Washington State Snowpacalypse!!

So…! We had our very first snow last weekend– just an inch and a half, and as we get it so rarely, entire regions mostly close down. We’re lucky to have great road service where we live though, and de-icers and gravel trucks were right on things from the start. Being on a main road in a tourist area means that unlike most rural areas in the Pacific Northwest, we’re not automatically shit-out-of-luck when it snows or ices over.

But, that was then.

Apparently, a new system (going over areas newly cooled off from the last snowstorm) and then another and maybe yet another are set to hit over the next week. Starting Friday afternoon or evening, we’re to get 5-7 inches accumulation or so over the weekend with plunging temps and actual howling wind, causing blizzard conditions!

THAT is nearly unheard of in the valleys in the western half of Oregon and Washington! We might get something like a blizzard once a decade, maybe.

The storms that are supposed to come at the beginning of next week may bring additional inches with them, perhaps another 5 or 6! The European Model (which is notoriously more accurate than the American one…) forecasts a more harsh scenario than the local weather people are expecting, but even the 3-5 inches with maybe another inch or 2 is bad enough!

As one may imagine, the populace is going ape-shit: stores are emptying out and schools and businesses are closing early. Excitement!

We’re in good shape, with LOTS of wood for the wood stove and over 200 candles and 20 battery-powered candles for light. Our pantry is full, as is fridge and 2 freezers, so I’m not even slightly worried on that front. Plus, we have literally over a hundred board games for when the electronics fail, as we will almost certainly lose power. Heavy snow PLUS high winds? We’ll lose it for hours, perhaps DAYS, easily.

So I may temporarily disappear while power is out over the weekend and next couple of days. But rest assured, we’re prepared and we’ll be fine. I made sure Cat bought a house with a wood burning SOMETHING because I like to plan for contingencies as a default. =^)