Power's back on! At least part of the day. We think they're rotating the grid around.
The wind storm remnants of Hurricane Ike did a real number on our part of Kentucky. We just aren't used to 60 mph winds that last for hours and hours. Starr Ann and I couldn't stop going outside, just to feel the rush.
Soon as it was over, we assessed the damage. No power, coupla big trees down, debris all over the place. Not too bad. We could have opted to go off to one of Starr Ann's bunkers, which have their own power sources, hot water, etc., but there wasn't any real need for that.
So we mobilized. Starr Ann grabbed her chainsaw and got busy on those trees, while I hopped in the pickup (which we barely ever use, so it was sitting there full of dirt-cheap $3 gas) and went out looking for ice. Found all the ice we needed in the next town over. Then, I stopped by the nursing facility to make sure Opal Mountain was okay, as she doesn't have any family in town to look after. Turned out, they were working off generators over there, and were real glad I offered to bring Opal home with us until things get back to normal. Opal was pretty happy about it, too, because she's been a little trouble lately - something about her climbing up and removing smoke alarms in the middle of the night, hiding them in her dresser drawers. I'll have to expand on that in another post.
Anyway, within three hours of the end of that storm, we were all secure and about to sit down to a beautiful lunch, when we heard this real loud engine outside. It was Randy Sneed. On his monster tractor. Right outside our house.
Opal finished setting the table while Starr Ann and I went to see what was up with Randy. There he was, sitting about ten feet up in the air, smiling like a fool. And Randy, who happens to live by himself, said, "Thought I'd ride over here and check on ya'll, what with you being two women alone."
Well, I thought for sure Starr Ann was gonna jump all over that "two women alone," but she just smiled up and said, "Thank you, Randy, but I think we'll struggle through." Then she glanced at his hand resting on the stick of that huge thrumming machine he was straddling, and added, "But if this feeling lasts more than four hours, contact your doctor."
I don't think Randy heard that last part, because he just smiled bigger and gunned his engine a few times before roaring off.
When the fumes and noise died down, Starr Ann put her arm through mine and started us back toward the front porch. "Come on, Margo, let's go eat lunch. Just us three women alone."
