Snow Came Early

We usually don't get any snow until after the new year, but we got a good 4-6 inches on December 18th and Collinsville Road right in front of our house was particularly treacherous. The ice pellets and freezing rain did make for some good sledding though! We'll see if there's any more in store for us this winter.



The chickens (including some new pullets) didn't care for cold feet and stuck mainly to a few paths that we shoveled clear for them so they could travel from coop to shelter and back. Needless to say, the days following the snowfall were a muddy mess. The good news is that egg production is picking up again after a long moult, and we are now getting around a dozen a day.

No Traction Means Need for Tractor

We've been getting more rain recently. It serves to replenish underground water sources, rejuvenate flora, reduce dust and generally cool things off (Dionne read 107 degrees Fahrenheit in the Suburban's thermometer the other day!). But it also creates a serious lack of traction for construction vehicles on our home site. The ground quickly turns to a slippery red mud and we've had several victims so far including the siding installers and their trailer, and then our project leader John. It sounded as if another party that got stuck (two vehicles besides John's yesterday), I think it may have been the roofer or possibly the siding material delivery truck. On a side note, the structural engineer with his 4 wheel drive Isuzu Trooper made it through just fine. We may want to consider 4 wheel drive for our next vehicle. Anyway, in some cases, we've been able to use spare wood to wedge under the tires. In the case of larger vehicles, we've twice had to call upon our neighbor, Tom Black, who owns a tractor. For his assistance in towing out stranded vehicles, Tom earned himself a case of Milwaukee's Best and a promise to donate some crush-and-run to his back driveway (which is scheduled to be installed tomorrow). Never thought I'd say this, but I can't wait to get my own tractor! Concrete pour scheduled for today has been delayed until Friday or Monday depending on driveway completion.

It Huffed and It Puffed...

Some surprise weather came through the southeast this past weekend and a lot of the preliminary arrangement of our basement ICF panels was undone by the winds of Mother Nature.




We were luckier, however, than other areas of North Carolina that were stricken by full-blown tornadoes and even fatalities. By Tuesday, Chris and Richard were able to rebuild the basement walls and reinforce them with the wood planks across the top edges. Note: The only wall that remained after the strong winds was the one that was already braced. All windows in the basement have been temporarily framed and next up is the pouring of cement into the ICFs starting at the corners since the 90-degree angle can be a problem for adequate concrete flow.

Here Comes Winter (Like It or Not)

Being the Floridians that we are, we've been looking forward to some real winter weather since we moved up to the Carolinas in 2005. There was a dusting of snow last year, but we still felt kind of cheated out of the whole winter experience. Dionne's weather alert radio (every good survivalist should have one) went off this morning with the following report:

Statement as of 4:52 AM EST on January 16, 2008

...Winter weather will affect the region Wednesday night and
Thursday...

...Winter Storm Warning in effect from 7 PM this evening to 7 PM EST Thursday...Winter Storm Watch no longer in effect...

The National Weather Service in Greenville-Spartanburg has upgraded the Winter Storm Watch to a Winter Storm Warning...which is in effect from 7 PM this evening to 7 PM EST Thursday.

A band of moderate to heavy snow and sleet is forecast to move north over the mountains and foothills late this evening into the early morning hours of Thursday. This band will likely result in a quick accumulation of one to two inches of snow and sleet across eastern slopes of the mountains and adjacent foothills. A rapid transition to sleet and freezing rain will then follow during the early morning hours Thursday. An additional inch or two of snow is possible...mainly at higher elevations in and near the mountains. Freezing rain will then fall for much of the morning before temperatures warm to a few degrees above freezing. Where temperatures stay below freezing the longest...up to a quarter inch of ice accumulation is possible.

The timing of the wintry precipitation will likely lead to significant travel problems across the warned area Thursday morning. Ice accumulations around a quarter of an inch may result in some trees and power lines to fall...blocking roads and leading to scattered power outages.

A Winter Storm Warning means significant amounts of snow...sleet...and ice are expected or occurring. Strong winds are also possible. This will make travel very hazardous or impossible.

The rest of the day will be spent running around like ants before a rainstorm, making sure we've got supplies for both us and the animals in case there is a power outage and icy roads make travel (escape) too hazardous.