Weather update

Sure enough, it snowed during the night. We got up to fresh frosting that has covered everything in a thin film. The morning snow is fine and steady. No big flakes, so the accumulation is slight.

One hour later, the flakes have gotten bigger and the wind has come up. The snow that was on the roofs is now blowing like mad, and the falling snow is nearly horizontal!

I checked the weather report to find we're under a storm advisory until 7pm. The projections of expected snowfall have been hiked up to 11-13 inches!!! That is the kind of snow accumulation that began this endless winter. Maybe this is the end?

Now I'm off to make hot chocolate and find a book to curl up in the window with. I'll watch this storm (last storm?!) until I have to go to work. But I'm calling to make sure they aren't closing the store early before I set out in this mess!

More snow expected...

Tonight while we sleep, we're supposed to get the beginning of a snowstorm that could bring us 9 inches of snow in the next 24 hours! WHEN IS SPRING COMING TO MADISON?

I want sunshine, and flowers, and leaves on the trees. I want to put up my bird feeders and open the windows to air out the house. I want to take the flannel sheets off the bed. I want, I want, I want......

Doldrums!

This week has been warm enough that all the snow has melted off the road! This is the first time this winter we've driven on pavement instead of packed snow. I can see small patches of grass as the yards melt, but we still have a long way to go.

Our household has been ill. Guess there is yet another epidemic going around and we both caught it. Coughs, colds, runny nose, chills, fever...all the fun stuff. We both missed two days of work in addition to our two days off. So, for four days we basically did nothing but sleep, drink plenty of fluids, and take lots of medicine that didn't make any difference.

Because the weather is warming up and I don't want the basement to flood again, I "built" a 8" styrofoam wall and taped it to the floor with Gorilla Glue tape. The wall follows the same pattern as the towel parade from the last flood. I am hoping to keep the water in the space between my little walls, so it is directed to the drain in the laundry room.

Sure enough, when some water came into the house, it was NOT in my walled in area. It was 3 feet beyond, in an area that hadn't had any water yet. So, I put down towels, and bought some disposable diapers to line the area. We didn't get too much water, about 5 diapers worth (WOW, the diapers worked GREAT!) and a few damp towels.

That's it. The area outside where the water came in last time has dried out already. I can't see where any more runoff could come from. So, I built my little wall for nothing! Guess I'll take it down. Yep, that's about the way things have been going.

The Flood in the Basement

Can't remember if I posted that the basement got wet a couple of weeks ago. We had one day-ONE DAY!- of "nice" weather (above freezing) and when the melting began, much of it came down the wall into our family room and storage room. We called the landlords who promptly came over with wet-vac's to get the water up. Then we set up fans and heaters and within 2-3 days, the damp was gone and we moved our stuff back into place.

At that time, I worried what we'd do when Spring finally arrives (yes, I'm optimistic about the event, even though there is nothing on the horizon to give me that hope!). We've had 100 inches of snow this winter. That is a LOT of melting that will have to happen. But I figured it was not going to happen anytime soon, so I quit worrying.

Yesterday we got that brief glimpse of nice weather to come. It got up to 46 degrees!! Of course, the melting started immediately, but nothing seemed to be coming in the basement. Then, late in the day it began raining. When we went to check the basement before bedtime, it was flooded. About twice as much liquid as the first time.

We moved furniture and storage bins. We called the landlords, who brought the vacuums again. We sopped up water for about an hour, then set up a towel perimeter to direct the incoming water (yes, it was still coming in!) to the drain in the laundry room floor. This required about 20 towels, rolled into cylinders and laid end to end to form a path of least resistance to the drain which was about 30 feet away. Then I turned the fan on high and went to bed.

During the night the rain turned to snow and the liquid will freeze and quit coming in. The forecast for the next 5 days is for below freezing temperatures. So, no more flood waters coming.

However, the carpet is still VERY wet. The fans are only beginning to do their work. We still have to dry out the cement, the pad (which will be thrown out and replaced once the leak is fixed) and the storage room. Just now the carpet is suspended in the air on the backs of folding chairs. It created a little tunnel for the fan to blow through.

The landlord will probably have to take down the drywall to the outside wall to see why it is leaking.

So, we'll be living with chaos and damp for some weeks to come. Oh the Joy!

March 1--Is Spring Coming?

March usually comes in like a Lion and goes out like a Lamb.
I'm waiting. Patiently, sort of.
It's time for Spring to begin, or at least think of beginning.

We still have LOTS of snow, very cold days, and no end in sight.

Still, I'm optimistic because it is March.
So, bring on the wind. It's ok, because it will dry out the ground (if the snow melts), and then we can get on to the Lamb phase, which is my favorite, as it brings up images of new growth, and gentle weather.

Please, please, please.....bring it on!

Total Eclipse of the Moon

It is still COLD and MISERABLE here in Madison, but we have "events" that pull our mind away from our winter woes from time to time. One of these was the Lunar Eclipse last night. The night was totally clear, so we could see the whole event. I was working 2pm till 10:30pm, but everyone was aware of what was happening and we'd take turns to run out and check it out. It was only COLD instead of SUPERCOLD, so we could run outside for that brief moment without totally bundling up.

I had no idea we were expecting this phenomenon until the cashier at the convenience store I stopped at told me. Lately I've been out of touch with most things, as all my energy and effort is required to keep enduring WINTER! I did find a cool site that will keep you abreast of when and where to expect the next eclipse. www.MrEclipse.com

By the time the eclipse was over and I was going home, the weather did get colder. MUCH COLDER! My gearshift froze so that when I got home, it wouldn't go into nor stay in Park. Since it wouldn't go into Park, the key wouldn't come out. After putting on the emergency brake, I left the keys in the car with the dash lights lit and prayed that tomorrow the battery won't have totally discharged keeping those lights on, and that it will start and unfreeze enough to get back to normal.

Hearts and Flowers

Valentine's Day.
Bah...Humbug.

I can't put my finger on it, but at some point I passed the place of being willing to acknowledge holidays. At first it was just the major holidays I no longer wanted to celebrate; Christmas, Easter, New Years. While many holidays fall in the category of Who Really Cares Anyway; St. Paddy's Day, Memorial Day, President's Day, there are a couple of holidays still on my Let's Celebrate these list; Thanksgiving, 4th of July (fireworks!!!)

That point I don't remember passing was when Valentine's Day went from the Who Really Cares Anyway list to the I WILL NOT CELEBRATE THIS PARTICULAR HOLIDAY list.

As a child, I loved Valentine's Day. Every year I made my Valentine Box (usually an old shoe box covered in crepe paper and decorated with doilies and paper hearts), bought and addressed a Valentine to every member of my school class, and spend lots of time putting the appropriate conversation heart into each envelope.

After school we would spend time making heart shaped sugar cookies, icing them and writing names on the cookies. We would take these treats, with additional Valentines to our "special" friends houses. The tradition was to put them on the porch, ring the door bell and run away before they opened the door. I'm not sure why it was so important to not be caught giving Valentine's to our friends, but it was an exciting part of the process.

I would open all my Valentine's, read special intent into the messages, try to guess the identity of any Anonymous cards, and line this collection up on my bed--proof that I was liked, loved, and thought to be special.

Well into adulthood, I would buy, write appropriate sentiment in, and mail Valentine's to friends and loved ones. Now, the thought of doing that actually makes me angry! When did I become such a hardass? and more importantly--WHY?

I'll have to spend some time puzzling this out, and maybe I'll let you know, eventually. In the meantime, I apologize for anyone who feels slighted, bewildered or unappreciated by my behavior.