Snow, Snow, Snow!!!!

Better late than never, say I. The following all happened at the beginning of March but really -- who is keeping track?! :-)

Snow -- copious amounts of snow -- is rather uncommon in Richmond. I mean, we get the fluffy stuff from time to time but it usually is just enough to coat the ground and within a couple hours, all traces of it are gone. However, you should see the city jump into action. Schools are closed and snow plows stand at their post ready to take action if even a flurry of snow is hinted at in the forecast. It is enough to make people (who have experience with lots of snow) shake their heads and laugh.

So, you can imagine how we laughed when, on Sunday, March 1st, we heard that Richmond was supposed to get 6-8 inches of snow by Monday morning. Our laughter turned into fits of hysteria come the late afternoon when we had not even seen the rain turn to sleet.

Ahh -- but Mother Nature had the last laugh!
It started snowing as we headed to a friend's house for dinner on Sunday. 4 hours (and several glasses of wine) later, there was some discussion as to whether we should bunk at their house that evening so we wouldn't have to drive on snow which was on top of a very nice and thick layer of ice at this point. The snow just kept coming. It was beautiful to look at and Dave and I marveled that we had not seen so much snow since we had left Flagstaff. The novelty of the whole night was exciting.

And then we got home -- to a house and a neighborhood that had lost power 3 hours prior. It was dark, it was frigid, and it was un-earthly quiet! The novelty quickly wore off as we faced a night of no heat, no hot water to wash with, and no white noise to fill the silence... plus outside temperatures of 7-9 degrees. It was a not a restful night.

Come the morning, we still had no power and we were hungry, and tired and in desperate need of caffeine. And, with the temperature in the house continuing to plummet, we decided to evacuate to Weezie's kitchen (see previous posts) for sustenance and the black brew.

It is amazing how food and drink will improve the spirits!!! With our bellies full and coffee warming the innards, we again found the novelty and magic in the situation. Earlier that morning, Dave's work had called him with news that the campus was closed due to "inclement weather". And I called in to my work as I have 56 miles to drive and having just had a medical issue, I was not willing to deal with the snow and ice and insane drivers. So -- we were able to enjoy our first "snow day" since Flagstaff!

To people from the midwest or places that receive generous amounts of snow, the snow in these pictures may not look like a lot. But let me tell you -- it was enough to bring the city to a screeching halt. I took a ruler out in the afternoon and found that we had received 11 inches in our backyard.
I had to take a picture of the lamppost as it reminded me of the lamppost in Narnia (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe). I expected to see Mr. Tumnus at any moment.

Our bulbs had just started to poke through the ground. We still had a good showing but I think the tulips this year were greatly affected by this late batch of snow.

After our breakfast, we returned to the house with hopes that the power was back but it was not to be. This started to become a dire situation for one of our pets. The temperature in the house was a brisk 39 degrees (outside it was 12 degrees) and we could see our breath in the living room. I wasn't too worried about the dogs or the cats but Dave became extremely worried about the snake. Being a reptile, he cannot regulate his temperature and the gauge in his tank read a chilly 41 degrees. He was unresponsive and hard to the touch when Dave tried to provoke him and it became apparent that we needed to get him out as quickly as possible. Dave was convinced that the snake had maybe an hour or two left to live.

So, we evacuated again -- this time with the snake in his carrying case -- and returned to our friends' house where we had been the night before. They had power and even if they lost it, they had a wood stove for heat. We crashed there for the afternoon and when we returned to the house in the evening, found that the power had returned!!

So -- as we entered March, we counted our blessings for good friends (who allow snakes into their home -- not everyone would do this), HEAT, hot water, power in general, and the ability to see magic in magical, if not trying, circumstances!!