The Weather and Other Stuff

All day I have been stifling an urge to write. Instead I have been trying to catch up with making comments on other people's posts. There are so many great Gather people out there who make really great comments. I can think up a lot of things to write about, but I depend on my Gather friends to fill in the parts I don't know much about. They have been doing a wonderful job at that lately, and deserve some attention by me to what they write. With my snail's pace landline connection that takes a lot of time and patience. I've got the time but not the patience.

The weather is foremost on my mind as the wind rises on a cold gray wintry day here in the mountains east of San Diego. The underworked weathermen of our TV channels predict at least a week of RAIN (Hurrah!) for the western slopes of the mountains here. Since I live just over the crest about two miles east of the mountains, it's likely that we are finally going to get some badly needed rain and even snow down to 3000 feet. I live at about 4100 feet so I guess we are likely to get snow here at the Indian horse camp.

Today is quite a contrast after a mostly sunny, warm day yesterday,. The temperature is down in the low 40s or even 30 degrees, and the wind has been rising all day. It is probably about 25 mph now with stronger gusts, and it is supposed go to 50 mph. That makes for dangerous driving on the east/west freeway I-8 that passes through about five miles away from here. The Highway Patrol often stops traffic when the wind is that strong. The 25 huge new windmill generators that were erected on the hill above me are testimony to the strong winds that blow much of the time up here.

That pesky wind manages to find every little opening around the louvered windows of my trailer, and it is getting cold here in this trailer. This morning I took a roll of duct tape out and re-patched places where I thought the wind was coming in. If the electricity goes out, as it did a couple of days ago, I'm going back to bed with all my cats nestled around me until it comes back on.

I know I'm a sissy these days. I listen to the weather channel on TV and I know about the terrible snow and ice storms back east. I hate it that so many trees are knocked down by the weight of ice on their branches. I came from Connecticut and sometimes I used to help my father deliver bottled milk in six-pack carriers when snow and ice storms made it impossible for our regular man to do the job alone. I can remember when our delivery truck was the first vehicle to blast its way through snowdrifts, and when ice-laden branches broke off just behind our pickup after we had passed by.

I also lived through a couple of winters in Grand Forks North Dakota where I walked to work at Armour's Meatpacking Co. I was all ready to start walking one morning when my savvy mother-in-law stopped me and made me call a cab. It was colder than minus 40 degrees. I didn't know any better.

The weather here is almost balmy compared to those times. But I am spoiled after living most of my live in the warmer climes of Navy aircraft carrier homeports like Norfolk, Jacksonville and San Diego. Also neither my wardrobe nor my heaters are designed for really long-term cold weather. When we get a snowstorm, it might look like a North Dakota blizzard for a while, but you can count on it being melted away in just a few days.

Whatever this storm brings, I think I am prepared for it. I stocked up on supplies, did my laundry and dug out my warmest clothes and blankets. Today I cooked a little roast of beef with plenty of garlic cloves on it, and carrots, potatoes and onions on the side. It sure smells good in here. I found some chocolate cake and coffee ice cream in the fridge for dessert. I opened a new bag of cat food, brought in plenty of dog food, and my cats, dogs and I should be fine.

Before it gets dark I will bundle up and take some dog food out for Zelda the Coyote, and some vegetable peelings and lettuce leaves to put near some rabbit holes.

I hope things are not too bad where you are.