So I’m sitting inside the 5er here in Baltimore which is currently experiencing the biggest snowstorm it’s seen in years (possibly ever…remains to be seen).
This morning, we went out and swept snow off the slideouts. Lex didn’t want to pull in the living room or kitchen slide out because when those are in, there isn’t much room to move around inside the house. We did bring in the bedroom slideout. It doesn’t disrupt movement very much (except to make it impossible to get into the dresser drawers), and having it in should keep the bedroom a little warmer, I hope.
I’ve managed to get the water and sewer hoses up off the ground, and I have a light bulb hanging right by the main holding tank valve so it won’t freeze shut. The lights in the basement are on (they add a little warmth), and the tank heaters are on.
The furnace is going and we have two electrical space heaters. If the power goes out and we run out of propane, I bought a small, portable indoor/outdoor propane heater, the kind that uses the screw-in 1lb propane cylinders. It works nicely, but I’m saving it for backup purposes.
I put aside a few containers of water in case the line ends up freezing or going out. I think we’re going to be okay, though we will have to go out a few times today to sweep that snow off the slideouts again.
Winds are picking up and will be gusting up to 30 mph later today. By the time it’s all over, we may end up with 20-24″ of snow. I know that those of you who are from places further north might think that’s nothing, but Baltimore is paralyzed by even just a couple of inches. The governor has actually declared a state of emergency, so you can tell we get a little panicked around here.
My small dog does NOT care for all this snow, but the big one with the heavy coat LOVES it! I let him off the leash so he could tear around for a little while this morning. Now he’s happily snoozing on the sofa.
Our car and truck are snowed in. The snowplow came and pushed up a mountain of snow at the end of our driveway, so there’s no getting out of here anytime soon. That is a little distressing. Fortunately, we’re within walking distance of a couple of convenience stores, so if we get desperate, we can still hike out and get some supplies.
I have one more set of papers to grade for the semester, so this is the perfect opportunity to do that. We’ve got lots of movies, too. I’m hoping we’ll be okay tonight and tomorrow.
