It's just too cold to go back outside. Know the hens have water and feed, so no sense tracking back out there. The dogs will have to go out at least once more before night, but may have trouble convincing Sylvia that it is necessary. She really hates cold. But when the coop door was opened, the hens did not even try to come out the door. They are not as dumb as one might think.
Sterling called and we compared notes about going to school in the winter months. We both hated cold weather back then and have not had a change of opinion since. Girls were not allowed to wear slacks or pants of any kind. No boots or leggings at our house. Small little jackets instead of decent coats. We made it, but both of us remember it well and not fondly. The Kennedy grandparents bought Sterling clothes each fall. He was their favorite grandchild for sure. The Pollard grandparents bought me a pair of gloves in December and hat and gloves for Easter. Not much help for a little tomboy! Oh well. My grands have what they need and then some. But their parents all work and make a decent wage. Mom made our clothes mostly, but shoes were hard to come by. Especially decent shoes that would last the fall and winter.
Reading online today at the different problems folks are having with frozen water lines, heating elements that have gone out, and just plain cold hurting folks. Thinking of BillyeRuth. She needs someone to replace an element in her oven. BR, NEVER post your phone number online. Hid it on my page, but it is still there for others to see on other pages. Look up the dealers online who are in your area who deal with that particular appliance. Call them. Or go online and ask for dealer help.
Jennifer and Gary put insulation in their ceiling spaces yesterday. It took all of the family to get it done, but Gary was able to take back this morning the machine that eats the filler up and blows it in the ceiling. Jenn said it was a total mess of a job! Hanan tried to get me to let him do that years ago, but fiberglass is like poison. After the tornado in '79, Lewis had fiberglass embedded in his body. We used panty hose to try to get it out of his skin. Never again! But Jenn said the temperature in the house went up at least 5 degrees. Not bad.
Thinking about the wood burning stove that Lewis put in the kitchen to warm the house. We could put a fan behind it and that air would heat the entire house. But cutting, hauling, and drying or stacking wood was not a small task. It took both of us plus the kids to get it done. We used to drive down the road and see an old dead tree that had fallen over--usually a cottonwood or some such--and one or the other would say, "Covet, covet, covet." We wanted permission to haul that sucker home for our firewood stack. A few times we had folks steal wood in the night, but Lewis never tried to put a stop to it. We finally got rid of the wood burning stove after the metal box developed a hole in the side that could have been dangerous. Didn't replace it because he did not think we should be cutting wood in our old age either. Not that we were all that old at the time. Oh well. Enjoyed it for a long time.
Not sure how to figure visibility exactly, but the buildings over at the State Hospital can be seen from here still. Guessing that a quarter of a mile is easily seen, so maybe more where the wind is blocked. Out on the open road, it would be a lot less where nothing stops the blowing snow. Know for sure that it would have to be a REALLY good reason for me to even walk to the truck, much less start driving anywhere.
Just let the dogs back inside after they went out for a few minutes. Thompson was scratching on the inside door. "Let me IN!" Both were somewhat wet where the snow immediately began to melt. Had to hang Sylvia's coat up to dry. Thompson did not wear his out in the first place. He has a tendency to shake out of it, and who wants to go out to find it out back in a snow drift! Anyway, they are inside, warm, and dry now.
The electric companies are asking everyone not to use any more electricity than is absolutely necessary right now. No washing machines, dryers, etc., should be going. Hello! My washing machine would probably not work as cold as it is. But three rooms in this house are closed off anyway so that the only ones heated are the bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, and living room. If worse came to worse, could stay in the kitchen under the gas heater and let the dogs lie down on a bed in there made from the cushion off the yard swing. Always thinking ahead seems to work out fairly well.
Noticed that many were concerned about salt for their walkways. Umm. WHY would they need to be out on walkways anyway? Unless something just HAD to happen, inside is much better for protection. As much as this covid mess has felt like an extreme restriction, we should not have that much trouble just staying inside and behaving ourselves. Someone, think it was Eugene, said that WallyWhirl was totally insane. For pity sake. Stay out of the stores and eat whatever you have on hand. Beans of any kind are as good as you can get during bad weather. Because Cindy Jones suggested freezing milk in half gallon freezer bags, my kitchen may never run out of milk now. Have a pantry loaded down with whatever might be needed for the next few weeks--maybe months. It does not cost any more to stock up than to go buy when everyone and his cousin is trying to get milk and bread at the same time! My grandmother had a cellar full of veggies and fruits and jams and jellies. Her pantry had SOME different things in it, but she was pretty well prepared for anything except for fresh meat. She did not have a big deep freeze, but even a small freezer will keep one or two people supplied for quite a while. Just thinkin'.
Currently seven degrees and blowing snow. But the snow is not as heavy now as it was earlier. Sitting here wearing two pair of socks with house shoes, pants, tee shirt, sweat shirt with hoodie, and still feel cold. But mostly my feet. Have gloves without the finger tip parts. They are nice to keep fingers warm. Definitely not a day to be planning a garden. LOL Maybe by Friday we will be headed the other direction on the thermometer. Praying for a heat wave! Well, maybe 32 degrees or above!
Connie and Rebekah are in a place where it is just raining. Suggested she enjoy staying there for the duration of this week. Not any sense in getting here just to be frozen in place! The dogs alerted on two big trucks with flatbed trailers with ditch digging machines on them. Plumbers, no doubt. Would not want to have to pay one right now--double time and a half plus overtime on Sundays. Would not want to BE a plumber for any reason whatsoever! If ever needed to design a house, the plumbing would be encased in easy to get to sections of removable walls or other places that were easy to access without dealing with snakes, scorpions, spiders, etc. Bleah on creepy crawlies!
Saw someone who looked a bit like Jerry and his friend leaving his place through the bottom section of his fence. The male figure was wearing a blanket. Not sure it was Jerry, but have not seen him lately anyway. About all we can do for folks like Jerry is just pray for them. Hope he has a friend with food and heat somewhere. His mom told him to stay away from me so that his contacts would not expose me to anything. Really appreciate her. She understands.
Got a message from Leta Talley to say that Ronnie was doing some better still. Please keep praying for him and those like him who are fighting this horrible virus. Read in the JP this morning that the mutated virus is twice as deadly. It figures. And again, NYC wanted to put virus patients in nursing homes. Good grief! Jerusalem at least has all their health care workers vaccinated right now. Of course, they are not immune to the newer viruses. Seems the battle is still uphill.
Ok, politics. Of course they did not pass the charges of treason or whatever against President Trump to impeach him. But nine Republicans voted against him. Their names will not be remembered for long, but the folks who put them in office should be reminded that this is still America. We don't persecute those who have served with distinction. Those who bad mouthed President Truman for using the atom bomb never stopped to think about the horrible numbers of dead American soldiers that a continued war would have caused. Well, in my estimation, President Trump is the best president we have had since Truman! He SERVED America!
My concerns for all of you include your safety, your warmth, your ability to care for yourselves. May God give you rest as you need it. You are loved.
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