Texas Storm been hard

[Brokenhandle]

Well you could always go old school. As many of you have seen some of my posts from rendezvous, one group has their frosted fanny rendezvous every year on valentines weekend. This year was no different, and yes, in temps below zero!

Yes, those 3 little buildings are the outhouses. Never did claim they are sane! They have tried getting us to come for years, and always get the same three word response.

Ryan

 

[tx smoker]

I was thinking more in general .

I knew what you were referencing and completely understand the good thoughts you intended. I'll always be the first to jump in and help somebody but as of right now we couldn't get anywhere if we wanted to offer help. Due to that, the only thing I can concern myself with right now is the well being of Tracy and I. Once the smoke clears, we can then help others if need be. I will say though that the building codes here are pretty stringent. Not like in CA because of all the earthquakes, but to build a house to code it will be pretty well built, especially being that all the building jurisdictions are utilizing the most recent adaptation of the IRC (International Residential Code) as a minimum standard.

We are electric heat in our home.

We have gas heat and some folks around here, like our neighbor, thinks that with gas furnaces you can get heat if the power goes out. That's a misnomer and I absolutely could not get him to understand. Even gas furnaces require an electronic ignition system and the air handlers that distribute the conditioned air are electric. Gas furnaces = no electricity, no heat.

Robert, I totally understand the feeling of needing a Shower, hang in there Buddy

Well buddy, I heated up some snow that we melted yesterday on the stove, did an impromptu sponge bath, shaved, and rinsed the hair really well. Did not use any soap or shampoo because there was no way to rinse off but I sure do feel a lot better...almost human to be honest

Best wishes for ya, and hope power comes back on soon and you get water

We have power right now but there's no telling for how long. Been really crazy this morning...15 minutes on then 45 minutes off. Still no water though and here's the really sad part. With the ice storm in progress the crews can't even get to the problem areas to continue the repairs. More ice coming later so they may not get there till Friday at best. One thing that has hit me like a ton of bricks is the number of things I take for granted. Things I never even think about until I look up and no longer have them. Yesterday was a struggle but the magnitude of what we are dealing with has set in. Today has been the same issues but easier to deal with now that we've been through a day of it and have adjusted.

Think I'll head into the kitchen, fire up the Blackstone griddle where it's been since Saturday afternoon, and do up some steak and eggs.

Power went off a little while ago just as I was about to send this. Cooked breakfast and ate it. Regardless of the conditions, we will continue to eat well. Rib eye cap steak, a couple eggs fried over medium, and a few torts heated up. Was tasty and appreciated even more due to the circumstances.

Robert

 

[Bearcarver]

It's been rough here Brian. Rolling power outages for several days and we totally lost water 2 days ago. Our water is pumped out of the lake and through a treatment facility. When the power to the grid was turned off Sunday night the pump stopped running. It was 4 degrees and the main water line froze up. They have not been able to get it thawed out so no water. We had 4 consecutive days of sleet and ice then 7" of snow Sunday night. Temp have not come even close to going above freezing for a week now so it's just a solid sheet of ice. Starting last night we have 2 more storm fronts dumping more ice, one of those storms is in progress now and we couldn't get out anywhere if we wanted to. The second storm will hit this evening. The only road to get to our area from town is impassable and has been since Friday. I can handle the power outages but sure would like to take a shower and shave. All day yesterday was spent melting snow and boiling it for potable water. I didn't bother boiling what was brought in and melted to flush the toilets though. I did learn a valuable life lesson however: it takes 15 gallons of snow to melt in order to flush a toilet one time Sitting here in the dark, unshaved and needing a shower while typing on my tablet. I didn't even bother getting Tracy up for work. It's pointless so may as well let her sleep. The positive side of the situation is that I saw this coming and was well prepared for it. We have plenty of food, beer, bourbon, and margaritas....hey, gotta have your priorities straight, right? Our cook top is propane and we have our own tank buried, which is full so we can cook. There are numerous cookers on the patio also that I can cook on so no issues there. The only one I can't use is the Rec Tec but that's ok. The folks on the other side of the community where all the multi million dollar Lake front houses are have it way worse. Their propane for heat and cooking is on a public system and provided by way of a large community tank. Heating their 15,000 square foot homes takes a LOT of propane. The tank is empty and the company that fills the tank for them can get down that evil little road to refill it....and they snub their noses at us living on the poor side of the tracks My biggest fear is this: with no water the commercial ice machine out in the garage can't make ice. I'm scared to death I'll run out of ice for my afternoon margaritas. That would be tragic. Oh well, typing this way is difficult so gonna wrap it up. Hopefully things will start to turn around pretty soon. See y'all later....hopefully from a real computer.

Robert

Notice from The North:
When you see it coming ahead of time, Fill Your Bathtub, for Shaving, Washing, Flushing.

Bear

 

[Bearcarver]

Hey Now! That wasn't me. Every couple of days, had to go Old School. Boil a gallon of water. Add cold water and a shot of Body Wash, and wash head to toe with that. Not much fun.
My Mom told a story about when she was a young child, growing up during the Great Depression. Baths were once a week. Grandma filled the big Galvanized Tub you could sit in, Grandpa washed first, then the Six, at the time, kids, oldest to youngest and Grandma went last. They didn't get a proper Bathroom Tub and Toilet until after the War. Can't imagine walking to the Out House in NEPA, during the Winter!...JJ

LOL---Outhouse---We had indoor plumbing at our house, when I was born, but My first 3 years of School were in One Room Schoolhouses without running water, and when needed the use of either the "Boy's" or Girl's" Outhouses was required.
Indoor plumbing at school from 4th grade on.

Bear

 

[SmokyMose]

Sad to hear about the issues in Texas. You see it on the news but it hits home hearing from you folks directly. I think a lot of people here don't realize that it is really unusual there to have weather like this. We're kind of used to expecting it (although digging out of 10in. of snow is a pain, we haven't had power or water issues).
Hang in there and know that a lot of folks are thinking of you.
Kind of makes you think twice about windmills....

 

[bregent]

Also the wind generators froze up.

As I understand it, wind generators are only responsible for 13% of the outage. The bulk are from other energy sources.

Sorry for all of you who are suffering right now - Hang in there!

 

[tx smoker]

Hey y'all, just in case anybody is curious, this is how you flush one of those newfangled 21st century toilets.

Cookin' in the dark this morning: rib eye cap steak, couple eggs, and a couple torts on the Blackstone griddle on the island in the kitchen. Was actually a pretty nice breakfast.

Things might be starting to look up. Just got word that the water company has fully restored the main pump for our water. Now we need 4 hours of uninterrupted electricity in order to sanitize enough water for them to start pumping it to us. Fingers crossed!!

Robert

 

[BrianGSDTexoma]

Hey y'all, just in case anybody is curious, this is how you flush one of those newfangled 21st century toilets.
View attachment 485430

Cookin' in the dark this morning: rib eye cap steak, couple eggs, and a couple torts on the Blackstone griddle on the island in the kitchen. Was actually a pretty nice breakfast.
View attachment 485431

Things might be starting to look up. Just got word that the water company has fully restored the main pump for our water. Now we need 4 hours of uninterrupted electricity in order to sanitize enough water for them to start pumping it to us. Fingers crossed!!

Robert

They just sent out message to shut down the whole city due to water issues. Even Walmart closing. I just filled 3 buckets with what pressure is left.

 

[tx smoker]

They just sent out message to shut down the whole city due to water issues. Even Walmart closing. I just filled 3 buckets with what pressure is left.

Interesting. Tracy just came in and told me that all her coworkers who live in Austin are now having their water shut down also. With no power the pumps can't run to replenish the water that's needed and reserves have run out. Batten down the hatches Brian and if you can, get to the store immediately and grab as much water as you can. There's not a bottle of it left in our little grocery store, not even carbonated or sparkling water and I saw 2 people almost in a fist fight over the last green pepper. People get crazy at times like this.

Robert

 

[BrianGSDTexoma]

Interesting. Tracy just came in and told me that all her coworkers who live in Austin are now having their water shut down also. With no power the pumps can't run to replenish the water that's needed and reserves have run out. Batten down the hatches Brian and if you can, get to the store immediately and grab as much water as you can. There's not a bottle of it left in our little grocery store, not even carbonated or sparkling water and I saw 2 people almost in a fist fight over the last green pepper. People get crazy at times like this.

Robert

I have 10 gallons got for home brewing.

 

[tx smoker]

I have 10 gallons got for home brewing.

Good for you sir. Now batten down the hatches and leave the city to the idiots They do abound and there's likely to be insanity when the water is shut off.

Robert

 

[Brokenhandle]

Thankfully where we live when we lose power we still have water. Rural water company has backup generators to keep going in just such cases. To be expected tho since we expect weather like what you have now which you shouldn't be getting. Hopefully it starts improving sooner for you guys.

On a side note we have friends that pulled there camper to Texas for a few weeks to enjoy some warm weather and to ride their harley. Just moved to New Braunfels, the last campground they were at lost electricity and froze water pipes. We might be heckling them a little bit!

Ryan

 

[gmc2003]

In case of emergency break glass, or in this instance - Drink allot of beer:

https://www.outsideonline.com/1778791/can-water-filter-render-urine-drinkable

Chris

 

[Bearcarver]

As I understand it, wind generators are only responsible for 13% of the outage. The bulk are from other energy sources.

Sorry for all of you who are suffering right now - Hang in there!

Yup---Gas is freezing in Pipes. Nuke gages & meters freezing up.
Too cheap to insulate things---"Awww, it'll never get that cold here!!!"
Chalk it up to PPPP---Army Style!!
No Regulations--No Inspections.

Bear

 

[Brokenhandle]

So everything is bigger in Texas... bet they didn't mean the snow and ice storms!

Ryan

 

[MJB05615]

I truly feel you you all there. My Brother in Law and his wife live in San Antonio, and have been without water for several days. They can get to the store, but shelves are empty. Their home food supplies are very low because they are in the process of moving to Fla. Too bad they didn't make the move a month or 2 earlier. We hear from them daily to make sure they're safe. But it's terrible we know. Truly a once in a lifetime weather event. Hoping it gets better asap. Continue to stay safe all.

 

[JLeonard]

Thinks have been tough here in the Memphis area this week also. Thankfully not as bad as what you texas folks have had. Prayers and warm wishes headed your way.
Jim

 

[Fueling Around]

Minnesota and North Dakota power generation companies are sending electricity south to supplement the failed green and added demand due to the cold.
A 13% loss in generation when demand is 150% kinda suck in the big picture.

 

[Murray]

SaskPower exporting electricity to southern U.S. to aid with ongoing power outage

SaskPower is exporting 175 megawatts (MW) of electricity to the United States

www.moosejawtoday.com

 

[BrianGSDTexoma]

Made it worked couple days. Was there Tue when nobody else was. Tried thhis morning and icy from melted snow. Came back home. Bad news when got to work yesterday. Our Manager killed himself. So hard to believe. Was the one good guy we had. Gave me big hug when told him I was retiring. Seemed so together and happy. Feel really bad for his family.