Kerosene and Coffee
Venturing off into the fray of life today, I went to the doctors followed by a visit to the mad house.
So my first stop was the back doctor which was much needed as my left foot had turned in and every movement hurt like hell. I won't miss a back doctor appointment, if he is open, I am going to go. The drive there was slightly amusing as the salt trucks were already out dumping salt like mad men. Not a single snowflake has fallen yet. Every channel is calling for something different. 2-4 inches has been the week long call for our city. Now it is 13+ and a blizzard warning has been issued.
A BLIZZARD? This has caused panic in my small town. The entire Eastern Shore of the United States is set to be pummeled by snow. From the most Northern tip all the way to Florida. God does some pretty good jokes some days, snow in Florida. Great job running South, Snow Birds. I personally don't mind snow, hurricanes, tornado's or even blizzards. They are a part of life. I don't like the idiot's who wait until a blizzard is being called for to go to the store for the basic necessities of life.
Granted, I did go out for some much needed items for a blizzard, kerosene and coffee. Those two items cost me over an hour of my day. I was surrounded by folks who had entire carts full of perishables. Blizzards are cool, your perishables can be left outside in the event power goes out, I guess. I sure as hell don't want to go hunting in the snow and blistering winds for my food if the power goes out. The main reason would be letting the heat escape our house. We have fireplaces, electric heat, propane heat and kerosene heaters. Once I am relying on any of the other three items for heat besides the electric opening the door is a dangerous game to play. This isn't only dangerous in cold weather but a potentially life threatening game during a blizzard.
I am not sure how many of you have ever lived during a blizzard but this will be my third one. There are a few basic rules for a blizzard.
- Have food that won't spoil if the power goes out.
- Have a back up heat source.
- Have fresh batteries for the flashlights.
- and for fuck's sake don't piss with Mother Nature by venturing outside.
I have seen neighbors end up having a few feet worth of snow inside their houses because they thought it would be funny to run outside during the blizzard. Once they kicked the door open the wind promptly blew a few feet of snow in on them. Once they were lucky enough to get the door closed they were still left with a few feet of snow to deal with which was quickly becoming water as it melted in the heat of the night inside.
So if you're on the East Coast or anywhere there is wacky weather called for be safe, don't test Mother Nature. Stay as warm as possible, bring your pets indoors, keep flashlights and food easy to eat where you can get to it.
I will watch the storm safely behind Lexan sheeted windows, drinking coffee, waiting to see if I need to light the kerosene heaters.
Good luck East Coasters, please bring all animals you own or care for indoors.
I've never been in a bizzard before, living here on the the west coast. Looks like you have some darned good advice for helping folks stay safe and warm in the brutal weather conditions. It is really quite fantastic that you are asking folks to bring their animals in! Stay safe and warm.
I am currently petless, we normally rescue them and get them to good homes after shots . I just can't stand to see pet owners not take care of them. They should just give them away if they will not care for them.
Amen to that! If no one else has said it to you, then THANK YOU for taking care of our furry planet-mates!
I just hope I can find one once the baby is old enough. I won't just get a pet until it can live as one of the family.
Very good plan. :-)
I grew up in southeastern PA and have been through several blizzards in my life - the worst I can remember was in early 1996 I believe. Shut down everything for 3 days, including the steel mill where I worked. THAT was a big deal as they never wanted to shut down melting and annealing furnaces due to the high cost of restarting them. Anyway, we made it through unscathed and with a bit more respect for Mother Nature.
I'm in Texas now, and despite sub-freezing weather for the past three days, there's no snow. Instead we had a hurricane a few months back.
In Thailand (where I lived for 6 years) it was yearly rainy season flooding, and one year (2012 I believe) the flooding was so severe that areas of the country were covered in several feet of water for months. They even considered evacuating Bangkok because of the risk of it getting inundated.
Yes, Mother Nature must be respected.
Stay safe, but enjoy the beauty as well.
My wife's father worked at Bethlehem Steel, Baltimore.
They also have a location in Pennsylvania, they shut down in 96' I know they will do anything to stay open. Sometimes at the cost to their employees. Most of my side of the family is from Western PA. It still amazes me how a few hundred miles away they can get feet of snow and we sit in 50° weather.
Sounds like you have been through a ton of the beauty Mother Nature can produce and respect it as I do. That is a great thing that can save a life.
Yeah, I'm familiar with Bethlehem Steel. I've driven through the remaining shell. I worked for a company call Carpenter Technology in Reading, PA. Still a big player in the world of specialty steels (medical, aerospace, high temp, etc).
Here's what Thailand looked like in 2012 - for months. https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&q=thailand+flooding+2012
I haven't made it much to Western PA, but I am a Steelers fan :)
WOW! That's crazy to see pictures of. Sucks to think people had to live like that for an extended period of time as well.
Glad to see a new Texan keep his Steelers roots. I'm a Titans fan so I hope to see you once more on the field this year. Playoff's look the best they have been in years.
Funny thing is no one (Thais) complained about it much. I mean it floods there every year, just usually not that bad. They simply went on with their lives. Buddhist mindset and human adaptability I suppose.
Playoffs are looking awesome, and I haven't really been able to watch for the past six years so I'm pretty stoked. Titans gotta get past the Chiefs at home first.
That show's the best of the human condition. They just work with what they have. Doesn't change the fact that it sucks looking at the pictures but gives me a deeper respect for those who do that.
I am glad it is the Chief's 1st, lol
Chief's down, knock out Pat's next
Haha...you beat me to the punch. It was a close one though. And yes, I do hope they knock out the Pats.
Ahhhh...fucking Pat's. Maybe next year.
Isn't that what everyone who isn't a Pat's fan says, lol
you have great ability to string words together so as to pass on information.
Never done a blog before, this is my stab at it.
It's just really, really cold in Missouri!
No snow here until Sunday.
Keep warm man!
Big ups from me,
JGV
Thanks man, I do what I can. This house is almost 300 years old so every time a night like tonight rolls around I search for a new path the wind and cold comes in. It is a long slow process. I just covered two more windows since writing this post. Just a small hallway between the kitchen and living room but it was 15 degrees colder as you walked through it from one to the other.
Good luck with the storm! Hope you don't need to light those heaters. It was stormy around here in Germany as well, today. It is a nice feeling to be inside the house where it's warm and safe, while outside it's hell on earth 😉😂
I'm fine with the cold, it is the kids I worry about. I am in shorts and a tank top for 360 days a year. Chopped wood the last time it snowed. I got caught that night as I was sweating wearing just shorts to do so. I ended up with bronchitis the next day. I am pretty sure it would have been pneumonia if I was in more clothes as I would have been sweating 5x's as much. I hope this round we get snowed in and I get to veg out with the kids without worry of going anywhere. They are all looking forward to staying home playing PS4 this week.
I hope everything will be fine. I bet the kids will love playing while outside it's bad weather. Sorry to hear about the bronchitis though. I also chopped some wood while wearing a t shirt in winter a year ago but I had nothing. On the other side, once I went out for a walk in autumn wearing a tshirt only and I ended up having neuralgia.
Yes, weather tends to get you when you don't expect it to do anything and then gives you a free pass when it has every right to get you.
The younger kids will love it as always. The older kids tend to just want to drink hot chocolate.
Personally I would choose both anytime. Gaming and hot chocolate all day long, no matter how old I would be 😂
Gaming and Monster!
🙋🤘🤘🤘
Aw, that brings me back. I grew up on a wood furnace. My dad and brothers used to chop wood, and my dad would light up the fire place before we got ready for school so we wouldn't freeze. And on really cold days, he'd turn on the actual heater, and I'd sit on that thing in my nightgown and blanket and hog all the hot air until I had 5 minutes left to get ready for school. I would eat my cheerios wrapped up in blanket and heater, throw on a sweater and boots, and head off to school. Those were the good days. I don't miss 'em. But I kind of do....
I loved being by the fire as a kid but never enjoyed splitting wood until my 30's. Just something peaceful about swinging that maul knowing that you are providing heat for your family. You also get an amazing ab workout unlike anything else.
As someone who grew up in Indiana and Kansas (where snowstorms and ice storms are common), nothing is more hilarious to me than the way people not used to that kind of weather react. It's like watching a kicked anthill, the way the panic sets in.
Here in north Texas, we got about 0.001 inches of ice a few days ago, and you'd have thought the END WAS NIGH. People refused to drive anywhere, raided all the cheese and meat off the shelves of the store, etc.
The craziest I've seen it is when we actually got a foot of snow back in 2010. I drove to work in my 4WD car and there was literally nobody else out on the roads my entire drive.
What I wouldn't give for idiot free roads, it is 100% the opposite here. Once the snow starts falling everybody and their brother becomes a daredevil driver. You would think they were all professional ambulance chasers the way they fly by you on the highway like you're sitting still. I fell kind of bad a few miles down the road as I laugh at them 20 feet off the road between a couple of trees but that is life.
Blizzards, sounds like typhoons here, except way colder.
#2 Would be get used to a life without A.C. here. #1 everyone is used to typhoons and thus has a base level of canned food ready. Although you would be surprised how many actually don’t care and still go out. Freezers, especially chest freezers, aren’t common so most never have frozen bread or things like that stocked.
Stay safe and as warm as possible. Enjoy the hot chocolate!
In a different, albeit slightly related, note I caught a tan over the Holidays. Would love to send the Drumpf some of that global warming.
LMAO, you can keep life without A.C. That I had installed during the winter when we bought this house, prior to plumbing being done. It was the heat and a/c units that kept us from being able to register this house on the historic registry. We went with room by room zoned ductless units. I can have the A/C going and a room away my wife can have the heat on. Best invention EVER!
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It has begun. I'll try to keep this post updated with semi-hourly pictures.
Pretty sad when my teenage sons and I can beat the city by hand.
