Recent weather event brought a particularly evil nor’easter to the area last week. I wasn’t too worried. There was no place I had to be, had food in the house and was reasonably warm and comfortable.
The storm began in a fairly wimpy style. Some rain, a bit of wind and this let many people wonder about the ferocious weather forecasted. But that was all a ploy. Once people had gotten to their workplaces, lulled by the temperate start of the storm, all hell broke loose and snow fell at an amazing rate. The heavy, wet snow clung to branches and wires. It was very pretty actually until the wires and branches started coming down!
Folks were now stuck at work. Many socially conscious places closed early, but the ride was still treacherous. It turned a 15 minute trip into a 45 minute nail biter. The snow kept coming.
By 3:45pm, the lights flickered their last flicker, and hubby and I sat in stunned darkness. Stupid ideas kicked in. You know the ones where you know the power is out but you still hit the light switch when you go into a room? The thought that if you can’t watch tv, I’ll just read (but without a light source the book is just a blur to these old eyes ). The candles in the jars and hurricane lamps look sort of pretty as the mesmerize you for a bit.
Sandwiches became dinner as the planned meal died slowly in the crockpot. The whole time, I am optimistic that the lights will pop on at any second.
Reality sets in. I need to keep warm and my fridge needs to keep cold. A couple of hours into the darkness, the hubby sets about to fire up the generator ( grumbling and using interesting words as the generator makes its maiden voyage) As it kicks on, we are once again illuminated. The refrigerator is humming happily. And the fan for the hot air is pushing warmth around like a bully on the playground.
I guess I’m not so much of a old time-y type of person. I like the amenities that that modern life provides. At some point, I got over camping and now “roughing it” involves a hotel with less than three stars.
For five hours, our neighborhood sat in the quiet of storm. You could hear the trees crack, some brave soul’s shovel scooping the snow from the walkway and the rest was…well…quiet. Suddenly, the lights came on. Some poor lineman had successfully come to the rescue of 2,000 some people. Generator off and life returns to normal. For us. Some folks dealt with the cold and dark for days as the electric company scrambled to restore their grid.
Angels came out of hiding. Senior Centers opened to provide warm havens with recharging stations to anyone who needed to come. Neighbors helped neighbors shovel the first layers of the storm from driveways, sidewalks and in some cases rooftops. Stuck cars were pushed by strangers lending a hand.
Sometimes, it takes the darkness to see the angels.