I woke up early this morning to the sound of the wind, the sound that I'm sure I'd hear in a wind tunnel. The steady hum continued for four hours and by 10:00 the power was out.
Oh my. The last day of January and we hadn't been able to avoid a power outage this first month of 2013. It's not the worst thing that could happen, not by a long shot. Fifteen years ago this month Maine had an ice storm to end all ice storms that left central Maine without power for a week and parts of Maine without power for a lot longer than that.
Today it was just nine hours. The wind blew all day. Late morning I walked down to the mailbox and spotted six downed pine trees, tall skinny ones wrenched, broken, or completely uprooted. The sun soon appeared and the temperature climbed to 50 degrees. Ken got home late afternoon and started our portable generator. We let the fridge and furnace run for two hours before we shut everything down and went out for burgers and fries. By the time we arrived home at 8 o'clock the power had been restored. Tonight there are over 11,000 people in central Maine still without power.
My cold continues to be annoying but I'm recovering.
Yesterday the water guy came to add a different kind of filtering material to our water filtration system. I'd never had well water before we moved to this house. I'm a city girl, and I liked not having to think about where my water comes from or worrying about it being safe. Our well water has been safe for us since we put in a water treatment system, but its level of acidity makes it not so good for the copper found in places throughout the plumbing. Now we have "media" in the filtration tank that raises the pH level to the point that the water will not react with copper. Annoying, but it could be so much worse, and I'm grateful to have the tools to create a safe water supply.
So this was the last day of January, a month that has mostly found me in hibernation. If a better offer had come along, I would have taken it, but I obviously needed long periods of time home alone to regroup. I hadn't planned it this way, but I hadn't planned for it to be any other way either.
No word has come to me for this year. What has become clear is a frame of mind ~
What will be will be.
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7 comments:
Quiet time
at home
is good for you :)
Time to still the mind
and see all
as it really is...
Oh boy, I'm familiar with crazy wind. I'm grateful (knock wood) that we haven't lost our power for longer than a few minutes. It would be crazy cold here if that were to happen.
Stay well, safe, and warm!
Carolynn
A Glowing Ember
Both the outer and inner cold have changed you, Sharon. I can hear it in the words and in between pauses. I also appreciate your honesty and the way you meet life open without pretense. Your growing more than you realize.
I have always thought I'd like to live in Maine. I still love winter and most all that comes with it. I really enjoyed your description of your windy day. I understand that a big snow is coming your way. Take care,
Balisha
Hi - found your blog by way of 'Aging Gratefully' and enjoyed it. I'll be back.
P.S. I noticed you read Elizabeth Berg. She's one of my favorites. Just read her book "Never Change" as part of a library challenge. It was wonderful.
Like Balisha, I hope you don't get hit too hard tomorrow. For us, they're saying 3-5 inches, no big deal if you're staying home:) And you sound content with that this season. I love it.
I have a word for the year- but it has just about thrown me off. I may leave it behind.
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