Janet got groceries today and brought home extra blankets from the storage warehouse. I started the gasoline generator to make sure it worked properly and made sure the smaller solar generator is fully charged. I started my car to make sure the battery was good, but didn't leave the driveway. I don't plan on going anywhere until this winter storm is over. Northerners probably think this is overkill, but ice storms have a way of knocking Dallas out cold. We just aren't prepared for stuff like this. Everyone who has lived here a while has memories of a bad ice storm and nobody wants another one.
We got an early start this morning in anticipation of what was coming. Dawn's sunrise walk was actually the warmest it was going to be all day. I took my long walk right after breakfast and I could feel the cold front arriving. I dressed warmly though and I was fine. I pretty much had the park to myself today. Everyone else was probably out emptying the shelves at every grocery store in town. The empty park turned out to be good for me though. I ended up seeing both eagles today. I saw the female in her nest and the male was sitting atop a nearby tree looking for food. I even had my camera with me. My pictures are definitely getting better. I was pretty pleased with today's results.
The rest of the day was fairly uneventful. I've got the pumps on the roof running to try and get as much water off the roof as possible before everything freezes. Janet and I both did our laundry so we wouldn't have a big pile of dirty clothes if the power goes out. I need to remind myself that this is only a two day event. The freeing rain should stop by tomorrow morning and Friday should just be very cold. By Saturday afternoon, Dallas should be back to normal again. I don't think everyone is nearly as worried about the weather as they are about the power company's inept response to freezing temperatures. We're pretty good at keeping cool in the Summer. Not so good at keeping warm in the Winter.
Dawn definitely won't be getting a sunrise walk tomorrow morning. I won't be taking my long walk either. I may be foolish but I'm not an idiot. An old guy who has balance issues has no business walking on ice. It's kind of a shame that my long streak of 20,000 step days will be broken. Despite the foot pain, I was really making progress.
I guess I've done everything I can get prepared for something that still may turn out to be a non-event. Better safe than sorry though. Just about the only thing I hate worse than cold weather is ice. Ice is something you should put in your drinks. It definitely shouldn't be toppling trees, bringing down power lines, and coating the roads. Forget everything I ever said about hot Texas summers. Texas winters are even worse.
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