White stuff

It’s only Tuesday but already we’ve suffered through a couple of days of the white stuff and there’s more predicted for Wed/Thurs. Nothing to look forward to as I’m off to the valley for a meeting Wednesday and Thursday. Well, actually the debate is whether I’ll make it back on Thursday with the periods of snow predicted.

On Monday it started snowing early in the morning and didn’t let up except to change to almost rain which made the 4 p.m. drive home a real nightmare with about 25 cm of wet heavy snow down. The dashboard was lit up like a 747 as the anti-skid warning came on as I left the hospital and didn’t come off throughout my 45 km skivvying diagonally up and down all the hills in second gear between work and home with the 4 way flashers going drive which usually takes 25 minutes but was over 70 minutes (including the stop to call a tow truck for a half ton off the road) until I pulled into the driveway with much relief. Glad to finally be home and settled in it was the shore captain’s turn as there had been a power outage at the tank house he stores lobsters in so that was an until 10:30 p.m. evening for him with the electrician to wire the new (second one in 2 months and these suckers cost $1200) aerator pump – those crustaceans got to have oxygen – the power outage burned out the motor. I had a crafty evening where I sewed a fleece scarf, made some Christmas decorations and shortened the curtain in the sauna, which the resident carpenter had hung. And by late in the evening the rain had washed away most of the white stuff.

I had taken pity on the dog who usually spends the night in her doghouse letting her stay in due to the storm but...at 5:10 a.m. I was awakened by Keely chasing the cats (or rather Gary as he's the only one sociable to the dog thinking he is one) across the livingroom and then forgetting herself in the excitement a loud yelp. She was unceremoniously taken out to her run with a very smug feline audience of three watching - almost as if they'd planned it!

By this morning when I was supposed to head out to the district facility for a policy revision meeting the temperature had dropped and the road was like a sheet of glass. When my counterpart from the other end of the district elected not to chance the roads I took the same approach and headed into my own office and joined the meeting by teleconference. Can’t imagine how I thought I had time to be out of the office, I never stopped. It would’ve been nice to avoid all the staff unrest and small p politics but that’s just dreaming on my part. I’m thinking that avoiding that angst will be the best part of retirement!

The bad weather of the past two days has come with wind as well so no lobstering. This has been one cruddy start to the season and the price isn’t even an issue yet as no one has enough landings to consider selling. Tomorrow, although it’ll likely still be rough, is sounding like a day to haul traps so my domestic duties are completed - the lunch is made and supper in the fridge – I’m free to travel for work. If I can get away early enough I may have some time for shopping on the way, which will be a nice diversion.

So in the big countdown three weeks from today will be Christmas. How did that happen so soon? Guess that means this weekend will be spent getting some cards in the mail and some baking done for when those girls get their exams finished and head home.

And on a completely different topic – the online report that a casino mogul from Macau had bid $330,000 for a giant white truffle (the ones from the ground) from Tuscany weighing 3.3 lb. brought the quote of the day “$100,000 per pound for a mushroom - proof that being rich does not guarantee against being stupid...” I always suspected that it actually made it more likely – you know more money than brains – I have that problem but in reverse.