Normalcy & Water Slowly Returns During The Great Texas Polar Vortex Deep Freeze Disaster

 

Above you are looking south through my windshield, on Lawrence Road, at its intersection with Midwestern Boulevard. As you can see the road is mostly bare of snow.

And now the rest of the story...

My stress level has gone down a lot today. By around the noon lunch time cold water was back flowing through my taps. The hot water gradually getting warmer.

By mid afternoon, the roads which I can see from my abode's vantage point were largely cleared of slick stuff, by plows, the sun, higher temperatures and traffic.

And so around 4 this afternoon I ventured out, with the nearest Walmart my destination. That would be the Greenbrier Walmart off Southwest Parkway. Well, I got there easily, saw the parking lot had been plowed, saw only a couple dozen vehicles parked.

I was soon in my mask and out of my vehicle when a couple walking towards me said the store was closed. What's with all the cars, asked I. To which the reply was they wondered that too.

I told the couple that the Walmart on Lawrence across from ALDI stayed open through the worst of this nightmare, so I am sure it is open now. I was then told they were visiting from Minnesota and did not know where Lawrence was.

I then said follow me, it's only a couple miles. And so they did. They turned into Walmart, and since I was in the neighborhood I decided to go to ALDI.

ALDI's shelves were greatly depleted, particularly the fresh produce and the meat products.

After ALDI I went across the street to Walmart and found that store even more depleted than ALDI. Walmart had no milk or eggs, along with a lot of other shelves empty of their regular goods.

When I was near the empty milk shelves I heard a little boy say to his mom "There's no milk." When I got closer I asked the mom if she was needing milk. She said she was. So I told her ALDI has plenty, along with eggs. She thanked me profusely.

Both ALDI and Walmart were wiped out of most bread products. 

But I am feeling way better about this ongoing Texas Polar Vortex Deep Freeze Disaster than I did this morning.

Tomorrow I should have no problem making it to a previously scheduled pharmacy appointment, and to downtown, where I need to return some books.

I do not recollect ever so looking forward to the end of winter as I currently am...

Sunny Freezing In Texas With Power & No Water

 

On this 3rd Wednesday of the 2021 version of February that would be the view north from one of my living room windows you are looking at above. 

We are still well below freezing, with the thaw scheduled to begin tomorrow.

The sky is mostly blue, with no threat of more snow.

Not much traffic is braving the coat of thick ice which is the current upper layer of Texas roads at my location.

I lost water yesterday afternoon. It was restored to flow mode around 6 in the evening. At 7 in the evening a text message arrived on my phone telling me water would be turned off today til the city turned it back on, because multiple pipes in multiple locations had burst.

With that warning, last night I filled every fillable thing I could find, including my bathtub. So far the lack of water flowing out of the taps is not nearly as annoying as having no power was.

I have a bad feeling that we are not near the end of this disaster. Maybe we are at the end of the beginning.

We still do not know how many people have frozen to death. How many pipes are yet to burst? How many roads are going to buckle from the thaw?

In Washington after a deep freeze, which I never experienced being as deep as this Texas deep freeze, there are restrictions on roads after a deep freeze, to prevent damage. I would hazard to guess that Texas officials are ignorant regarding this problem, like they seem to be about the solution to most problems other states, cities and countries have managed to solve.

I managed to do my regular early morning yoga exercise routine this morning for the first time in days. That has me feeling a lot better. But, this Texas Deep Freeze Disaster has wreaked havoc with my February Plan to lose my COVID-25.

I think I will need to extend the February Plan to include March...

Texas Power Collapse Continues Out Of My Comfort Inn Zone

 Earlier today I was able to blog from my home computer after escaping the Comfort Inn and discovering the power was back flowing to my abode.

The decision was made to evacuate from the Comfort Inn and return to the home abode.

When checking out from the Comfort Inn we learned the Inn was full from others escaping the Texas Deep Freeze. It was decided to err on the side of caution and pay for another night.

It was after that I learned the power was back on. And so returned to the Comfort Inn and cancelled the second night's stay. 

A few hours later the power went out again. And stayed out. For a long time. Figuring the Comfort Inn was full I called other locations to find them all full or without power. Soon thereafter Linda Lou called and hearing of my woe suggested calling the Comfort Inn to see if anything was available there.

And so I did as Linda Lou suggested and was surprised when the manager basically said no problemo, we still have your room available. So, it was back to the Comfort Inn, Room 105.

That is the view from Room 105 above, looking out at a Taco Bueno, maker of the world's worst Mexican food. A fact confirmed when I made my way there through blinding snow and got a taco and burrito, both bland.

Soon thereafter circumstances caused me to return to my abode, again. I drove through the blinding snow, the mile to my home location, and found the power was back on. Again.

I then made the strategic decision to go back to the Comfort Inn, gather up my stuff, and return to my abode, where I am much more comfortable than at the Comfort Inn. But now I have the back up of an escape should the power go out again and I get too cold.

And now on a lighter note, my Favorite Nephew Joey texted me today saying he heard on the news that people should check on their elderly relatives in Texas. And so Joey asked how I was doing with the Texas Power Disaster. Along with that question Joey also sent video of Hank Frank with the text with the video saying...

"Here is Henry attempting to travel to Texas to help his Favorite Uncle D..."

Power Restored Emergency Evacuation Over (For Now)

You are looking at the Tuesday morning view from my computer room window.

Monday morning I abandoned my computer room, and the rest of my abode, to evacuate to a Comfort Inn.

Power had gone off and on the night before multiple times, before going off for good about 5 in the morning.

It was eerie to wake up to find absolute total darkness, along with eerie quiet.

By mid morning yesterday it was decided, what with the interior temperature creeping ever nearer to freezing, evacuating to a safe space seemed to be the thing to do.

The first attempt to find a motel room was at the nearby hotel Elsie Hotpepper stays in on her infrequent visits to town. The Hotpepper Hotel was also without power. Next closest was a Comfort Inn, about a half mile from my frozen abode, as a bird flies.

The view out the window of the Comfort Inn was not as scenic as my current view. The view looked out at a Taco Bueno, about 50 feet distant. Have I ever made mention of my Taco Bueno aversion?

The temperature got to a couple degrees below zero last night. We are on a warming trend, with the temperature scheduled to go once again above freezing on Friday.

But, snow is in the forecast for today. I will do no more driving until this icy nonsense ends. After checking out of the Comfort Inn this morning I slid myself to Walmart and ALDI and stocked up on survival goods. Walmart was totally wiped out of milk. ALDI still had milk. Both ALDI and Walmart were mostly wiped out of meat products.

Speaking of Elsie Hotpepper, she is still without power at her main residence in the Dallas/Fort Worth zone. Methinks this is a disaster in the making. A church in Wichita Falls opened up a shelter for those who could find no where to go once they lost power. 

My neighbor lost all her tropical fish when the water was without its heating function for way too long. What do people with little kids do in this type disaster? The ones who lose power, gradually their interior temperature going below freezing, not having the resources to evacuate to somewhere with heat. Like I said, methinks this is a disaster in the making...
 

Hank Frank's Snowy Happy Valentine's Day

Hank Frank's papa, my Favorite Nephew Joey, sends a snowy Happy Valentine's Day message with four photos along with a few words, as in...

 "Howdy FUD. Here is Henry enjoying a Happy Valentine's Day snow."

And...

 "Here he is explaining to his mom where snow comes from and also waving hi."

It appears the snow is deeper at Hank Frank's location in the Skagit Valley Flats than my location in the North Texas Flats.

I think the below photo is the one where Hank Frank waves hi.

The trees in Hank Frank's apple orchard are covered in white. This has not happened to the bare limbs at my location. I suspect this is because the temperature here is near zero, with it well below freezing before the snow arrived, thus no ice accumulation in the trees.

Snow at this deep level happens seldom in the lowlands of Western Washington. I have no memory of playing in the snow with Hank Frank's papa, or Uncle Jason.

I do remember some snow fun with Hank Frank's papa and Uncle Jason's cousins, Christopher and Jeremy. But, not in the lowlands, but up in the mountains, sledding and cross country skiing.

Somewhere on this computer I have photos of hiking to the Ice Caves on the Mountain Loop Highway, with Christopher and Jeremy. Part of my Nephews in Danger series. I shall see if I can find those photos. But, not right now...

Slip Sliding To Walmart Through A Blizzard

Earlier this second Sunday of the 2021 version of February I mentioned that even though it was 18 degrees below zero I was likely going to make my way to my mailbox when I got the notice from Amazon that a package had been delivered.

Around 11 this morning that package delivered message arrived. And so I layered on the outerwear and exited my abode. I was pleased to find that the white coating was not too slippery. I had told myself that if making my way to the mailbox was easy I might drive to ALDI and Walmart. I was in need of mushrooms for Alfedo sauce, and ALDI is my supplier of that ingredient.

In the photo at the top I am stopped at the redlight intersection of Taft and Midwestern Boulevards. You might be able to make it out on the temperature info part of the rearview mirror that it as 9 degrees above zero at that point in time. That intersection was the first instance of finding the road to be a bit slippery.

I slowly made it to ALDI, got the mushrooms and some other stuff, and then slowly drove across the street to Walmart.

That's the view through my windshield in the Walmart parking lot. By the time I left Walmart, shortly after noon, the snow had greatly amped up, as had the wind. 

Above we are heading east on Midwestern Boulevard. The incoming snow now seemed to be in blizzard mode, with visibility greatly reduced.

A few minutes later, after taking the above picture, I was safely parked under the carport. 

 And then a few minutes later, back in my abode, I took a photo of the same view from my computer room as I had taken earlier. If you saw the previous photo you can see the amount of snow has greatly increased.

This deep freeze is scheduled to last most of the week. I do not foresee doing any more driving in it. 

18 Degrees Below Zero Along With Snow Has Arrived At My North Texas Location

The above is a screen shot from my TV a few minutes before watching Sunday Morning's Meet the Press. Those temperatures you are seeing are the wind chill temperatures. I did not realize that at first, and so was mortified thinking it was 18 degrees below zero.

If memory serves correctly the coldest I have ever experienced is 17 degrees below zero, years ago, in Ellensburg in Eastern Washington, where I was going to school. Returning to Ellensburg from Christmas vacation on the west side of the mountains I remember exiting the I-90 freeway and soon seeing a bank's temperature sign saying it was -17 degrees.

And those were real degrees, not wind chill degrees. 

I remember the following weeks that winter in Ellensburg being brutally cold. Walking between classes would cause ice crystals to form in locations like eye lids.

When I looked outside this morning upon awakening I saw a slight dusting of snow. In the past 10 minutes snow has begun descending copiously.

I shall see if I can take a snow falling photo from my computer room window.

Nope. The photo does not match what my eyes see. As in a lot of powdery snow blowing in.

In the above view we are looking slightly southwest. You can see via the flag waving that a strong wind is blowing in from the northwest. It is all that powdery snow which is making it look foggy in the photo.

I was not planning on venturing out today.

But I just got a notification from Amazon that a package is out for delivery. When did the USPS start delivering stuff on Sunday? Today is not the first time something has arrived on a Sunday.

To get to the location of my mailbox involves about 50 feet of outdoor exposure. When I get the notification that the delivery has been made I may work up the courage and sufficient outwear to venture as far as the mailbox.

Where In The PNW Are Theo, Ruby & David Sledding Today?

 

I was asked that question via my phone a few minutes ago, "Where in the PNW are they sledding today?" Along with the photo hint you see above.

I replied with "I'm gonna guess they are sledding in nearby Wright Park cuz it's too treacherous to drive very far."

Which got the reply of "Yep. So much snow!"

Previous to seeing snow documentation from the Tacoma Trio I already knew it was snowing thick in Tacoma via photo documentation I saw from Tacoma's Queen V.

Apparently all of Western Washington is getting a lot of snow. That does not happen too often. Not in the lowlands.

Snow Closes Fidalgo Drive-In Taking Us Sledding Mount Vernon's Pawnee Lane

From Spencer Jack and his Favorite Dad, my Favorite Nephew Jason, that which you see above and below, along with text telling us...

"We are snowed in today, unable to get to our hamburger stand. View below from our front porch looking east."

Additional text opining "Pawnee Lane would be a good sledding location today if one was able to get there."

Pawnee Lane is the location of my Mount Vernon house. It is located a couple miles northeast of Jason and Spencer Jack's abode. Mount Vernon is blessed with a lot of hills. And one mountain. I think those hills would be called mountains at my current location.

On those rare occasions when a lot of snow fell, Pawnee Lane and the other hilly lanes in my neighborhood became a sledding mecca. Because of the good street lighting the sledding would go on well after dark. Pawnee Lane is steep. I never joined the sledders. Cross country skiing around the neighborhood was what I did instead.

Below is some photo documentation of the deepest snowstorm I experienced in all my years of living in Washington. I do not remember what year this was, other than it was during the 1990s. I was stuck on my hill for over a week. Not possible to drive down the hill, let alone back up the hill.

The first photo shows the snowstorm shortly underway. This is looking out at my backyard. It was starting to get dark, so I wanted to get a photo taken, thinking it might be melted by morning. Instead the snow fell in copious amounts for hours. As you will see.

The back yard, well, it really was not a yard, it was more the back of the house. A door exited from the kitchen to the back deck and picnic table, overlooking a ravine with a creek running through it. 

And above sort of the same scene, the next morning, with the picnic table sporting a thick cover of snow.

The above is the front deck, accessed from the second floor exit. If the snow was not covering everything you would see my blueberry bushes and various planters. 

This was the view from my bedroom window, looking out at snow covered vehicles. I know the vehicle on the left is a van. Next to it looks like a pickup. There is room for two vehicles in the carport. I am drawing a blank trying to remember what those vehicles are, or why the van and pickup were not parked in the carport.

You really don't get much of an inkling from this photo that this is on a hill. You can not make out Pawnee Lane under the snow. 

When all this snow finally got around to melting, after about a week of refusing to go away, it was a mess. Frozen drain pipes broke away from the house, drains were clogged with ice. 

I hope tomorrow's predicted heavy snow does not get anywhere close to what you see above. 

Will Biden Be More Friendly To Fort Worth's Imaginary Island Than Trump?

I saw that which you see here first appearing Friday in the online version of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

I did not try to read the article, assuming it was hidden behind a paywall, though sometimes that paywall is easily breeched, I did not feel the need to read in order to get the gist of the latest Star-Telegram absurdity regarding Fort Worth's imaginary island and the Boondoggle of which it is only one part.

Will Biden be friendly to the Fort Worth project?

This is a public works project the public has never approved of via the voting method.

This is a public works project touted by those behind foisting it on the public as being a vitally needed flood control and economic development scheme. With that vitally needed flood control being in an area which has not flooded in well over a half century due to flood control already in place, already paid for by the rest of America.

Many have long opined that if this project is so vitally needed then why has it not been financed in the way towns wearing their Big City pants finance projects? Why has this vitally needed project limped along in ultra slow motion for two decades? Why does any sane person think federal funds should bail Fort Worth out of this mess of a Boondoggle?

The Star-Telegram choice for a photo to illustrate this project is highly ironic. See that odd structure that looks like some sort of giant trash can, or to some, like a giant cheese grater. That is an aluminum piece of kinetic supposed art. This art was installed at the center of one of the Boondoggle's roundabouts which is near one of the Boondoggle's unfinished bridges.

The Boondoggle's bridges are unfinished, after years of construction. And that roundabout, when last we saw it, was an unfinished, weed-infested mess, with that piece of art sitting there for years at the center of the unfinished roundabout. I memory serves correctly that aluminum homage to a trash can has been sitting there for as long, or longer, than the Boondoggle's three pitiful little bridges have been being built over dry land.

Oh, almost forgot the main point regarding that homage to an aluminum trash can and it being used to illustrate wondering if Biden will be friendly to the Fort Worth project.

The Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District paid a million bucks for that piece of art. The Star-Telegram has never reported on how it came to be that someone was paid a million bucks for this. As in how was this decided? Who decided? Why?

So, the question becomes if this Fort Worth project can afford to spend a million bucks on an homage to an aluminum trash can to install at the center of an unfinished roundabout, why would the more prosperous parts of America be expected to funnel money to this ill-conceived, ineptly implemented Boondoggle?

Do those who think federal money will one day be forthcoming think something like wasting a million bucks on an homage to an aluminum trash can is not going to factor into the discussion?

And won't those begging for this federal welfare be asked why those behind this project have not asked Fort Worth voters to approve some sort of funding bond? Local support for a local project in the form of approving a bond issue is usually key to securing any sort of federal matching funding. 

And won't the issue of the grifting Grangers put a big black eye on securing federal funding? Won't questions be asked as to why J.D. Granger, congresswoman Kay Granger's son, was hired as Executive Director of this project, paid well over $200,000 a year, plus multiple perks, along with J.D.'s wife also being on the payroll, along with a lot of other instances of nepotism?

Would there not be some sort of federal investigation done before investing federal funds in this project which has become such an embarrassing Boondoggle?

How come the Fort Worth Star-Telegram does not ask these type questions? Perplexing...