Ice and No Power

Some of the old-timers drinking coffee and sittin' around on the turned up cold drink cartons, visitin' and comin' in out of the cold the other mornin', reminded Andy that Caldwell and Orange County had not had an ice storm like this in a long time.

Charles said the ice was getting rid of the dead and brittle wood that was in their forests. Now for the clean-up! He and granddaughter Shelby rode 4-wheelers checking fences yesterday after most of the ice had melted. They had to replace a lot of plastic clips on the electric fences and spent quite a while removing a tree or tree limb that had fallen over the fence near our house and the old store. Shelby really enjoys helping Pop and her dad around the place and they have come to rely on her. But as Brenda said, there is enough debris this time, that it will take all of us doing our part to clean up the place!

Shubert has been out early picking up fallen branches over here at Gail and Troy's. He was getting house happy!

We have all shared the warmth and the cooking made possible by Charles's generator and enjoyed the hot coffee, banana bread, ice cream sandwiches, hot dogs, laughter, and love shared in a time like this. Brenda shared Maw-Maw's chili recipe with me because Shubert loved it so, and we told stories of the past. But we never did get around to any of those games the kids like to play. I have been having trouble with my eyes so I couldn't look through the camera lens for long. I didn't get any pictures of the damage the ice did, just a few icicles here and there. I'm sure there are plenty of pictures on Facebook and on the web that represent the same week of ice, sleet and snow we had here in Orange County, North Carolina, this week.

Piedmont Electric and Duke Power, with the assistance of several out-of-town power companies, have restored power to thousands of their customers. The Blalock's have power, we don't. But we all have our family around and they have been fantastic. 

Welcome back to North Carolina, Bob and Judy!