When we lived in Greensboro, I regularly engaged an excellent printing company to
create my banners for conventions, booksignings, etc., but I was overjoyed to
discover that an acquaintance of mine, Joe Martin, here in Martinsville, owns
What's Your Sign?, a nice little print shop uptown. I always prefer to buy local, so last week,
I sent my new banner design to him, and this morning, I picked up the finished product. A great job at a fair price, I must say, so I give top marks to Joe and his shop.
Far less pleasing is the weather forecast for the next few days, which calls
for substantial snow, sleet, and/or freezing rain, along with bitter cold
temperatures. A severe ice storm is the most hazardous of these, not just
because of almost certain extended power outages but because falling trees here could
be catastrophic. Several trees in the woods around our property could smash the house flat should they fall on it. That possibility
was made very clear when a tree came down in the backyard just before we moved
in here (see
"The One-Man Chainsaw Brigade, February 13, 2023"); it was a big old white ash, and it would have caused massive damage if it
hit the house. So, we are
hoping and praying to avoid any damaging nastiness from Mother Nature.
All that aside, since we don't have a generator at the moment (I've been
pricing them), and our fireplaces are old and not fit for use, an extended
power outage can be at the very least supremely unpleasant, and at worst,
downright dangerous, particularly since on Monday, the low is supposed to be
around zero degrees Fahrenheit, and this house will not hold but so much heat.
I'm a little sad, too, because Brugger is in
Asheville at an arts & crafts retreat, which she'd paid for many
moons ago, and they did not cancel or postpone it due to the coming
weather. Given the conditions that will likely linger well past the
weekend, she may be stuck out yonder a lot longer than either of us
might have expected. It's gonna be a lonely time until she gets back
home.
I did buy a new fire pit, which I put together this afternoon. If nothing
else, I can take it outside the garage and use it to cook. I did stock up on a
lot of dry firewood. It's kind of ironic that I might have to go outside in
the bitter cold just to warm up...
Anyhoo, here's hoping for a less-than-eventful winter storm.
