Snow Is A Four-Letter Word

Oh sh*t... this wicked winter just ain't ever gonna end.

It began to snow yesterday morning about 10:30am, and continued snowing all day and all night. The forecast is for over TWO FEET (20m, or so it will seem) of accumulated snow by the time this storm ends. [For the unfamiliar, the average amount of snowfall during an entire winter season in the DC/Maryland area is less than 15" or 38cm. We got more than that already in our record-breaking December, 2009, snowfall.]

My poor ol' hard-workin' partner has been out there... shoveling away. He also decided that this snowfall was just so much that he would use the snow blower, after initially saying that he did not want to try to use it. The machine is hard for him to handle, but he will do okay with it. It's not really that hard to use, once you become accustomed to it.

I have quit feeling guilty that I can't be out there to help him. I have accepted the fact that I have a broken leg and there's nothing I can do about the snow. I am caring for my aunt, who is staying with us "for the duration" and I am doing some other things that I can do via the Internet -- as long as we have power. The snow is heavy and has covered tree branches, so I would not be surprised if we lose electrical power and internet connectivity. That's okay, we are prepared.

How prepared are we?

• We have enough food and water to last us for at least a week. Most of the food can be eaten without heating, if need be.

• While we enjoy VoIP telephone service so we can make "free" long-distance calls throughout the U.S. and Canada, we kept one hard-wired telephone which is powered independently by the phone company, so we will have a working phone if the power goes out.

• Plenty of flashlights and extra batteries are at hand. No candles -- which are huge fire hazards.

• We have a generator that can be connected to power essential circuits in the house through a properly installed transfer switch, and adequate fuel stored safely.

• The generator will power a circuit that will keep the fan in our gas-fueled furnace operating so we will be warm.

• Most of all, we have each other. We'll take care of each other and get through this just fine.

Life is short: be prepared!