to shut the water off at the main. All the plants in both greenhouses were toast. We were just leaving when the power came back. We decided to return to my daughter's and if the power stayed on, to return home Friday morning. We were under a boil water / conserve water notice.
In the end, we lucked out. No burst pipes, the pool pump still runs, and the only things I lost were my plants and a refrigerator/freezer full of food. I consider myself fortunate. Lots of others weren't.
I still love snow - but this experience changed things for me. I've never stopped loving winter or snow, but with a caveat. I must have electricity, heat, and water. Like so many other Texans, we aren't used to being cold.
On the plus side, I got a lot of reading done.
I live in New Hampshire and we consider ourselves Preppers when it comes to major snowstorms. But I dont think anyone could have been prepared for the ordeal you and your family went through. I am just glad you are all safe, sound, not frostbitten (!) and that your home is okay. Mother Nature has been a bitch for a while now. I think she is going through some sort of environmental menopause and taking it out on us. Be well and again, glad you are all okay. ~ Peg
ReplyDeleteJust glad you're all okay. Thanks for sharing the experience.
ReplyDeleteMy parents went through something similar, and went to stay with my sister on Tuesday.
ReplyDeleteMy Mom is on oxygen and ran out Wednesday. She ended up in the hospital overnight but was able to go home Thursday after the power came on. She is still recovering.
Karen, I’m glad nothing worse happened! We went through 3 days once! Brr! We kept our food outside and when we finally took our frozen stuff to our daughters the power came back on.
ReplyDeleteIt's really tough to lose power when you rely so much on it. Many years ago we lost power after an ice storm for ten days. We had no generator and our water pump ran on electricity so we couldn't even flush the toilets. I'm glad you didn't have any burst water pipes. Those are the worst. Stay warm!
ReplyDeleteIt's amazingly tough without power. I almost count the minutes--after the first hour without it. I'm so glad you didn't get hyperthermia. Thank goodness for your daughter's warm home. Welcome back to this century. I often think of the pioneers when it's cold and how the heck any of them survived. Best wishes floating down to you.
ReplyDeleteGlad you made it out the other side. It seems if it's not a winter storm, it's a flood or a hurricane, a volcano, or an earthquake, no one escapes mother. nature.
ReplyDeleteWe're the lucky ones, Karen. As I write this, there are 15 contractor trucks lined up on the street. They'll be here everyday for weeks. That's about 2 trucks per house, and that's just on my block! I read a lot too on my Kindle. Larry's truck was in the driveway so he started it up and we sat in the truck with the heater on and charged our cell phones (which didn't work until Saturday) and charged our Kindles which are the illuminated kind. We used the Kindles for reading and as flashlights. All of my plants and shrubs are dead too at both houses. But it could have been worse.
ReplyDeleteYikes, Karen! So glad you and your family are okay. I've only been through one extended power outage in New England due to an ice storm. It was truly awful. Here's to hoping for an early spring!
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