The National Weather Service is calling for an additional 10 - 20 inches beginning tomorrow afternoon. Heaven help us all. 4 feet of snow on the ground is a bit much, don't you think? I can shovel it just fine but where will am I going to put it? The snow bank next to the driveway is already 8 feet high. Pulling into the driveway is like flying an X-Wing through the trench to destroy the Death Star. Reminds me of bulls-eyeing womp rats in my T-16. Good times.
By this time tomorrow, this town is going to be like a really cold version of Max Max, complete with roving gangs of marauders and to-the-death cage matches for toilet paper.
At least one area school system has already said that school is closed until Tuesday. Next Tuesday.
Will we ever get out of here?
Monday, February 8, 2010
Snow-pocalypse II: Electric Boogaloo
Again? Hey, I love snow just as much as the next guy, but this is ridiculous. Redonkulous, some would say. It started at about 1 in the afternoon, and 24 hours later there's well over 2 feet on the ground. An inch per hour for an entire day, and it didn't stop until later that night.
A friend calculated that, assuming 20" average snowfall across the state of Maryland, it amounts to about 4 cubic miles of snow. It would make a snowman (using the standard 4:3:2 ball ratio) about 21,000 feet tall. That's quite a snowman.
We're trying to keep The Kid occupied, since getting out is a non-starter for at least 24 hours. She can play reasonably well in a foot of snow, but this stuff is up to her chin. Where's the fun in that?
On the upside, we didn't loose electricity, which is more than I can say for some of my friends in the area. Now that I've said that, I fully expect to be in the dark any second now.
Nope. Still here.
Our living room looks like a Chinese landfill with all the toys scattered about. We're all terminally bored, except the cat. He's pretty much business as usual. What I wouldn't give to be him.
On the upside, we're had The Wife's famous chicken and dumplings for dinner, which is just about the very best thing to have when you're snowed in.
I'll post some pictures as soon as I have something to take a picture of that isn't just a wall of white.
Did I mention that we're getting another 5+ inches on Tuesday? Gulp.
A friend calculated that, assuming 20" average snowfall across the state of Maryland, it amounts to about 4 cubic miles of snow. It would make a snowman (using the standard 4:3:2 ball ratio) about 21,000 feet tall. That's quite a snowman.
We're trying to keep The Kid occupied, since getting out is a non-starter for at least 24 hours. She can play reasonably well in a foot of snow, but this stuff is up to her chin. Where's the fun in that?
On the upside, we didn't loose electricity, which is more than I can say for some of my friends in the area. Now that I've said that, I fully expect to be in the dark any second now.
Nope. Still here.
Our living room looks like a Chinese landfill with all the toys scattered about. We're all terminally bored, except the cat. He's pretty much business as usual. What I wouldn't give to be him.
On the upside, we're had The Wife's famous chicken and dumplings for dinner, which is just about the very best thing to have when you're snowed in.
I'll post some pictures as soon as I have something to take a picture of that isn't just a wall of white.
Did I mention that we're getting another 5+ inches on Tuesday? Gulp.
Snow pictures 2010
None of us went to work today. The Wife tried, but only got about 4 miles down the road before she turned around. Discretion being the better part of valor and all that.
We dug out yesterday, and I came to the conclusion that I am an old man. 2 1/2 feet of snow weighs a lot.
Here is what our driveway looked like before we began the shoveling.
About 3 hours later, we had most of the driveway done. For a sense of scale, here's my car, snow still on the roof.
Yes, that's a MINI Cooper. One of the smallest cars on the market.
BTW, we didn't put it in the garage because we were operating under the theory that the leaving it out would mean less snow to shovel off the driveway. I didn't get any statistically valid measurements, but I think it worked. Especially with the amount of snow that we got.
The back yard? Yeah. Won't be visiting that for a while.
We dug out yesterday, and I came to the conclusion that I am an old man. 2 1/2 feet of snow weighs a lot.
Here is what our driveway looked like before we began the shoveling.
About 3 hours later, we had most of the driveway done. For a sense of scale, here's my car, snow still on the roof.
Yes, that's a MINI Cooper. One of the smallest cars on the market.
BTW, we didn't put it in the garage because we were operating under the theory that the leaving it out would mean less snow to shovel off the driveway. I didn't get any statistically valid measurements, but I think it worked. Especially with the amount of snow that we got.
The back yard? Yeah. Won't be visiting that for a while.
We did get The Kid out in it yesterday, but there's not much to do in snow that deep.
Still calling for more snow tomorrow night into Wednesday. At least 5 inches, probably more. daytime highs in the high 20's. Down into the low teens at night.
Lastly, our good friends the Stuttses (who are stationed in Hawaii) posted some photos of the view from their kitchen window. Here is what ours looks like. I'd rather have theirs.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Happy 2010
Now that it is almost February, and the snow is (almost) all melted, I'll go ahead an put up a new post. I was going to make a New Years resolution to blog more often, but then I remembered that I don't do resolutions. Too much work.
Anyway, we had a wonderful Christmas, surrounded by all manner of friends and relatives. New Year's Eve was a night to remember as well, if only we could remember all of it.
The Kid, being 2, really cleaned up this year. Loved everything she got, especially her new rocking horse, which she promptly dubbed "Midnight". Oh, how she loves to gallop along.
We spent time with our Midshipman, to whom The Kid is becoming more and more attached.
Graduation day in 2012 is going to be tough. On all of us, methinks.
Now, for no particular reason, The Kid, with donut. And a donut shirt. Very po-mo.
Lastly, The Wife was out of town last weekend, leaving me to watch The Kid for 3 entire days. Haven't done that in over a year. Saturday was crummy weather-wise, so that meant a lot of playing in the house. On Sunday, I decided to take The Kid where all little girls love to go and probably dream about. That's right, the Greater Washington Model Railroad Expo. We rounded up Grandma and Grandpa and then made our way to the Dulles Expo Center.
Before I get to the pictures and (gasp) video, a quick warning to reader Toolbox:
Please, please try and contain yourself, especially when you realize that your granddaughter absolutely LOVED all of this. Loved it, loved it, loved it.
Back to the expo. The place was packed, and was quite impressive.
All the different scales (HO, N, Z, etc.) were represented by some truly astonishing layouts. Here's a switchyard in (I think) N-scale.
Thomas was there, of course, in may different forms. There was even a Thomas that the kids could ride, but the line for that went pretty much all the way around the building, and could have ended somewhere in West Virginia for all I know. We kept The Kid away from that particular part of the exhibit hall.
One of the modelers had built a special Thomas track that the little ones could see. Nice touch. Note the Lexan sneeze/drool/booger shield.
So yeah, she liked it well enough. She liked the big ones too. Here's a representative example.
After we got home, The Kid apparently decided that she wanted to hypnotize me into getting her a train set.
Like I would ever refuse...
Anyway, we had a wonderful Christmas, surrounded by all manner of friends and relatives. New Year's Eve was a night to remember as well, if only we could remember all of it.
The Kid, being 2, really cleaned up this year. Loved everything she got, especially her new rocking horse, which she promptly dubbed "Midnight". Oh, how she loves to gallop along.
We spent time with our Midshipman, to whom The Kid is becoming more and more attached.
Graduation day in 2012 is going to be tough. On all of us, methinks.
Now, for no particular reason, The Kid, with donut. And a donut shirt. Very po-mo.
Lastly, The Wife was out of town last weekend, leaving me to watch The Kid for 3 entire days. Haven't done that in over a year. Saturday was crummy weather-wise, so that meant a lot of playing in the house. On Sunday, I decided to take The Kid where all little girls love to go and probably dream about. That's right, the Greater Washington Model Railroad Expo. We rounded up Grandma and Grandpa and then made our way to the Dulles Expo Center.
Before I get to the pictures and (gasp) video, a quick warning to reader Toolbox:
Please, please try and contain yourself, especially when you realize that your granddaughter absolutely LOVED all of this. Loved it, loved it, loved it.
Back to the expo. The place was packed, and was quite impressive.
All the different scales (HO, N, Z, etc.) were represented by some truly astonishing layouts. Here's a switchyard in (I think) N-scale.
Thomas was there, of course, in may different forms. There was even a Thomas that the kids could ride, but the line for that went pretty much all the way around the building, and could have ended somewhere in West Virginia for all I know. We kept The Kid away from that particular part of the exhibit hall.
One of the modelers had built a special Thomas track that the little ones could see. Nice touch. Note the Lexan sneeze/drool/booger shield.
So yeah, she liked it well enough. She liked the big ones too. Here's a representative example.
After we got home, The Kid apparently decided that she wanted to hypnotize me into getting her a train set.
Like I would ever refuse...
Monday, December 21, 2009
Snow-pocalypse 2009: By the Numbers
Inches of Snow: 22
Inches of ice at the bottom of the snow: 1.5
Hours spent shoveling: 3.5
Advil taken to relieve pain in lower back: 4
Number of "Spongebob Christmas Special" viewings: About 20
Number of snow plows through our neighborhood as of 0800 Monday: 0
"Really? No snow plows?"
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Oh the Weather Outside is...
Delightful. With a capital D.
At least 12 inches so far, and we're only about half way through. It started last night at about 9, and there was at least 6 inches by the time I got up this morning.
We took The Kid outside for to play in the white stuff, but she was a little scared of it, since it was almost up to her waist. I grabbed my trusty shovel and cleared a path for her. After that, she was all smiles.
We even made snow angels.
More later. Now it's time for some cocoa and a nap.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Twice The Fun
Our old neighbors the Stutts family (Ike, Caroline, Julianna, and Mason) came by the other day, while en route to Ike's new duty station in Hawaii.
They came with their 3 month old son, Mason, who is just adorable. Too bad they didn't go with my suggestion. It's hard to believe that The Kid was ever that small.
The Kid got to play with the Stutts' daughter, Julianna, who just turned 3. Seeing them playing together just warmed our hearts. After a few moments of hesitation, the two of them were like best friends again.
First order of business was to re-construct Fort Sandifer (long story) out of the sofa and blankets.
Even using the "Kids and Pets" setting on the camera, it was difficult to get a shot of both frenetic kids smiling. I don't think they stopped moving for more than 3 seconds over the course of the evening.
After setting up and securing the fort, it was time to explore. Of course, you can't go exploring without daddy's special exploring hat.
Happily, the girls had no trouble sharing the hat.
The highlight of the evening was when the big daddy bear came in and attacked their outpost.
You'll probably want to turn the volume up all the way, since the girls are trying to be quiet.
He he he. And yes, I am wearing a cardigan. Mostly because I know how much The Wife and Caroline love it when I dress like an old man.
The Stuttses also got to see their cat, Caffrey, who we're watching until they get back from Hawaii in 3 years. He clearly remembered them, and he put up with the girl's attention for a good while before he decided that there must be a nice quiet spot somewhere else.
We'll see them again this weekend, and then they're off to their new island paradise. I'm thinking that we'll just have to go and visit.
Here are another few shots from the recent past, which I think are kind of neat.
First, here's a shot of me, taken by The Kid. It was hard for her to remember which way to point the lens, so there are quite a few shots of her face taken from a distance of o inches.
Here is the aforementioned cat, enjoying the warm fire.
Here are a few The Kid sleeping in the car.
They came with their 3 month old son, Mason, who is just adorable. Too bad they didn't go with my suggestion. It's hard to believe that The Kid was ever that small.
The Kid got to play with the Stutts' daughter, Julianna, who just turned 3. Seeing them playing together just warmed our hearts. After a few moments of hesitation, the two of them were like best friends again.
First order of business was to re-construct Fort Sandifer (long story) out of the sofa and blankets.
Even using the "Kids and Pets" setting on the camera, it was difficult to get a shot of both frenetic kids smiling. I don't think they stopped moving for more than 3 seconds over the course of the evening.
After setting up and securing the fort, it was time to explore. Of course, you can't go exploring without daddy's special exploring hat.
Happily, the girls had no trouble sharing the hat.
The highlight of the evening was when the big daddy bear came in and attacked their outpost.
You'll probably want to turn the volume up all the way, since the girls are trying to be quiet.
He he he. And yes, I am wearing a cardigan. Mostly because I know how much The Wife and Caroline love it when I dress like an old man.
The Stuttses also got to see their cat, Caffrey, who we're watching until they get back from Hawaii in 3 years. He clearly remembered them, and he put up with the girl's attention for a good while before he decided that there must be a nice quiet spot somewhere else.
We'll see them again this weekend, and then they're off to their new island paradise. I'm thinking that we'll just have to go and visit.
Here are another few shots from the recent past, which I think are kind of neat.
First, here's a shot of me, taken by The Kid. It was hard for her to remember which way to point the lens, so there are quite a few shots of her face taken from a distance of o inches.
Here is the aforementioned cat, enjoying the warm fire.
Here are a few The Kid sleeping in the car.
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