At Times Like This...

At times like this it feels as though we aren't far from living in a third world country.

The snow began to fall Thursday morning and right around the freezing point. It brought cities to a standstill_ schools and businesses closed and pileups on major interstate highways kept people stranded for what must have seemed a lifetime.

Snowfall continued into Friday and with increasing volume_ well over a foot of the white stuff. Then we lost power. 

Freezing light drizzle turned into rain; boughs kissed the ground, branches cracked and trees fell from the burden of the icy mass. All life form remained hidden. 

Gleditsia triacanthos "Sunburst"

my favorite Himalayan birch

 Yesterday gave promise as temperatures teasingly rose. The forecast of rain never materialized. Would it really stay above freezing? 

The EPA says we can't use our wood stove, and the county says we cannot use our wood fireplace_ any visible smoke from a chimney will result in a fine and enforcement. 38 ° F and the thaw continues, albeit slowly. 

It is too much to hope that we have power restored today?