The Last Gas Line

We were really lucky because both cars happened to have full gas tanks when the hurricane hit. So we didn't drive anywhere unnecessarily after the storm hit and the power went out. Eventually I got nervous about not having too much gas, so I happened to see a gas line at the station I usually buy from, and so I got in line. I was lucky - it only took me about 45 minutes to get gas. A great relief to have a full tank. That was about 4 days ago. This morning, riding my bike over to the bagel store, I passed by two gas stations, and there were no lines at all! What a relief to not have to worry about gasoline any more.

The Capsule Has Landed

I was so surprised the other day when I came by the harbor, to see this rusted steel thing floating in the marsh grass. It looks like an Apollo space capsule! After looking at it for a while I figured out what it was. And then my guess was confirmed when someone came to get it. Know what it is? Right, it is a huge buoy for a heavy-duty mooring. Heavy duty as in usually there are 2 or three fully loaded barges filled with sand tied up to it, waiting for tugboats to take the barges away. There is a facility on the other side of the harbor that receives sand and gravel for making concrete. A small outboard motor boat arrived on the scene, tied a rope to the "capsule" and towed it back to where it belongs.

The Charging Station

After three days of no power, I was able to borrow a generator from a friend whose power had been restored. We invited our neighbor over for hot tea and some fresh cookies and told her about the generator. So she brought some electronics that needed charging - her parent's cell phone, her cell phone, her sister's cell phone, an iPad, and her Kindle which she uses to read manuscripts as part of her work, and I was charging a couple of laptops as well. At first glance, this setup looks like something that would never pass inspection from the building inspector, but it is completely safe,I promise... :-)

Kitties & Radiators

So this is funny - the kitties love to lie down on the radiator - it's one of their favorite places. But when the power went out and we had no heat, they had no interest in the radiators. After the power came back on, and the radiators warmed up, I was amazed to see how quickly they both stretched out on top of the radiator. They apparently sensed the heat right away. I didn't happen to shoot them both stretched out, but I did get this photo later on - I love the very direct way she is looking at me. Oh, and the curl in the tail.

After the Storm

So last night the snow was so wet and heavy, that the branches of the Japanese Maple tree were touching the ground. I was so afraid that the tree was going to be damaged, that I went and got a push broom, and gently shook the branches that I could reach until the snow fell off and the branches popped back up. This photo of the Maple tree is different from the other photos of it I have posted - you can see the green leaves up above the snow covered branches. OH! And you can see the pumpkin on the ground to the right of the tree. The pumpkin is fine, and the squirrel has been dining on it all day. The other photo shows the Hickory tree with its beautiful yellow leaves. It is always so pretty at this time of year.

Snowstorm!

We got a snowstorm last night, with 4 to 5 inches of heavy wet snow. Then the wind started to blow, and we lost power again at about 11 PM. Not sure when it will come back, because they are still working on power outages from the hurricane, and now they have about 100,000 new outages. I am prepared to wait a few days at least... :-( I went over to the neighbor's house, after shoveling my driveway, and shoveled hers (before the power went out) so that she could get out in the morning to catch a train for the city, where she works. Fortunately, this morning the outside temperature is 39, warming is expected, and much of the heavy wet snow is off the trees, so there shouldn't be any more downed trees. We hope...

The Squirrel Wins!

So how cute is this! The squirrel wins! I put the pumpkin back out on the porch, and the squirrel came back, right on schedule, and I had the telephoto lens on the camera, ready and waiting. I am shooting through both the regular window and the storm window, by the way, so I am pleased that the picture is sharp enough. I hope you will all be pleased that I am feeding the neighborhood animals. I posted a larger than normal image size, so please click on the picture to see it in more detail.