We lost power to the house at 7:30 AM, just after posting this morning's blog post.
Trees are down everywhere in my area, we have lost several trees on our property – luckily nothing hit vehicles or the house. There are many powerlines down due to falling trees.
We are some of the lucky ones – we have a wood stove insert in our fireplace.
We have treadle machines and hand-cranks and lots of fabric –
There are lots of recycled shirts to cut up with scissors that require no electricity or ironing.
We have had to run and get ice for the coolers to keep the contents of the fridge and freezer safe.
We have a gas grill that may be cooking us burgers tonight.
As I watch the daylight ebbing its way towards twilight, I know it will be an early night to bed – and I feel powerless without power.
We have some kerosene lanterns, but the light is not bright enough to read by or to stitch by.
We have talked about those Quilters past, and marveled at all they were able to accomplish in homes without electricity, working by the light of a window or the dimmer light of the kerosene lanterns.
There are plenty of quilts to keep us warm tonight and we have plenty of firewood to keep the fire going in the living room.
And no matter how cozy it sounds, you can bet I am hoping that they get the power on as quickly as possible!
Sending this by phone as my laptop battery is about dead, and this is quicker.
If you don't hear from us for a while, you will know why. 
Please keep us in your thoughts –
Bonnie and Tonya
so hope you get your power back soon - this winter has been the pits all over the place - at least you have a heat source and cooking even if it is on the grill. When that happens to use we run extension cords from the generator and have the fireplace fan going and plug in an electric skillet to cook or use the campstove!
ReplyDeleteSending good thoughts your way!
ReplyDeleteI think about those early pioneers of quilting too when the power goes out. It is amazing what they accomplished. Hope your power comes back soon.
ReplyDeleteHoly Smokes! Would love to have you come visit sunny Southern California right now - we will see almost 80 degree weather this weekend.
ReplyDeleteStay warm and safe!
Reminds me our our ice storm in Southwest Missouri in Jan 2007. We were without power for 8 days. My niece for 13 days. No fun at all.
ReplyDeleteIn December some of us here in Lansing had 11 days without power. Hope your city is better at emergency planning.
ReplyDeleteI'm really shocked to read about your winter. I live in Norway, close to the North Pole, and we haven't had any snow this winter. It's between +5 and +10 degrees Celsius. The flowers are blooming already, and the trees are starting to look green. Strange. Hope you get better weather soon!
ReplyDeleteStay safe! Been there/done that WAY too many times in the last few years. Hope they can get the power back on quickly for you. I would have made a lousy pioneer!
ReplyDeleteGo to Home Depot or Lowe's. . .or even Kohl's. . .and get the LED lanterns that run by battery.
ReplyDeleteThe ones that DH & I gave as gifts for Christmas look like old fashioned wick lanterns but the light they put out is really, really bright.
We made sure to get one for ourselves since we have lost power quite a few times in the past year.
Hope you have had a good time.
So sorry about your weather! Wish I could bottle up some of our Nevada sunshine and send it to you--but then the UPS guy couldn't deliver it!
ReplyDeleteOh, well, at least we quilters know how to make do without electricity!
I wish I couls sent you a little Sunshine from here in The Netherlands. I hope you and Tanya will be safe. I'm thinking of you.
ReplyDeleteHope everything is OK at the cabin too - no trees where they shouldn't be!
ReplyDeleteYears ago when I lived in Kansas City, MO there was an ice storm of epic proportions. Parts of the area were without power for two weeks. My daughter, who was just three at the time, and I had moved from California just a few months prior. We went to bed in the dark, and of course we had no heat because although the furnace was gas powered, the blower on the furnace needed electricity. Into bed we went together for warmth with every blanket and quilt I could lay my hands on. In the morning, little Madeline poked her nose out from under the covers to discover it was still cold in the house. She began crying and asked, "Can we go back to California?"
ReplyDeleteHere's hoping you have power soon.
Trees down causes lots of electrial troubles. Sorry you have to Rough it with the Treadles and fireplace. Tonya is safe a warm there keeping you company, Hope the power comes on soon!
ReplyDeleteLed lanterns and especially headlamps in the camping dept work for me...can sew and use them to fix thing hands free..just great!
ReplyDeleteSorry that you are without electricity. We take it so granted until it is gone. You definitely have my sympathy on the lack of electricity. Pretend you are out camping - you've got a nice "tent" and "sleeping bags" with a great "campfire" to keep you warm and to cook your food. Just be glad you didn't have any trees come down on the house. Hope your electricity is back on soon.
ReplyDeleteoh my, Bonnie!! Keep warm and safe!
ReplyDeleteStorms make me feel cozy and warm inside EXCEPT when the power goes off....then it is NO fun at all.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about the weather and no power. Sending some southern love your way hope it finds you safe and warm!
ReplyDeleteThe ice on our heat pump is about 3" thick. we had to shut it off b/c no air could get in and the fan was running. so we have it on emergency heat now until the heat pump melts. never had that happen before, but it sure did rain all day and all last night really hard. surprised the streets are frozen over.
ReplyDeleteGood and positive thoughts are being sent You all might to get a gas generator for these times. Hurricane, and storms, mean each household should have one 'in case'.
ReplyDeleteMaybe you can catch up on sleep? The morning will give you light. Boy, how true it is those pre-electricity homes was Early to bed and Early to rise!!!!
Hugs
.... can you use your car to charge your phone?
JulieinTN
Good and positive thoughts are being sent You all might to get a gas generator for these times. Hurricane, and storms, mean each household should have one 'in case'.
ReplyDeleteMaybe you can catch up on sleep? The morning will give you light. Boy, how true it is those pre-electricity homes was Early to bed and Early to rise!!!!
Hugs
.... can you use your car to charge your phone?
JulieinTN
Sounds like you are having the weather we just got over a few weeks ago. Hope your power comes back sooner than mine did. (it was 5 days off) Sending warm positive vibes your way.
ReplyDeleteOur trees looked liked that two days before Christmas 2013. Ice rained down across MI and we had over 650,000 people without power. I truly hope your ice storm affected fewer people and that you thaw out quickly as to not hurt the trees and plants! We were lucky and only without power for a day and a half. Others were without for 8 days. It is a wake up as to how much we depend on electricity.
ReplyDeletePlease don't go out unless it's really safe to drive the roads. Hunker, treadle, crank...rinse and repeat! Hope you warm up & melt soon!
ReplyDeleteWe had ice like that earlier this year. Hoping you regain the power quickly. After the ice storm of 98 where we lost power for weeks, I went to Barnes & Nobles and purchased one of those little LED reading lights that clip onto the book.
ReplyDeleteJust think how rested you will be after going to bed early!!
I live in Evans, Ga and the ice storm that hits brought some much tree damage to the area. This has been an unusual winter. Take Care Bonnie
ReplyDeleteI have always been taken with the pioneer women and all they did. I think about all the quiet when there is no electonics on and you have to spend your time reading or hand sewing...I know they did a lot of mending and using what they had...wonder what they would think of my closet full of material!! I know now what their treadle sounded like thanks to your fun quilt cam!! I didn't know it made that sound!
ReplyDeleteBe safe and stay warm. Hope the power comes back fast! Sending up prayers for you all.
Feeling your pain. We were without power for seven weeks after Katrina. A friend of mine pieced several quilt tops by hand turning the wheel of her featherweight. You bwill persevere, I'm sure.
ReplyDeleteI'll be thinking about you. We were out of power for 10 days after our last major ice storm. The novelty gets old fast. The worst thing was hearing the loud cracks all night, when tree branches were falling all over the neighborhood. Stay strong!
ReplyDeleteCeline K.
Hope you get some power soon and that your weather gets better also. We sure are lost when we are without power and phone and all those amenities that we've grown accustomed too.
ReplyDeleteHi Bonnie & Hubby & Tonya, hope all are well and safe. Keeping you in my thoughts & prayers, enjoy the quiet while you can, sometimes no power is a gift from above.
ReplyDeleteLisa
I am feeling your pain and your loss.We are sometimes without power for up to a week.I am thankful for the beautiful warm day that we had here today. It is supposed to be cold the next 2 days, but hopefully it will not be brutal the way it was last weekend with all of the ice and snow. Come on Spring!
ReplyDeleteOver here in Cedar Mountain NC we got snow and a little sleety rain but it all melted off on Friday! Hope that's it for this winter! :) ~~Anne G
ReplyDeleteA flashlight inside a cup holder, sewn on a belt makes a great alternative for "light" when needed.
ReplyDeleteDuring a hurricane and having no lights, I hand sewed by our sliding glass door until darkness fell.
Buy metal tubs w/ lids, place them outside filled with food and use mother nature for your needed ice instead of buying ice.
A friend has to melt snow justto flush her toilets in MN.
My heart goes out to you Bonnie et al. I have never experienced weather like you are having but I hope it doesn't last long. Some of the comments above are a little disheartening - being without power for days on end!!
ReplyDeleteStay as well as you can do in the circumstances and I look forward to hearing from you as and when.
Linda
Hope you are warm and cozy. You are right about being so lucky to have a fireplace insert. We lived through an ice storm about 20 years ago where the power was out for 3 days, then after it was on for 12 hours it was out again for 3 more days. At one point the neighbors across the street had power and we did not. Our kids remember it fondly. We cooked everything in the freezer because it was thawing. Lots of steak, burgers, and chicken. We had big potluck suppers with our neighbors. We were glad for a gas hot water heater for warm showers.
ReplyDeletewe have candles with oldfashioned "blakers",slightly parabolic mirrors that amplify the light. you can stack these behind kerosene lamps as well, that's how it was done some ages ago!
ReplyDeletewe naft stoves to cook on, and are planning solid fuel range and heaters for the living room, to get the spirit of this house, founded in 1866, back.
and yes, we are tucking in when sun downs more or less, that's about ten at night.... to rise when the blackbirds are calling at 6 am.
moving from amsterdam to witmarsum changed our lives in so many ways, and we are very happy with it.
but thisd year didn't giove us icicles, so maybe we are in for a surprise next year!
love from witmarsum, friesland.
Irene
Hate losing power because the house gets so cold fast. Last failure was 19 hours but I could play (I am a miniaturist) with the daylight but no coffee was tough. Before that the last power failure was the big Ice storm about 10 or so years ago. Mom was evacuated to an old folks home for two weeks, my daughter lost power for about 6 days and the army got called in to help remove the damaged and downed trees.
ReplyDeleteLinda in Montreal
Oh it's just like camping.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the simple life and relax.
Take time out to enjoy the simpler things in life
Oh dear one, how I wish I could change conditions for you but I know you will get thru this with your "can-do" awesome spirit that serves you soooooooooo well. Just remain safe, stay upright and take care sweetie. Will anxiously await for updates when available and hoping you'll get some of the warmer temps they're promising here in Virginia for the weekend.......... ♡♡♡♡♡♡
ReplyDeleteWhen our power went out I went into the yard and got the solar powered lights we keep to light the driveway out! They work wonders as indoor lighting when power goes out! :)
ReplyDeleteThinking of you and what you are going through. I hope the power companies can get this mess straightened out ASAP! I went through it in '98, and was without power for 15 days. It was cooler than what I wanted, but I had waited for power when I moved into my double-wide, for longer than that, so it was easy to fall back into a routine! If you see power workers, be prepared to feed them or at least offer coffee! It helps!
ReplyDeleteA quick question on your phone book foundations. How old is OLD. I will start keeping my full sized phone books, but need to know how many years to wait before using them?
ReplyDeletePaula
paejbach@charter.net
I also want you to know that I followed you to AZ. I arrived in I forgot to post that I followed you to warm AZ. I left MN on Sunday 2-23 and arrived back in the cold on Thursday 3-6. I really was not ready to leave the warm southwest, and plan to visit Mom in Casa Grande again next winter. Maybe I will eventually join her in the warm.
ReplyDeletePaula
paejbach@charter.net
So hoping all will be back up and going very soon! Stay warm and safe!
ReplyDeleteSo just so I understand...it has been raining ice all night, and you went to BUY SOME to keep the food?
ReplyDelete