Winter Storm Leon

(If you're visiting from the GYBP, you might want to start here.)

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February 2010



You remember this photo from our snow storm in 2010.....This is what I was looking forward to last week from Winter Storm Leon. Everyone in South Carolina was ecstatic. We watched the Weather Channel like it was our job. The storm would start with freezing rain or sleet and turn into snow.  There were warnings of power outages, if the ice got really bad. The Weather Channel was giving us a STORM:COM of 7. They were telling us that it was going to be significant. We could possibly get 3-5 inches. For Heaven's sake Jim Cantore came to Charleston. And we all know what that means......he goes where the weather is going to be the worst. So, we set about making preparations.

Prep 1: Heat. In the event we would be without power, I needed my fireplace in good working order. I had already summoned up Mr. Tanner the Chimney Sweep to come out that Tuesday to give the fireplace a clean bill of health. Well, as luck would have it, that's when the ice was supposed to start. So, I thought Mr. Tanner would probably want to reschedule so as not to be stuck on the roads in the slick stuff. And, He Did Not! God love him, he came anyway. I was so happy. That meant I could have a fire that night, in case we lost power. Heck yeah!

Prep 2: Water. I live in the country and we have a water pump. Because our water pump operates with electricity, if we lose electricity, we lose water. Get it? Ok.....so our preparations are that we run the tub full of water in order to flush toilets (we do the same for hurricanes).  For drinking, we either buy it or store it in empty milk jugs. I did both. Milk jugs are plentiful around here. Mama saves milk jugs like nobody's business. She is the epitome of preparations, y'all!

Prep 3: Food. I didn't really need anything...I had just been grocery shopping a few days earlier. But, Cliff felt like we needed extra cans of dog food for Spooky. So off to the grocery store I go. After arriving, the parking lot was full. Everybody and his brother was stocking up at the last minute. I did not feel panicked like some...after all I was just there for dog food. So I got one of those small buggies and head for the dog food aisle. I passed the bread aisle and it was wiped out. Don't know what the milk inventory looked like, but if it was anything like the bread.....there were going to be some people in a world of hurt. Why is it that, in times like these, milk is so important? I loaded up on can dog food and headed for the register. Well, you would have thought I was slightly retarded from the looks I got. They looked at the dog food and then looked at me and back at the dog food. HaHa!  Here they are frantically looking for bread and milk and all I have is can dog food. I can only imagine was was running through their minds.

Preparations were done and now I was ready to hunker down and ride out Winter Storm Leon. I waited all afternoon. Finally, we started getting some sleet late in the evening and I got excited. Cliff built a fire and I sat there in front of it and knitted for what seemed like hours. I kept getting up to check the sleet hoping it had turned to snow. It just wasn't happening that fast. I went to bed with hopes and dreams of seeing drifts of snow in the morning. I rose early the next day, fixed my coffee and headed to the windows to check for our winter wonderland.......and this is what we got.......

January 2014

Gah, I was never so dissapointed! I wanted to jack slap Jim Cantore. Oh well, nothing left to do but get out in it. Can't let an opportunity like this go to waste. So, I woke Cliff up and we decided to ride around town to see how pretty it looked with a dusting of snow and a little ice. I guess the roads were a little worse, they did have ice on them until traffic picked up and then they cleared up quickly. I had my camera at the ready mark, but who can get a good picture when Cliff hits the breaks every two minutes to see if his Jeep will slide on the ice. Lord! Even so, a little more exploration was needed on my part. So, Cliff took me to the Francis Marion National Forest....the place where he hunts and the following photos are what we saw. I would have to say, ice can be pretty in a whole different way. I enjoyed our little adventure. And now, I'm ready for some more. Come on Mother Nature, cooperate...please!

Johnson's Swamp...just down the road from our house.

Black River

The Hell Hole Swamp area in the Francis Marion National Forest.

Ice coated Pine needles.

Ice covered Holly leaves.

An old gas station near the Francis Marion National Forest. Notice the ice hanging from the tin roof.

 Day 2 of Winter Storm Leon: Icicles hanging from my roof.

I am very appreciative that no one lost power. Ice events are nothing to sneeze at. It could have been really bad. The ice stayed around a couple of days because the temps didn't rise out of the twenties. And now, it's just a distant memory. I sure do love winter weather. And I hope, we get to experience a little more before spring pops in. For all of you that are sick and tired of your snow and cold weather, I'm so sorry. Time does march on and it will be hot, sweltering and humid before we know it. For now, let's enjoy what Mother Nature has gifted us with.

Talk soon,

Laurie