Disruptions

My day is discombobulated, dear reader. Yesterday, we had a severe storm roll through the area. It left us without power from approximately 2 p.m. yesterday until 8 a.m. this morning. For the first time, I was afraid of Mother Nature. The storm that blew through the area felt ominous and disconcerting. Our phones went off, telling us to seek cover in basements or a room on a lower level without any windows. The Bibbed Wonder cracked the windows because he feared they might shatter due to the winds. Garbage cans went sailing, trees were downed, and the power was lost. It was a long night.

We took The Bean into GramBarb's house so she could shower for school. We stocked up on bottled water and charged our phones. However, we awoke this morning with still no power, downed trees that had not been cleared from roadways, and a two-hour delay for Jordan's school. The two-hour delay eventually led to a complete cancellation of classes for the day. The Bean was thrilled and bounced around like a happy little balloon all day. Having her home disrupted our routine, and lacking power has put me off schedule.

It feels like a Sunday with everyone at home and a lack of routine. I just remembered that I needed to write my blog. If I'm being honest, The Bibbed Wonder messaged me, reminding me to write my blog. So, here I am writing to you at 1:30 in the afternoon. I apologize for the delay and disruption.

I am happy to share that all is well. The goats are safe and sound, the chickens are all doing well, and the geese seem no worse for the wear. A tree was down across our road. I haven't walked the fields yet to see if we have any trees down on the property, but I'm sure there are a few. The storm carried in a cold front I could have done without. The Heavy-B and I will walk the fields a little later, checking for storm damage. It was quite the event in our quiet little lives.

Extended power outages remind me just how reliant we are on electricity. When it was daylight, we sat and played board games for entertainment. I had a houseful of company yesterday, so the time passed quickly. Eric cooked a large turkey in the smoker. Fortunately, I had made all the accompanying dishes before we lost power. However, time crawled once the sun went down, leaving us in the dark. Going into GB's broke up the boredom a bit. However, once we returned home, we went to bed almost immediately. Of course, I awoke at 3 a.m. and could not fall asleep. It was a very long morning.

Before going to bed, we called to check on the outage status. We were informed that power would be restored by 6 a.m. However, upon checking the status at 6 a.m., we were informed that the power would not be restored until 9:30 a.m. I guess the silver lining is that it was not 9:30 p.m. I don't know why the power being out overnight is so inconvenient. Theoretically, it should not bother one when one is sleeping. However, waking up to complete darkness feels foreign, with everything still and silent.

On the plus side, the peeper frogs are peeping their little hearts out. Eric took an unsettling video of worms diving back into the earth, trying to escape the flood of light from the flashlight. I could have gone without seeing that. Lucky for you, he posted it on Facebook and Instagram. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it for a good case of the heebie-jeebies. My chickens are thrilled with the worm buffet. Nature really is an amazing and awe-inspiring force.

So, this Monday afternoon, stay safe, be smart, respect Mother Nature, and keep washing your hands.