Good Fortune, Then Home For the Storm

My wife and I made the driving trip for Christmas this year. It’s a thousand miles each way, which for us means two days’ drive to get there, and two days’ drive back. The last week of December is always a flip of the coin, but there are three main possible outcomes. It can be nice all the way, it can be bad all the way, or it can be a mix of both. This year good travel fortune shone upon us.

We followed a mild storm all the way out so that we saw snow in the mountains of Pennsylvania and Massachusetts and had wet roads but never a slippery patch. The sun’s glare wasn’t even too bad with the overcast we had. Dreary yes, but dangerous, no. On the way back we had rain off and on so that it washed off most of the dried salt on the car that we had accumulated on the way out there. There was never even a patch of duck drownder rain. The visits were good, we ate too much, and memorable times were had by all. On the last leg home (when we were about on our last legs) we made another stop to see her 102 year-old mother. Now there’s something you don’t see every day! Those surprise arrivals are always welcome and it’s a delight to see someone’s face light up for the unexpected visit. It was a good note to finish on before heading home for the last four hours of driving.

It’s all worth it, of course, to have the chance to see family members we haven’t seen for too long, and to enjoy the preparations for Christmas morning with them. We’ll do it again, when we’re good and rested.

Getting back home safely after a long journey is always a blessing. The first day or two back we mostly stumble around, appreciating the details of our long absent daily routine. The fire is warm, and sleep is delightful. These things seem to improve each day after our return. We enjoy our familiar surroundings and getting back to our normal schedule. We told everyone along the way that we enjoyed very favorable weather which escorted us all the way home and for six days afterward.

In these times when news outlets and public officials seem to enjoy scaring the public when there might be storms approaching we have learned to discount the alarms when they are enough days away to miss us entirely. About three days before a storm is supposed to strike, we begin to take more notice. Two days ahead it’s okay to feel some alarm and look to preparations. The detailed county-by-county forecast now indicates that we will likely be in the heaviest snow belt here in our little patch of the Heartland. They even say we could have 6-10 inches and it’s looking like they just might be right this time.

There’s a winter storm on the way! Going all the way back to the great ice storm of ’57 and the Blizzard of ’61 (which I wrote about here on CFP) I have delighted in winter storms because there are few things better than being home and snug when the snow is flying and wind is driving it into drifts.

I wish hazard and harm to no one. I look out for neighbors and friends when possible. I warn people I know ahead of time that it’s coming. I offer to help right up to when it hits. I note when the anti-icing brine stripes dry on the road and hope that others notice, too. If I’m due somewhere for work I try to alert everyone to the possibility that I might not be able to make it for a day or two. The whole idea is to be able to avoid going anywhere from the time the storm hits until the roads have been cleared and it is no longer hazardous to sally forth.

Then the preparations begin. We have a very steep driveway that becomes impassible without chains if there is ice or snow about. That means that it is necessary to park vehicles at the top of the hill near the highway before any precipitation begins to fall. That will happen before nightfall today. Having already returned from a trip to nearby towns to deliver produce and get a few last minute things at the stores, it is deeply satisfying to put them away and anticipate meals for the next few days. Then lunch. Then the livestock need to be looked after. There is straw for bedding and hay and feed for feeding all through the storm and beyond. Their water can be maintained in even the coldest weather with little or no freezing. The amusing but stand-offish cat that came with the place will have her daily ration of the only food she likes, Kit n’ Kaboodle. In between her meals I rarely see her. Maybe she’s in a shelter in the woodpile or in the woods. She won’t tell me.

The rain barrels have been dumped for the winter. Bags of insulation will go in the window wells to keep the basement water lines from freezing. Ranks of firewood will soon be near the door to feed the fire that keeps us cozy all the waking hours and some of the sleeping ones.

We have books laid in and phone chargers handy in case the power goes out. We can cook and heat and work without power. Laundry is caught up and there are plenty of coats and boots. Life is ever so much pleasanter in a storm when there is plenty of tea and coffee and other hot drinks to be had. This morning coffee was on sale at a price I haven’t seen in a year. I got some extra. Everything we like to eat on a regular basis is here and in cold storage. Yesterday I made a pot of soup and I just might make more tomorrow.

When the sun goes down this afternoon everything will be as ready as it can be. In the morning there will be the usual comforting routine with perhaps two or three hours to check the animals and do any last minute tasks.

Then we can watch the lowering clouds outside the windows and play minor key songs in our heads while the snow lands hissing in the somber woods. Maybe we will think of our sturdy ancestors who endured far worse and lived to tell us about it.