Ten Feet in the Dark

There are two things I am writing in this early morning darkness. The first, is this e-mail. The second, is a list of necessary items to purchase to combat power outages. The usual fare, like matches, wicks for the lanterns, lantern oil, batteries for the flashlight and smoked tendons to keep Claire contented in one spot. But let me back up and explain!

I have brought Katydid, our friendly wolfhound home with us the past two nights. Yesterday coming home, the highway had turned into a new and used Precariously Parked Car Lot, offering all makes, models, shapes, sizes, condition and poses. Some, even had their previous owners showcasing them, walking round and round kicking the tires, or resting an elbow on the top in disbelief that their perfect vehicle that could zoom so fast past the slow pokes could ever end up in the Precariously Parked Car Lot. Many vehicles had State Troopers or Paramedics trying to draw crowds and many were quite successful!

After making it safely home and peeling my curved fingers from the steering wheel, the two dogs played in the fierce wind storm, the kind of fierce where arctic air meets mountain air meets ocean air all in a narrow valley. The wind tunnel howling effect was a display of beauty, power and awe! I would not be surprised if the strength of this wind is bringing up the smells of the past five generations of moose; by the looks of the dogs twitching noses, I would wager that my guess is pretty close!

Most of the night was spent up, reassuring the dogs that all the howling and thunking and whistling and house twisting was in fact a normal encounter, even if it felt rather like an intrusion! Bless their primitive brains for doing what dogs do best, namely, listen and watch, alert, protect! We watched at the window while several cars spent more than an hour and several millimeters of tire rubber trying to make it up the ice sculpted hill!

We lost power, and with it all sense of visibility, perceived or actual. The house is cold and getting colder by the minute. There are eight dog feet and two human feet trying to vie for safe footing. Fortunately, my cell phone lit up nicely for us to make it around until I could get candles lit. (Only four matches remain, thus the shopping list)

It is a cozy and creative morning, made more enjoyable with a cup of tea from a propane stove, but I do have two big dogs lying ever so close to my feet, squinting up at me through candlelit eyes and asking if they are dreaming, or is this for real. I reassure them once again that this is, in fact, a normal encounter and that we are loving it!