off topic: mid -Atlantic stitchers and snow

I've heard from Ellice - the dog is certainly enjoying the snow. Hopefully, she's stitching away.

A quick check on Donna's blog shows her NH roots.

Cheryl

I finally finished shoveling the rest of the driveway and the steps today. That took 2 hrs. This after 3 hours (in 1.5 hour stretches) of shoveling the driveway Saturday. Took Sunday off. I measured 19-22 inches where it wasn't drifted. Fourth highest snow total in Pgh. after 1950,

It was weather like this that convinced one DB to move to FLA 31 years ago.

Haven't picked up a needle since Friday. Hit the grocery store this afternoon....what a zoo.

Nancy

Hugs dear - I'm used to snow and we have a plow service which helps... A guy with a plow on his truck would clean up down there right now.

Thanks.....a plow service wouldn't work with our driveway. Uphill, 45 ft., one car width with dry river rock walls....I've started calling myself the human snow thrower.

Nancy

Maybe not for you, sounds like a snowblower job in your case

I wish....the driveway is gravel.....it's bad enough with the stones I'll be throwing back into the driveway from the yard come spring. I think enough for a whole new driveway.

What I need are a few teenagers....but that's a few years off. The neighborhood has turned over with lots of young families and kids under ten. In about 10 years...

Nancy

I was just going to suggest teens - that answers that, it was a blizzard like yours that caused me to sell my home and move to a condo! What about fifty ten year olds ?

My neighbourhood has a good supply of---retired guys! And several of them have great big snowblowers, some with canopies and headlights. And when there is a huge fall of snow, they just cannot wait to rev up their engines and get out there, snow flying all over. (some of them will even go out in the dark!!) Last time a bunch of them were standing in one guys driveway, I assume playing "mine's bigger". But when they all get out there, the odds are that eventually one or more will do someone else's part of the street, just to show off. I left the last one that dug out my driveway a box of candy---just in case there is another blizzard to come.

The same guys who have big snowblowers, unfortunately have leaf blowers. The fun of watching them sneakily blow leaves onto the next driveway over does not outweigh the noise of the stupid things.

They are also very good at the retired guy pass time of poking rake handles down sewer grates in the spring. In summer, they pressure wash stuff.

Dawne

There were only two neighbours in Shad Bay but you have described one perfectly - however - in his defence they had nine kids and a 'toy' was usually what turned up for Xmas. I asked one of his sons once where they found some of the things and apparently one of them would drive up to Truro to a store called Toys for Big Boys lol

It is so funny to watch my neighbor go out and do her driveway - can't detach the husband from his computer to do it and I tease her that other when he's in school, it's the only break she gets from her youngest (her boys are 22, 20 and 8). I've seen her out there at 10 at night. My plow-guy may not be the neatest, but he's cheap and at least takes one run at cleaning out in front of the mail box...

Gawd I hate those...

Hmm, a power washer does sound handy.

We have a similarly named store here (or did, not in the same location). Sold car stuff, power tools and such. My girlfriend used to joke that the was a backroom with recliners, ash trays and nonstop sports .....

Cheryl

ROFL, I live in a townehouse community. First big snow was

When in Shad Bay I tried a couple of teens for mowing the grass, too frustrating for words. This crop don't seem to do chores, although my daughter made her sons do driveways and they felt it was good money (and the people were sooooo grateful) but they were into sports and liked it for fitness as much as anything.

When I lived downtown in the 80s I had a snowblower and used to do both my neighbours snow blowing, one was a widow and the other an 80 year old man - couldn't have lived with myself if I had not done so.

We taking the official measurement from Dulles of 32". I know it's more than the 28" we got in December.

Our townhouse cluster is having its annual meeting next week. I bet the #1 suggestion will be to pool resources and purchase some neighborhood snow blowers.

Our plowing company are not practiced in the fine art of snow removal. As a matter of fact, VDOT, which is responsible for all public roads, is pretty darn sucky at snow removal, too. I won't bore you with details. The roads are barely passable and they are congratulating themselves for doing such a superior job. My husband is outside still moving snow right now 65 hours after the last snowflake fell. Quick before we get the next 10-20 inches.

It's bad out there. I've been out - why? Because Target is open and they expect my son to get to work. LOL

People with sports cars should stay home. They will either get stuck in the slush. Or worse, rip off their exhaust system because of the built up ice/snow that is in the middle of the tire tracks.

Somewhere out there on my adventures this morning, I lost my sense of humor.

Donna in Virginia

Following up as we're about to head out for Puckster food, and minor groceries...how crazy can Wegman's be?

We're fine, but in short, as we're about 15 mi west and north of Donna, our snowfall was seriously just under 4'. Level in our yard (we can tell because of the 54" fence). The dog is a riot. Fortunately in this hood which is a planned development, it's all buried power, and FIOS (satellite folks that's another story). Our old house we'd be out for 2 weeks. Here power only out if it's at the substation or above.

We got plowed yesterday by a front end loader - there is a 15' high by 25' wide blob giant snow fort at the base of the cul de sac which the kids are liking. Loudoun Cty was smart and up front announced no school Mon-Tues. The western part is into the foothills of mountains, lots of windy, narrow, rural roads. Then yesterday with the announcement of upcoming more snow, they just punted for the week. This area just isn't prepared for multi-feet to dig out quickly. They do fine with 6", but not 30" plus. We're on the

Funniest stupid thing - our across the street neighbor had 3 cars parked on the street Friday night in front of his house, rather than on their drive (garage has his Harley and 1 car). So, 8 am Sat they're out there unburying cars, and dump it all in the middle of the street - in front of us and next-door. Not good - so the first plow didn't even try to come in our street. Our next door "young" guy came over at 8:30 with his full size snow blower, and did the driveway front, then we went out and dug out the front of drive, unburied the cars...., and did a tunnelesque path from the front door so Puckster can head out. We had cleared him a back path, when it was only about 18" deep, but it was covered so fast that we gave up. DH refers to the dog as "four-wheeling" in the yard. Yesterday he finally braved it off the deck - sledding himself down the few stairs, and truly doing the springer pounce along the backyard. Then he decided "enough" and as I watched from the breakfast room, he got to the basement stairs, turned in, and literally slid down along the wall. But he and the next door pooch have been plunging thru to meet at the fence now.

Downtown DC - a mess. We were at the CAPS game on Sunday. Very not good roads - they essentially cleared 1 to 1.5 lanes on most roads, which meant passing cars someone pulling into a snow drift. No bare pavement, very washboardy. No way at all that a full commuting work force could be there. Some of the highways not terrible. But it's not good. We did take some lovely pictures of the snow and scenery downtown. Sadly, a lot of broken cherry trees in the Japanese Cherry tree grove by the tidal basin. And DH got to skip snow/ice balls along the very frozen tidal basin. If it's okay I can put a couple of pix up on RCTNP.

Anyhow - we're doing okay - about to head out in a few. It's great time to be stitching, and I'm desperately working on a couple of pieces that I hope to get in as proposals for ANG 2011. The weather does help with that, and cabin fever.

Hope everyone else is doing well. Ellice

Hi there. It's good to hear from you and know that all is well.

Lucille

Yikes!

It would be unusual for ND to get that much at once. We have about that much right now that's accumulated in the yard from the whole winter. Plus, we have the wind, which blows most of it away, anyway (except for this year). Wisconsin gets more of the lake-effect snow, I think.

Our towns along the river are already gearing up preparations for the spring flood, which may again be major this year, since conditions are quite similar to those of our "500 year flood" in '97. It all depends on the melt.

Good luck with all your snow!

Joan

Donna wrote: > Somewhere out there on my adventures this morning, I lost my sense of

((Donna))

It's frustrating. I'm lucky that I work at home, so my days are "business as usual," for better or worse. DD's not had work or school, so she's not been pressured and could dig out in a leisurely manner. The main thing is that yesterday my mom started a therapy regimen at the hospital that has her going every day, and fortunately DH is willing to pick her up and drive her there (she's one mile from us, and the hospital about a mile from us in a different direction) with the 4WD car. (I mightn't mind the driving, but would have trouble with the parking when I got home - parallel parking in a narrow spot between two huge, rock-hard snow piles - Not my forte.)(He's also restless and needs to get out of the house at least a little bit; cocooning doesn't bother me as much.) Our street *finally* got plowed yesterday sometime - though I was told by a neighbor today that the plow got stuck at the end of our dead-end street and a bigger plow had to come and dig *it* out!

The big problem from the storm expected today/tomorrow is *where* to put the snow when you plow/shovel it. Our front lawn is already piled high from last weekend. Everyone is parking at the tops/ends of the driveways, facing outward, for minimal effort to achieve release. A couple of the neighbors, however, have no driveway, so their vehicles are on the street of necessity, and there's not a lot of room for snow piles.

sue

Glad to hear from Nancy and Ellice that all's tolerable! And at least power isn't out.

I heard dear niece had a problem the other night when asthma attack necessitated a nebulizer treatment, and the power was out. Fortunately they could use the A/C adapter in the car and do it there.

And DD had a tree fall over in her yard. Not a huge one - just uprooted and fell over in yard space, not on house or sidewalk or anything. It was an evergreen, and I guess just couldn't support the weight of the snow. So she's starting to plan what to plant there to replace it - some kind of a small fruit tree. She can't do anything about it until the snow goes! It's buried!

sue

{{{ Donna }}} hugs.

Yes, the trip to Giant Eagle yesterday was a zoo but I could get there unlike some other folks and I am able to do our shoveling. I just heard the fire siren go off again. Probably should unearth the fire hydrant.

Pittsburgh with 1200 miles of roads doesn't handle lots of snow well either. All those one way streets, hills, and cars parked on both sides are a challenge. DB's co-worker and her neighbors shoveled their street as the plows hadn't made it there yet. The Parkways were fine yesterday though parts of the ramps were like washboards. Gov. sent in the National Guard. They're being used to get places the police in regular patrol cars and ambulances can't reach because they haven't been plowed yet.

I'm grateful to be in a suburb that does a pretty good job.

Noticed today that the dogwood tree has several branches that look like they're hanging by a thread. This should be an interesting spring. I had to cut off a huge piece of the pyracantha so I could get the car out of the garage.

Round 2 hasn't started yet so maybe they'll be wrong and folks will get will be a dusting.

Nancy...I can hope can't I