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| To purchase these award-winning books, click here: https://www.bookswelove.net/kavanagh-j-c/ |
A couple of weeks ago, we experienced a major ice storm that wreaked havoc everywhere. Roads were closed, hydro lines went down - not just from ice accumulation but from trees falling on them. Conditions were so bad that plow/salter trucks were ordered to 'stay put' as the roads were treacherous even for the salt trucks. Power outages affected over one million homes. Wind gusts were 80 km/hr (50 miles/hr) which, combined with the ice, knocked down trees and over 2,300 hydro poles. According to The Weather Network, some areas received 25 mm (one inch) of freezing rain over 35 hours and six regions declared a State of Emergency. Almost 5,000 hydro workers, including those brought from other provinces, dealt with repairing downed lines and restoring power.
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| Freezing rain on top of snow |
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| The poor wee frozen buds. |
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| Good thing this fellow's not real. |
Schools were closed due to lack of electricity. (FYI, schools in this region experienced more 'snow days' in one season than the last five years combined. A 'snow day' results in school buses being cancelled due to weather).
Gas stations were closed due to lack of power.
Grocery stores were closed. (Frozen items eventually thawed and had to be disposed of).
Some Convenience stores were open - cash only.
Roads were obstructed with downed trees and fallen branches. Even four days after the storm passed through, travelling from 'A' to 'B' may take you through 'C,' 'D' and 'E.'
For me, it was a very long and taxing six days without hydro.
Think about it. Six days without running water. Without flicking on a light switch. Without refrigeration. Without showering.
And even worse: six days without FLUSHING THE TOILET.
Okay - you can flush the toilet, but you have to use an entire 4-litre bottle to eliminate your #2. And guess what? When the grocery stores finally had their power restored (and you were still waiting for your power) - all the bottled water was sold out.
And if you needed fuel to power your home generator, the line-up for an operating gas station was about 100 cars long, or 90-minutes.
Finally, when the power was restored, we ventured out to survey the damage to our 10-acre property. Trees in the front of the house lost some branches, but none were snapped or uprooted. Temperatures were rising and the snow was melting so we headed to the back, feeling quite pleased with our 'sturdy' trees.
And it went downhill from there.
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| Spider? |
We did discover a few beauties, though.
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| Do you see it? Check out the next picture. |
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| The CLAW! |
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| The hole in the tree. |
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| Hmmm, a goblin face above the claw-root? |
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| But how do they grow this way? |
And then there was this...
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| A tree giraffe? |
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| Three dens... didn't stick around to see what animal lives here. |
And just down the road, this wee girl was spotted...
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| Photo credit to Nicole St Amant. Residents here call her "Mary Moose." |
Life is always an adventure when you live in rural Ontario, or as some people call it, "The Boonies." But if you're looking for an adventure that doesn't involve cleaning up 10 acres of downed trees, pick up your copy of the award-winning Twisted Climb series. Enjoy!
J.C. Kavanagh, author of
AND
The Twisted Climb - Darkness Descends (Book 2)
voted BEST Young Adult Book 2018, Critters Readers Poll and Best YA Book FINALIST at The Word Guild, Canada
AND
The Twisted Climb,
voted BEST Young Adult Book 2016, P&E Readers Poll
Voted Best Local Author, Simcoe County, Ontario, 2022
Novels for teens, young adults and adults young at heart
Email: author.j.c.kavanagh@gmail.com
www.facebook.com/J.C.Kavanagh
www.amazon.com/author/jckavanagh
Twitter @JCKavanagh1 (Author J.C. Kavanagh)
Instagram @authorjckavanagh
Such interesting pictures of tree roots. Amazing how they can grow.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Janet. Nature has a spectacular combination of beauty and strength.
ReplyDelete