Batten Down the Hatches

After 24 hours of wild wild wind, snow on the Western Tiers, wheelie bins taking flight down the street, and wave after wave of snow cloud bringing flurries of snow into the village, it looks like we’re all set to endure another long night of the same. Anything in the yard not tied down has been blown to the furthest corner as the gale straight off the Antarctic continues to rage, and I’m amazed the power is still on.

I’ve surreptitiously kept an eye on next door’s tall eucalypt all day, and marvel that the top branches can bend so far without breaking. It wouldn’t land in my yard if any of it succumbed, but I’ve been watching it nonetheless. The constant rattling of the front and back doors reminds me of the time several years ago when the front door actually did blow open in similar circumstances. Waking to a huge BANG in the middle of the night, I wondered if the chimney or some similar structure had fallen or crashed into the house, but a quick investigation found the door wide open and an icy gale penetrating the house at a great rate of knots.

One advantage of the weather conditions though, has been the presence of rainbows on and off for most of the day, some in soft pastels, others richly vibrant, a comforting sight as we wait for the cold front to blow itself out. As I write, gusts of wind are making the house shake, and the screen in front of me shudders. Think I need to hurry in case everything suddenly turns off and goes black.

Oh well, at least I could still have spuds in the fire for dinner.

Wild and woolly night

batten down the hatches

where’s my Linus blanket?