Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
24 November 2011
10 November 2011
After Alfred
I just wanted to check in and report that I am still alive and kicking. And with power restored after two bouts of week-plus outages in Connecticut courtesy of Hurricane Irene in September and what they're calling Storm Alfred last week, I hope to be able to more regularly click on some pixels to make sure my blog is being fed and watered.
After all the to-do about this latest storm, what more can I add? Do I have to ream Connecticut Light and Power (CL&P / Crooks, Looters & Plunderers) over how they've failed to properly cut trees away from major transmission lines and roadside power lines... and how, with stronger storms and faster growing trees, we should be burying our power lines to avoid these major events? Do I have to lament how we had to make do with flushing the toilet with water bailed from the lake in the backyard? Must I again be thankful that we were able to make it through a lot better than others because of some better preparedness and home upkeep choices made over the years? Well, I'm definitely not going to tell you that we were able to provide some help to a few neighbors who were left in the 26-degree cold (spare generator and a couple of oil-filled radiators) and with tree damage --- some with 30-foot oak branches strewn in yards and in the road.
As you might have read, the problem with the early snow (we got about 7 to 8 inches in our little spot in northeast Connecticut) was that it accumulated on the leaves that hadn't fallen, increasing the snow load beyond what some trees could take. As the adage goes, the branch that does not bend must break. Many types of trees had already shed all their leaves, but this was a particular problem among weaker evergreens and oaks, which tend to hang on to their leaves and drop little by little, just enough to drive compulsive yard rakers crazy. A red oak in our yard sometimes keeps its leaves, brown, withered and sere, into March. Combine this with CL&P and homeowners not adequately trimming or cutting trees near power lines, and it's the recipe for the mess we were in. And so, when branches (and in some cases whole trees) fell, they did their damage. For sure, there will be a Lessons Learned approach after this latest storm. Or at least one hopes there will be; there doesn't seem to have been one after Irene.... Two weeks out of two months where large sections of the state have been without power isn't acceptable for a modern economy. This storm will be the death knell for some businesses and make it tough on people who had to spend money on hotels just to keep warm, generators and fuel, and have to replace food lost to spoilage. The power grid is not an area where we can continue to cut corners and bet that these so-called "once in a century" storms won't keep happening year after year.
The Romans said that pride goeth before the fall, and if you knew how I pride myself on keeping a clean home you'll know that last week was a little painful. We don't have the latest and greatest, nor do we need it or even want it much of the time, but what we do have is clean. Even with a dog that sheds like the Dickens and does a full-body shake-out probably 20 times a day. I was able to keep my head above water --- barely --- with regard to vacuuming and dishes with the generator power, but there are a lot of things left to catch up on, not least of which is the laundry. Since we got power back on Monday afternoon I've gotten three loads in and there's probably eight to go. Not looking forward to that, let me tell you....
But enough grumbling. We live in Connecticut and are used to having to put up with wacky weather and the destruction it can bring. You have to try to keep calm and survive this with grace.
After all the to-do about this latest storm, what more can I add? Do I have to ream Connecticut Light and Power (CL&P / Crooks, Looters & Plunderers) over how they've failed to properly cut trees away from major transmission lines and roadside power lines... and how, with stronger storms and faster growing trees, we should be burying our power lines to avoid these major events? Do I have to lament how we had to make do with flushing the toilet with water bailed from the lake in the backyard? Must I again be thankful that we were able to make it through a lot better than others because of some better preparedness and home upkeep choices made over the years? Well, I'm definitely not going to tell you that we were able to provide some help to a few neighbors who were left in the 26-degree cold (spare generator and a couple of oil-filled radiators) and with tree damage --- some with 30-foot oak branches strewn in yards and in the road.
As you might have read, the problem with the early snow (we got about 7 to 8 inches in our little spot in northeast Connecticut) was that it accumulated on the leaves that hadn't fallen, increasing the snow load beyond what some trees could take. As the adage goes, the branch that does not bend must break. Many types of trees had already shed all their leaves, but this was a particular problem among weaker evergreens and oaks, which tend to hang on to their leaves and drop little by little, just enough to drive compulsive yard rakers crazy. A red oak in our yard sometimes keeps its leaves, brown, withered and sere, into March. Combine this with CL&P and homeowners not adequately trimming or cutting trees near power lines, and it's the recipe for the mess we were in. And so, when branches (and in some cases whole trees) fell, they did their damage. For sure, there will be a Lessons Learned approach after this latest storm. Or at least one hopes there will be; there doesn't seem to have been one after Irene.... Two weeks out of two months where large sections of the state have been without power isn't acceptable for a modern economy. This storm will be the death knell for some businesses and make it tough on people who had to spend money on hotels just to keep warm, generators and fuel, and have to replace food lost to spoilage. The power grid is not an area where we can continue to cut corners and bet that these so-called "once in a century" storms won't keep happening year after year.
The Romans said that pride goeth before the fall, and if you knew how I pride myself on keeping a clean home you'll know that last week was a little painful. We don't have the latest and greatest, nor do we need it or even want it much of the time, but what we do have is clean. Even with a dog that sheds like the Dickens and does a full-body shake-out probably 20 times a day. I was able to keep my head above water --- barely --- with regard to vacuuming and dishes with the generator power, but there are a lot of things left to catch up on, not least of which is the laundry. Since we got power back on Monday afternoon I've gotten three loads in and there's probably eight to go. Not looking forward to that, let me tell you....
But enough grumbling. We live in Connecticut and are used to having to put up with wacky weather and the destruction it can bring. You have to try to keep calm and survive this with grace.
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