Monday, February 25, 2019

The Blizzard of Nod

The folk who live in Nod are NOT sissies...
...at least not when it comes to winter.

Those of us who grew up here, have seen snow....LOTS of snow and, in more recent years, ice...and, every year, brutal, take-your-breath-away cold.  What is seen as a crippling storm in other parts of the country is, well, just another day in Nod.  Schools and businesses rarely close due to inclement weather, and while winter storm and snow advisories are an every-other-day event, "blizzard" warnings are somewhat rare because, well, we are NOT sissies and it takes something major to be classified as a "blizzard" here (The 18" of snow we got the Tuesday before last, for example, was not considered a blizzard since the wind gusts were only 20 mph and you could technically still see at least 10 feet in front of your nose.)  In fact, the last time a blizzard warning was issued for Nod was 10 years ago.
So, when they issue a blizzard warning, we take it seriously, and we know it's gonna get ugly.  And it DID get ugly this weekend. 

First, of course, we were glazed over with ice....just to make sure neither man, nor beast nor vehicle would be able to maneuver in a straight line.
Then the snow came.... Not like we needed any more considering we had already gotten over 40" this month.
But came it did regardless.


And it continued to come....


A bit of panic actually overtook both me and Snowdog Sunday morning when I could not open either door to let him out to do his "thing."

The snow eased up late yesterday afternoon.  But then the winds came....55-60 mph winds. (By the way, if any of you find my "Happy Holidays" sign that was by my front door, I will pay postage to have it shipped back to me. Given the direction of the winds, I would think it should be somewhere near Pennsylvania.)

The teeny, tiny, house in Nod shook and groaned in protest, and for a while there, I thought we might be air-borne.
  
Then the cold came... This-hurts-to-breathe kind of cold.

This morning  finally came and I was surprised that I was not any where near Oz or the Emerald City. 
I was still here in Nod....and, unfortunately, so was the snow.

(There's a fireplace under there someplace....)

But, we weathered another storm.  Others who were not so fortunate will try to pick up the pieces the best they can.

Little Crow's carport collapsed:
(His truck was trashed....an estimated $12,000+ worth of damage.)

And, despite efforts to keep it clear, the roof on my niece's barn caved in:

(Poor cows....)

Although we are up to our necks in snow... 
(There's another standing deer under there somewhere....makes you feel sorry for the real ones.)

....we will carry on and shovel out, because more snow is coming tomorrow.

And Snowdog's mountain continues to grow.

15 comments:

Mugwump Woolies said...

Yikes! I've been down here in the sunshine so long I can barely remember being snowed-in. I don't think I'd like it, although I admit to getting tired of sunshine sometimes. Hope you are staying warm and staying home. Sorry for the damage. What a mess the "weather" has been lately. I'm dreading the hurricane season...in years past, I hardly gave it a thought. Hope you are able to keep busy and keep your spirits up until the "spring thaw". Yikes, that's a long of white stuff!
Robyn

Raymond Homestead said...

Wow! You definitely have had your share of snow! In fact, more than your share!!

Farmhouse prims said...

Wow, you certainly got a lot of snow, I am cold just looking at it. I love your background music on your blog. So good to see you blogging again. Hugs, Lecia

Farm Girl said...

I am so glad you took pictures. When you write and tell me about it I just don't have that good of an imagination to see it. That is crazy that much snow. It cracks me up to see your dog on top of that mountain looking in your window.
I am so sorry about all of the damage from the snow. Stay safe. Sometime in July, I would love to see what it looks like without snow.
Is there a lake back there?

Rugs and Pugs said...

So happy I am not in Nod because I am a sissy.
Stay warm and safe.
xoxo
GT

Prims By The Water said...

I am not going to complain anymore because I am a sissy. Snow dog looks happy though. How do the kids get to school in that kind of weather? Kids here have missed 10 to 15 days here...but it seems again we are sissies here. Janice

elaine allerton said...

Enjoying ur posts!
Wow,,, thats crazy weather!
Not nice,,, hunkering down , is what I say,,,
But still need to get pets out etc,,,
We have had a blizzard warnings the last 2 days and all roads closed,,, it was a great day to not moved iutside at all, winds,, oh my,,,
Good day to hook and knit,,,
Winds have died down now,, but more fresh snow,,,
Hope u are staying safe,,,

susan hemann said...

I grew up in Michigan. We had snow all winter. Getting snowed in was a common occurrence. I am sorry for the damage. Despite everything, I love your humor.
What else can you do?

Ms Peppercorn said...

Living in Southwestern PA so we don’t have those kinds of winters but I always wonder what does happen to the deer and other wildlife? Just a rhetorical question.

Wendy Howard said...

Wow!!! We haven’t had snow here in Tennessee, other than some flurries. Sometimes we get a good snow. B-u-t.... last week we got RAIN—a month’s worth in one day. We have had floods, mudslides, rockslides, and caved in roads. Hope you dig out soon. Snow dog is so cute.

Winnie said...

Holy Moly!! Those are some snow pictures that make me realize, I AM A SISSIE!! I cannot even imagine such weather let alone figure out how to get out and about if needed in it. You are the brave ones, for sure. I have been wondering what farmers can do who have herds of cows that need protection and milking. Protecting them from freezing to death and getting them milked and cared for must be quite the challenge! Again, I cannot even imagine how to even cope with such weather and a herd of milk cows.

Hey, let us know what happened to the missing sign. I will keep an eye down here in Florida is case it road on the wave of the jet stream bluster that might be bringing us more rain tomorrow!! LOL!!

Lisa Schindler said...

Hi Robin, it was a wild day that's for sure. Sorry about your damage. We did not have any personally, but we know several area farmers that had barns or parts of barns go down as well. And to think, the winter started out so nice and mild!

Wendy @ Ravenwood Whimzies said...

I'm just returning after a 3 month absence from blogging, and I'm trying to catch up on everyone's doings. I miss blogging so much and was happy to see you posting!
Looks like your winter was terrible...ours was bad, but not THAT bad. Hoping it is thawing and Spring will come soon!

Earlene said...

wow!!! counting my lucky stars not that bad here!

Dicky Bird said...

First, I don't know how I missed this post. Second, it's been terrible here...Hell must have frozen over....along with ice, wind and more snow. However, your pictures of this nightmare we are living are beautiful! I love snow dog's mountain! I am 110% a positive person but this is beating me down. I was almost in tears last night...it has been a long Winter...and daylight savings to boot! I can't even think of a Motivational Monday post...crankier crow and down in the dumps dickybird! That's not us!