Well, it didn’t really.  That was actually a little over dramatized.  On Sunday night, we went to bed and the weather was a little formidable looking.  On Monday morning, the phone rang around 5:15am (a full 15 minutes before I am forced to rise, so truly not welcome – NOT) and it was the school autodialer with Dick telling us that there is snow and kids will not be in school.  I was particularly not eager to look outside and see what fresh hell had been wrought overnight, especially when ominous quiet and encroaching bite of “chilly” in the air told me that the damned power was out.

It was still really dark out, but I could see enough to realize that we were in trouble.  When the call also came from the high school district, which is decidedly more hard core than the non-high school district, that THEY were also closed, I rolled back over and went to sleep.  Upon re-waking at 8am or so, the distinct lack of sunlight was troubling, so I stumbled over to the balcony door and peeked out and sure enough, everything was pretty well buried in white hell.  (I do so deeply and passionately hate snow)  We got somewhere between 2 and 2.5 feet overnight, I’d guess.  I never did go outside and measure it.

The power was promised to return by 1pm, so we got busy building a good fire in the woodstove and quickly showering everyone before the hot water heater was filled with icy water.  Yes, we have done this before.

Of course, 1pm turned into 4pm which turned into 6pm which turned into 5pm Wednesday night for a total of 3 long days with no power.  We have two generators, either of which is fully capable of running the house just fine.  Unfortunately, one has needed a carburetor rebuild kit since we got it a year ago this past September and the other would not start for reasons that are still unclear.

Our house is fully electric, so absolutely everything was inoperative.  The wood stove is always fired up after October or so and Eric had a decent supply of wood started.  The wood stove heats the family room and that’s about it.  We all huddled around it, cooked on it and waited.  I can’t count how many candles we went through.  I read and read and read until my eyes hurt.  I missed music.  The kids handheld video games and a laptop held out until the morning of the last day.  I have to say, they took it all with great spirits.

Eric grumbled about not having coffee.  I worked as long as I could in the back room making crafts for Christmas and taking calls for work.  The candles couldn’t cut the total darkness that was taking over.  Flickering candlelight gives me a headache if I read from it for very long and because we are in a forest on a mountain, sunrise comes late in the winter and sunset comes early.  I got tired of washing my ladybits with freezing water.

At one point, Nathan tried to pop popcorn in a saucepan on the cast iron wood stove, but the fire wasn’t hot enough.  He went to move it from the stove top and didn’t realize how hot the handle would be and promptly dropped it… 

…on the dog.

Poor Muggles caught hot popcorn kernels (unpopped, but hot), hot oil and a hot pan to her delicate underbelly.  We wrapped snow in a towel and put it on her tummy, poor thing.   She acted like she was fine, but we all know that dogs are much better at dealing with pain than humans are, so I’m sure she was uncomfortable.  There is no visible damage.

All of that togetherness was working on my last nerve.  Since the old woman hormones started to fire and misfire, I need my alone time and there was just none of that to be had.  

When 10pm Tuesday came and went without power, the PG&E message went to 6pm the following night, so we knew we were in for the long haul.  The time is a blur of rollicking games of charades and eyestrain and sleeping and cooking eggs on the cast iron griddle.  

I don’t think any of us had much faith in the 6pm idea, but sure enough, just before 5pm on Wednesday while I was on the phone to my cousin, Delena, the lights moaned back on again.  It was not an enthusiastic return, but power was flowing.  My computer did not enjoy the low voltage, but the kids were sure excited.  After they went to bed a few hours later, we had another blackout and when the power came back, it was full force again.

As nearly as I can tell, no fish died.  I only have 4 little neons, a gigantic plecostomus and a fat catfish.  I figured they were fish sticks, but somehow, they survived the lack of heat.  The chickens managed to stay alive as well, but when Delena went out to check them yesterday, she told us that we only had one.  After mourning the demise of the other two and wondering what could have happened to them, Eric found them safely tucked away in the dog house/baby chicken house where they used to live before he built the bigger one in anticipation for perhaps future nesting.  

Freezer and refrigerator items were buried in the snow.  Eric had a hard time finding a couple of things, but I think we finally got everything back with no loss.

Delena went back to school today.  Prior to this, her bus couldn’t get through the roads even though school was in session since Wednesday morning.  The boys are still out of school as of today because the main school does not yet have power, plus a sprinkler line in their fire system broke and they have to “assess the damage.”

Sigh.

So the upshot is that we survived the melee and there is likely very little chance that this will  be our only power loss of the winter since all indicators are that this is going to be a very long, very cold, very weatherly active winter.

I already crave Spring so very much.  I’m just not cut out for this a-tall.  I need to move back to Guam or something.

Today was the start of the candle blitz.  I did a ton of beeswax candles a while back and now I’m pouring soy votives.  I’ve done vanilla and lavender and have a pile more to go.  It’s a long process since you have to let them sit and get well hardened before you can pop them out of the molds and make a new batch.  I love doing it, though.  It makes me happy.  

I have also been making a lot of Christmas crafts to give as gifts.  I got a little delayed with not having a glue gun – the crafter’s best friend – for 3 days, but I did some wiring and such and still managed to make around 13 small wreaths. I’ve got another week to finish up, so I’ll be busy, that’s for sure!

You know, other than that, I got nothing.  I think my brain is frozen.  We are supposed to get hammered with more snow this weekend, so I have resigned to being housebound for a while.  

Agh.  I don’t mean to be all negative and depressing.  Next time I promise to say something remotely interesting and insightful (hopefully not inciteful).  This must be my descent into the underworld to court my inner demons or something.  

Or maybe these outer demons that shall go unnamed.

If anyone needs me, I’ll be in my closet and will…

…keep passing the open windows…