Every year around this time we get a snowfall that puts a base down for the winter and will not vanish off again till spring. That is likely what’s falling outside right now. Our youngest and I went out to walk the dogs early this evening and it was raining, and windy, with temps that were quite bearable. I doubt I would have needed a coat if not for the wind and rain. I looked out the back door about ten minutes after we came in and there was a good inch of snow down! It has been falling since, and there is probably four inches down now, or more.
I have been listening to emergency dispatch for the county, where I have got a play by play of troublesome roads on the north end of the county with hills and slick roads stranding drivers who need chains to get up them. At one point someone called for any farmers with tractors to come help! Unfortunately, a house fire call out has also gone out; a direct reminder that nothing should be taken for granted.
We never know what tomorrow will bring. We can do all we can to be prepared, but as recent events have shown, we prepare for whatever may come, and then find out we readied all the wrong things, such as when Covid hit, and all the stores ran out of toilette paper. I am in the middle of a part of America where preparedness is constantly urged, and even here there was a total runout of TP! I guess nobody had long term stocks in their pantries.
I have a cold right now, and it was a lot for me to muster working the tarp back down over the hay today, to try to secure it against winds that had blown it loose. After that, I was knackered! I am reminded why a certain vigilance is maintained at a constant and consistent level, because we never know when a double blow will strike at us.
A look at the weather radar map shows the “atmospheric river” is pushing a lot of water right at us from Southern California. I think we can expect a lot more snow on the ground by morning. It’s nearing 11PM now, and hopefully the traffic situation will quiet down, and Emergency Services won’t have to be pushed by heavy traffic trying to get through heavy snowfall.
Maybe, just maybe, the snow will help button the tarp down on top of the hay, too.