The whole generator thing...... That just kinda happened. Its been on my list for a long time, but money was tight. So no, I wasnt prepped to deal with a generator. Just about everything else though, we are good.
This isnt a typical scenario for us down here, so it caught me a might off guard.
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Theres more to the story, obviously, since that was yesterday. This is today. It gets better
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understood. it's like here, we/i can only be prepped for things in the norm. this weather you guys are having isn't normal. i grew up in Indiana and nothing like this happened.
"Ya need a hug, or a twinkee? Wait..forget the twinkie". - Dropy
"I'll be in my bunk" Jayne Cobb
'Catch, sauté, and release...' Sniper-T
'Always smile... it makes people wonder what the fuck you are thinking!' Sniper-T
Body Armor is not bullet proof, it is only bullet resistant.* Learn to become strictly a head hunter.*
'All I really needed was a hug'............ Domeguy
you're not putting the kids through anything... You're having an adventure. make it a fun life lesson!
It's always the unexpected in life, that challenge our preparedness. It's easy to plan for the expected... It's a challenge to plan for that... AND the unexpected together!
All of you down in this ice storm shit, if you cannot justify tire chains... look into tire studs. fraction of the cost, install and un-install with a drill, and go anywhere. I got buckets full of them, for my quad, sled, truck and wife's car!
eta...
next time you're at wally's look for these:
http://www.amazon.ca/Zodiac-Chafing-...s=chafing+fuel
chafing pot fuel. no one thinks of them, and they generate stupid amounts of heat. set up a secure place with three pots down in a tripod, with one of these in the center. place your heaviest cast iron pot on top and it will heat up and generate more heat than any flam alone. plus you can cook with them.
they come in 2, 4, 6 and 8 hour varieties. Once live hits normal, you can get them at any restaurant supply place for 1/2 wally price!
Give a man fire, and he'll be warm for a day!
Light a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life!
Cat's are food... not friends!
If you're going to fight, then fight like you're the third monkey on the ramp into Noah's arc... and brother, it's starting to rain.
He said it gets better. I'm waiting to hear how many shots he took v. how many wins the dog made
Consilio et animis
Essayons!
Good write up Izzy! So sorry things have went down hill so quickly.
Several comments about the weather not being normal, this is only the third time I remember having ice and it has never been this bad. We have lots of evergreen trees in this area. The ice just builds up and keeps building. The evergreens are not what I would call a strong tree, so at some point limbs and trunks just snap and take down anything in their path.
One thing that stands out, the dog has been a huge plus. Also good call on putting the buckets of snow in the freezer.
Day 3
23 Feb
I awoke around 4AM to a ruckus out back. Knowing that the back patio was mostly ice and that I would break my spine going out the back door, I grabbed my pistol and headed out the front. So did Recce.
For those of you that don't know, Recce is my almost 2 year old Dutch Shepherd. She is right at 52 pounds of solid, lightning fast muscle. She is my search and rescue dog, as well as my PTSD service dog, in addition to being the family's giant furry baby. She is highly protective and very high drive. In training, don't have a tug toy around. She is exceptionally agile and hits like a freight train.
Needless to say, she's much faster than I am, especially when my big ass is trying to navigate fallen timber, ice, and snow.
She made it out back first. I'm still in the front yard.
That's when I heard it. The long scream that sounded like someone was losing some genitalia. That was followed by lots of profanity. Without thinking about it, I yelled "Aus!", giving her the signal to release. Dude took off through the woods. There was a pretty decent blood trail, so she really got a hold of him. I called the Sheriff on his personal cell to let him know. He farms the lot next to me, so I keep an eye on that for him. He told me to give him a call back if I need a meatwagon. Roger that.
I go back in the house and don't miss a beat getting some sleep.
I started breakfast at 0900. I'm feeling lazy, so I just decided to do Mountain House scrambled eggs with bacon.
By now, we've fallen into a routine...... Fix food, eat food, perform kitchen sanitization, personal hygiene, top of generator, repeat the whole process. Before lunch, I go into town to replenish the fuel we've used. I want to keep the fuel in the mower and my other car in reserve.
My FIL has to go to work since he's been out for over a week now. He and my MIL managed to secure a hotel room for a few days a few towns over. We decided that my wife and kids will stay at the hotel with my mother in law. This gives them the chance to get warm, take baths, etc.
I've opted to stay at the house, to keep an eye on the water pipes and prevent any further attempted shenanigans. My father in law will be doing the same, returning to their residence.
They came by to pick up my family, and knowing the heating situation at their place, I augmented him with extra propane bottles for the stove I gave him, a spare military sleep system, and one of my Level 7 army "puffy suits". He will sweat his balls of in that suit, so needless to say, they are good and warm. They are made from the same stuff the sleeping bag is with primaloft insulation. At least I know he won't freeze.
Later this afternoon, Bacpacker and his awesome wife did me a solid, swinging by to check on me. They brought with them some extra gas cans to augment my own, extra fuel cans for the backpacking stove that I've been cooking with, and a chain and padlock for the generator. While I'm confident my supplies may have been adequate, having extra really gives some peace of mind.
Before he left, BP was gracious enough to pull out the chainsaw and help me remove debris and downed branches from the driveway and around the house. My gratitude cannot be expressed.
After they left, I used the chain to secure the generator to my grill and patio table. I then cleared all the snow, leaving only the ice on the back patio. It's like a skating rink now. I cleared and salted only a small path from the door to the generator, so I wouldn't die refilling it tonight. Let's see some asshat try to get it now.....
I made myself a pot of hot water for tea, then I pulled out some boneless ribs from the freezer and threw them in a pot on the backpacking stove. Seasoned them with a pack of dry ranch dip. They're quite tasty.
I pulled a few out for me, then gave the rest to Recce. She's earned it today. We enjoyed our meal in the livingroom in front of a heater.
WARNING: This post may contain material offensive to those who lack wit, humor, common sense and/or supporting factual or anecdotal evidence. All statements and assertions contained herein may be subject to but not limited to: irony, metaphor, allusion and dripping sarcasm.
I think you guys are up to speed now.
WARNING: This post may contain material offensive to those who lack wit, humor, common sense and/or supporting factual or anecdotal evidence. All statements and assertions contained herein may be subject to but not limited to: irony, metaphor, allusion and dripping sarcasm.
That guy may be back, turds like that don't learn lessons very fast, and he'll have it out for you if he does return. I feel sorry for him.
Common sense is so rare these days, it should be re-classified as a super power.
According to the power company, it looks like several more days before we are up and running. My in laws will not have power for at least another week.
WARNING: This post may contain material offensive to those who lack wit, humor, common sense and/or supporting factual or anecdotal evidence. All statements and assertions contained herein may be subject to but not limited to: irony, metaphor, allusion and dripping sarcasm.
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