I woke up to another dark, gloomy morning. The sun has only made brief appearances in the last several days. The only bright spots in the gray world outside my door are the cardinals looking for a spot at the feeder.
We've had a little much needed rain, but the big ice storm that was predicted for last Friday through the weekend didn't happen...at least not in my county. Schools and other businesses had announced that they were closing ahead of the predicted storm.
I had gotten enough groceries to last the duration in case the power was out. And then my daughter said I should come stay at her house because she has a fireplace and a gas heater in the basement that would keep us warm if the power indeed went out for any length of time. Hubby stayed at home because we knew he would likely be called to work if said power outages occurred.
We stayed up late Friday night listening to the trucks going up and down the highway salting the roads. The ice didn't make a showing. The weatherman then said it would move in Saturday for sure. We listened as the trucks kept up the salting...up and down the highway they went. All for naught.
Ditto Sunday. It would surely arrive sometime Sunday, they said. No, it didn't. Churches had announced the day before that they were cancelling services.
The squirrel, who is living in the tree beside her house, stuck his head out a few times and barked at us when we opened the door to look for the ice that we didn't get.
The trucks finally stopped making their rounds...hope they have enough salt left for the next storm! Hubby had been stopping in for meals and would go back home to nap in anticipation of working long hours. But Sunday, after a nice weekend visit with my daughter, I packed my overnight bag and went back home with him.
We only had a little glaze of ice one morning, but not enough to keep folks from getting out. Kim and I had a good chuckle while watching the news and the weather girl was standing along a busy street in the Big Town while talking about the ice storm. The cars were just whizzing up and down the highway behind her...a sure indication that the roads were quite clear. It struck us as funny.
We were quite happy that the predicted ice storm didn't pan out, but winter is a long way from being over. Anything is possible. Even 60 plus degrees that is expected this weekend!
What is happening in your part of the world?
xo Cheryl
I hope that you and your loved ones had a good holiday time. and I wish Happy New Year to you and your family.
ReplyDeleteWe had our share of rain, sleet and snow. It is still raining. At least the temps are above freezing. I love that bird on the branch. It makes me want like nature in spite of the dark skies. Hopefully winter will go by fine. Just have to be careful when driving. There was a fatal auto accident on the Mid Hudson Bridge. This was just fast driving. So sad.
In this case, Cheryl, it was wonderful that the weatherman got it wrong!!
ReplyDeleteSnowing...very glad that you did not get the ice. Nobody needs that!
ReplyDeleteThree comments lost and I am about to tear out my hair. Perhaps blogging is hazardous to my health. 😏 All I am trying to say is that your photo of the cardinal is beautiful!
ReplyDeleteSame with us, we dodged a bullet! And now we have a warm and wonderful week. This has been the strangest winter that I can remember. But you are right! Some of our worst and deepest snow storms have been in early March. Beautiful cardinal, and your squirrel story gave me a laugh!
ReplyDeletewe are having the same see saw and yo you type weather. up and down, no ice. we are like summer right now. easy on the power bills and beautiful weather. we need rain.. glad you dodge the ice bullet and hope it skips your part of the country the rest of the season. I am sure you and your daughter had a fun visit in her new beautiful home.
ReplyDeleteKind of an overcast and gloomy gray day here.
ReplyDeleteBrenda
There are no gloomy days for me...I love cloudy, rainy and dark days...I love lighting all my candles and baking the day away...plenty of time for bright shiny days come summertime...right now, we have bright sun and a few clouds floating around....
ReplyDeleteHi Cheryl!
ReplyDeleteSo glad you didn't get the ice storm, and I hope you get the much needed rain in the form of . . . rain, not ice!
The weather is so unpredictable; our weatherman is always saying that we are going to get a big snow storm, and it seldom happens. I'm glad you are safe and warm after all that work.
Hugs,
Barb
Glad you were spared the ice. It is no fun when it hits that is for sure. Sounds like you and your daughter had a nice sleepover, though.
ReplyDeleteWe had the ice here in St. Louis county. Luckily they had pre-treated the roads and in my neighborhood the ice wasn't heavy enough to bring down many tree limbs or make a power outage. It was cloudy, foggy, wet, icy, overcast for so many days I lost count; but lo and behold there was sunshine today. Even though it was mildly chilly, that sunshine on my face made my day today.
ReplyDeleteI guess we got your share here! We had ice all night and it was accompanied by heavy fog in areas. Not my favorite thing. I ventured out the second day and on one of the side roads ended up going down it sideways (even though I was only doing about 10 mph when I got on the street. Pulled the car into low gear just in case I should hit something---which---amazingly I did not. Let's just say when I got home I STAYED home. lol
ReplyDeleteGlad you didn't get any this time. xo diana
Hi Cheryl. I'm glad you didn't have to deal with the ice storm as many did. We can't always depend on the weather forecasters but it sure is good to be prepared. It's been dry and cold here but we are to have a few inches of snow tonight and tomorrow morning....not much....just cosmetic snow. ;)
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear that the ice storm never materialized in your area. Sounds like a nice bonding time for you and Kim. Here we are unseasonably warm. We were able to have lunch on the patio today.
ReplyDeleteI love seeing the Cardinals on your blog.That seems to be the only way I get to see them. We have had lots of snow and very cold, but are right now in a mild spell.I smile when I read about closing schools before a storm hits. Over here we wait till it's storming and then determine if its bad enough to close things down.
ReplyDeleteIt's crazy, isn't it? This roller coaster of winter weather. I'm so glad you didn't get hit with the ice as hard as they had predicted. (I still say weathermen are the only folks who can get their job wrong so many times and still have a job!) blessings ~ tanna
ReplyDeleteYour weather forecasts sound a lot like ours...inaccurate...lol! Sometimes they get it right and some times they just don't! Ice is beautiful but so very dangerous. Those cardinals really do pop out against a dreary background, that's for sure! We have tons of them. "They" are saying we may get another snow or two before the winter is over...but what do they really know??? Right! Enjoy your day!
ReplyDeletemorning Cheryl, so happy to hear no ice storm hit you..... We have so much snow but milder temps this week, yay!!!! Blessings Francine.
ReplyDeleteWe did not have the predicted ice either...not that I am complaining. And haven't seen the sun for days...I sure grow weary of drab, dreary days. Today happens to be a lighter dreary than we have been having so at least that is a positive note. IF it will just stay this way....I might just live. LOL
ReplyDeleteWhen I got your comment I knew you had dodged the bullet and had power.Yea!! Never a disappointment when and ice storm goes somewhere else. You can exhale now and at least you are stocked up.
ReplyDeleteWe have had a week long all day fog. I feel like I woke up in a Stephen King novel.
glad you didn't get an ice storm! we've been having strange weather, but I'm so happy for the sunshine and almost 70 degree weather. :)
ReplyDeleteThe photo of the Cardinal is fantastic; so beautfiul. I am happy you didn't get the ice storm. I know that it was a great moment to enjoy being with your daughter. Yes, weather is really weird this year. They are always predicting snow here and it never comes. It's been warmer than normal. We have had a couple of snow storms but then it warms up and rains it away. But as you said the winter isn't over yet. Stay safe and warm sweet friend! Hugs~
ReplyDeleteCheryl, I think you had the best of both worlds there: the fun of the storm . . . without the storm! Hope your new week is off to a good start!
ReplyDelete