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As I sit to write in front of a crackling fire, all should seem cozy. But I can hear the faint humming in the background of generators and it tells me something is strange and not at all cozy.<\/p>\nAs I sit to write in front of a crackling fire, all should seem cozy. But I can hear the faint humming in the background of generators and it tells me something is strange and not at all cozy.<\/p>\n
An early winter storm rolled through last Saturday and it happened to be a Nor’Easter. I’m not sure how to technically explain one, but to me a Nor’Easter means many inches of snow and it usually comes down fast and with a vengeance. The problem with the timing of this storm was that we hadn’t reached peak autumn yet and many leaves were still green. Over a foot of heavy snow fell and it bent the healthy limbs and broke the weak.<\/p>\n
The amount of tree carnage is overwhelming. There are power lines littering the roads or they are balancing the weight of trees and limbs in mid-flight. On every block, you see something that makes you think, “Someone should really fix that.” But how many qualified someones can there be? Which is why my neighbors and I are rolling into Day 7 of no power.<\/p>\n
Our town had to ban Halloween. It was too unsafe to walk around the area. My boys handled it very well, but I feel for them. School has been cancelled all week. They handled that news much better.<\/p>\n
I’ve been stacking firewood and cooking on our stove (gas top, yay!) and washing every dish by hand. I climbed on our roof and cut a huge tree limb with a saw. I sleep with a winter hat and gloves and my long johns. The mountains of laundry that have piled up are ridiculous. I miss working on my business. I miss watching TV. All these things seem silly, the modern conveniences you miss (except for my job). There are so many people suffering from this lack of power in real ways, I feel guilty for even complaining.<\/p>\n
But an end is in sight. We planned a trip to Disney World last spring and we are leaving tomorrow for 4 days. We picked the time to coincide with Election Day, so the boys would only miss one day of school. Oh, irony, you are a funny one.<\/p>\n
I’ve attached photos of my yard. As you walk around, every yard, every road, every walkway looks like this, just littered with dead trees. I will feel lucky to ever get the power back on at all. My moment is being forced to take a look at all the things I take for granted every day and resolve to be even more grateful for them than I already am.
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