Spring has SPRUNG!!!!!

What did I say in my previous post about Spring???Well old Mother Nature had a change of heart. We had our big Snow of the Winter after the first day of Spring. Nothing is set in stone in the Oklahoma Panhandle. The weather can change in a heartbeat and YOU BETTER BE READY!!! The weather man said it could happen, but we had only had 2 inches of snow all winter so I was skeptical about the whole thing. On Thursday as the clouds rolled in I decided it was time to move a good amount of wood to the front porch on the east side of the house. This was to protect it from the snow and have it handy to the front door. I also put some in the shop and had an ample amount in the house. That done, I thought I maybe should draw some water up just in case the electricity went off. Our water supply comes from an electric pump and I didn't want to take any chances. I filled every empty container, filled the bathtub(for use to flush the stool) and braced for the storm.

When I went to bed Thursday night about 11:30, it was raining. Not good!! Rain freezes on lines and that causes problems. I also think that i see the trees whipping about in the yard light. Well, maybe it will just be rain, after all it was almost 80 degrees just two days ago.

The Rancher gets up at 5:30 on Friday morning, goes to the bathroom and gets back in bed. Just a little sleet outside, He says. At 5:50, I get up and head for my morning business. NO LIGHT!!! What has happened here. Did you have Lights. I asked the Rancher. Of course, he did. They had just gone off. I went to the window and couldn't see lights anywhere on the horizon that I have a clear view for 13 miles. Maybe it was because it was snowing and blowing so much but it was also because THERE WERE NONE. NOT A ONE FROM BUFFALO TO WHO KNOWS WHERE. Certainly none in our desolate area. They will be on eventually, Rancher assures me. So was our plot. For over 72 hours. Thank goodness the snow only lasted for two days but the wind continued. We had snow drifts up to the eaves of the barn and the wood pile at the front door, protected from the storm was completely covered. Worse yet, WE COULD NOT GET OUT THE FRONT DOOR.

I did get the tarp off the wood pile and burned wood until this morning. Through this time of power surges , the capacitator on the heating unit, freezer, and the icemaker of the Frig went out. We also lost the TV and satelitte receiver.

The rancher and son, had a lot of hard work feeding cattle on the tractors, and getting them to water. We praise electric pumps with timers, but when the weather goes sour, there is nothing like a good old windmill. They are still finding cattle that didn't make it out of the drifts, and I am sure others are too.

My heroes of the day are the dedicated linemen who worked in the blizzard and through out the day and night repairing the lines and replacing poles, also the men who spent many hours opening roads of 7 and 8 foot drifts. I have heard reports of 20 drifts on the highway west of home. I also am thankful for the local repairman who came this morning and fixed what he could and will bring out a new one of what he can't. (Sears will be sending one for my freezer full of food in about a week.) I told them to forget it, and that I wouldn't be back to do business with them even with my warranty. I also am thankful that I had a good insurance policy. Most of all I thank God for the wonderful moisture on the arid land and for keeping everyone safe.

Now if we can just get on with SPRING!!!