OFTEN AMAZED AT THE INGENUITY OF THE HUMAN SPECIES, this morning I amazed myself.
I was disappointed this a.m. to find that I HAD NO TELEVISION RECEPTION. It started to go out about 7:00 p.m. last evening. Not a problem. However, this morning I wanted to see what the area was like with such a massive snow storm and a snow accumulation of about 2 feet plus and still coming down.
Now I can be as rugged as anyone when it comes to rough weather and living conditions. I have tent camped in Yellowstone for weeks at a time in June when it gets down to 25 F. overnight with ice on the picnic table, all to catch a few Cutthroat Trout. I once hiked a total of 14 miles, 9 miles in and 5 miles out to catch a 6 inch trout in Lake Shoshone. I'm as tough as anyone. However, when I'm at home I want my TELEVISION TO WORK.
NO TELEVISION! . . . NOW THAT IS A TRUE CATASTROPHE!
We have a lot of snow, about 2 feet and still snowing in Lovettsville, Virginia.
The fence in this scene is about 3 feet tall. It appears that the snow is right up to the top level.
This is my deck. That's a lot of snow at 7:00 a.m.
I was glad to find my electricity still working this a.m. I fully expected it to be out and, in fact, still expect to lose electricity as soon as that branch on the tree across the road, laden with snow , to break off and fall on the line with expected results. It wouldn't be the first time, but, so far so good. When I realized that the television was out this a.m., I figured it would be that way until the snow stopped and the dish could get a signal. However, a light went on in my brain! Something told me this morning that perhaps all that snow on the dish could be part of the problem. At least it was worth a try.
Fortunately, the DirectTV dish is right outside one of the windows in my sunroom. So, after opening the window, taking the screen out, I could access the dish easily. Now what to do?? The dish is covered with packed snow, a good 6-8 inch layer all over it. I needed a tool to remove the snow. I wasn't really thinking high tech. I just wanted to get the snow off the dish without doing damage to the dish or the parts that made it work. I also didn't want to cause it to move. Why? I don't really know but it made sense at the time. When coming into contact with a TV Satellite dish, first do no harm.
EUREKA, I FOUND IT!
SUCCESS! About the second I brushed the snow off the dish, I could hear the TV in the Family Room.
So far, this is a mighty storm. However, with my electricity still on and the TV and computer working,
I CAN ROUGH IT!
Courtesy, Lenn Harley, Broker, Homefinders.com, 800-711-7988.
I love it. Glad you got your TV back. So it is still coming down? Sure you have all the provisions and will be snug as a bug in a rug! We saw a news cast from a grocery store in DC yesterday and the shelves were looking bare! Stay warm, come to Florida!
Lenn....those photos look like New England in the winter.....I'm at the office and I do see a flurry or two here, but we're not getting anything from this storm....my next investment at home is a gas generator....I hate to lose power.
Lenn-I started out to take a few photos and decided a second cup of coffee was in order instead :-) I'd be okay without TV as long as the interenet is working. Could always watch plenty of TV shows or movies on the PC if I had to. Stay safe.
That's a lot of snow. Better you than me...
Lenn, My TV and internet go together so I would indeed be a basket case if both went out. This really is some amazing storm!
HA HA...I know I should not laugh but noticed that you had tent camped in Yellowstone (I am impressed) My wife and I spent 2 years in Minneapolis while she was in Anesthesia School and you all on the East coast have it easy because the midwest does this every year! Throw another log on the fire, bake, read and...oh I see you have already posted three or four en articles and its still morning ;-)
Dick and Dixie. It's still coming down. about 2 feet plus and still coming down. This is a LOT of snow.
Barbara. I hate to lose power too. I thought of getting a gas powered generator, but it would mean propane and when the dang thing didn't work, I wouldn't know what to do.
Cindy. Indeed. If given the choice, I'd take the Internet.
Michael. Thanks. Our weather is usually fairly moderate, but we've been slammed this year.
Stacey-Ann. Me too. I suppose I could get my garage cleaned out. I vacuumed my house during the last big one this year.
Russell. I'll never get used to severe storms. But, I persevere. What's missing?? Yesterday I baked and prepared enough food for 4 days in case the elecricity went out. I know family would make it to my hosue if they needed food. I'll light the fire if the heat goes out. I read all day long. What's left???
I loved tent camping in Yellowstone. I loved Yellowstone. We always went for the last two weeks in June (before the students were out of school) and the first two weeks in July (before the tourists crowded). I love camping if it's a by-product of catching fish.
Lenn, we're doing pretty good here in the Woodbridge area. A lot of snow, no power outages yet and the TV works fine. I'm about to power up the snow blower as soon as I finish here on ActiveRain. Stay warm!
Lenn - That is one monster storm! Great photos. On those rare occasions we get severe storms, I am very grateful for my generator. I usually have TV as long as cable doesn't go out.
Good thing you got your tv back or else we'd find you crouched in a corner rocking back and forth, lol. We were supposed to get 3 to 6 inches on long island but we are getting a dusting. You took great photos by the way. Stay warm and cozy and enjoy your weekend Lenn! :)
I'm having a snow day here at the Jersey Shore too, made waffles and actually got to read a couple of chapters in a book since there was no paper delivery. You guys have a lot of snow...we're expecting about 2 feet!
Lenn, I live in St. Mary's County Md. and we have at least 2 feet of snow, and its still snowing. The drifts are beautiful. We still have electricity,water and internet. I'm good to go. Take care and stay warm. Barbara
What a great post! I love the snow... That is a typical day in Bridgewater! Maybe I should bring my snowmobile and tour the area?? Great Saturday morning read :)
Mark
You're so smart...go get the snow off the satellite dish. I wonder how many folks will figure that out. Let's just hope they don't have to crawl on their roofs to get it.
WOW! I guess that's what I have to look forward to! We are in Spring Lake, NJ, it's crazy here right now!!!! Even McDonalds is closed!!!!!!!!!! 7-11 too!!!!!!!!!!!
It looks as if you've easily surpassed the last storm! When is it supposed to stop?
I have never experienced that much snow, but it sure looks beautiful. I spent 3 summers in Yellowstone Nat'l Park and remember those really cold nights you speak of, and spent the entire summers without television, cell phones or computers. But, I don't know what I would do without my satelite dish nowadays.
I'm so glad you still have power, internet and now your satelite signal. Stay warm!
We are getting plenty of snow in Montgomery County, MD...it keeps comings....the trees are bending under the weight of the wet and heavy snow.
Wow, Lenn! You were up early! I woke up just before sunrise, and the sky was an amazing pinkish orange color. And I can't believe it's still coming down. Gotta go take some pics!
Some great stuff Lenn. I've never fished for Trout, but that many miles for a 6" trout - well at least you have a great story ;)
Hi Lenn, People either love the snow or hate it. I happen to HATE it, not the beauty of the fresh snowfall, but dealing with the elements, shoveling, etc. Good luck and hang in there.
Lenn... I love the snow.. I know down your way, over 10,000 people have lost power. I do feel for them, so just losing your tv reception? lol But seriously, losing that and my internet, especially during a storm, would suck. Oh yea, and losing power to my refrigerator. So my heart does go out to those that have lost power. In some areas, the winds are up to 25 to 40 mph... knocking down power lines. Luckily there is no freezing rain or wet snow. PS.. loved the pics.. thanks
Michael. Good for you. So far so good with the electricity here. No snow blower for me. GEEZ! I've got about 2.5 feet and it's still coming down although not as thick as earlier.
Judy. I don't have a generator. I've got enough trouble. You folks are more conditioned to storms like this. This isn't normal for us.
Jackie. You wrote: Good thing you got your tv back or else we'd find you crouched in a corner rocking back and forth, lol.
That is funny. Actually, I can do without the TV but I surely wouldn't want to do without my computer. Without my computer I have a tendancy to sit in the corner, rock back and forth and babble.
Laura. We have about 2 plus feet and still coming down.
Barbara. I didn't realize St. Mary's has so much. I'll have to call some of my real estate friends down there and see how they're doing.
Mark. No snowmobiles for me. I hope my post this a.m. was entertaining. You have no idea how pleased I was to get my TV working.
Now, I better go sweep the snow off the dish again.
Missy. Not smart. Just common sense and trying something that made sense. I'm sure most folks would have known that to get reception, the dish has to be pretty clear. When the TV went out last evening, I thought it was because the signal couldn't get through the snow. That's how "smart" I was.
Gregory. It's cooommmmminnnngggg. Ooooooo.
Jim. As nearly I can figure from weather underground, it's due to end about 4:00 p.m. 4 more hours.
Amy. Thanks. As long as the electricity is on, I don't mind being snowed in. I'll get a lot of work done today and tomorrow. Then I'll get a bit stir crazy. I do miss getting to the trap range tomorrow. I'm sure they'll be closed and I'm snowed in anyway.
Yvette. Mmmm. When I lived in Bethesda, the snow was hard on those old, old trees. I lost electricity there too.
Patricia. I was up before 5:00. I don't sleep late. Never have. I imagine DC will be a nightmare trying to remove all that snow. It's not meling away for a while.
Steve. HA! Part of that great story was hiking in to Lake Shonone and then hiking out. We were always on the lookout for bears.
Christine. AH! A kindred soul. I hate it too.
Jeff. I was fully expecting to lose electricity. I'm still amazed that we have not and my fingers are crossed.
You are one tough and smart cookie Lenn. Hope you don't have to go anywhere this weekend. Enjoy the beauty!
All this snow may be inconvenient but it sure looks pretty! Enjoy the view!
Lenn, I am right there with you on that one. No TV!!!! I would be climbing the walls. I even comment on AR while I am watching my favorite shows at night ............ LOL
Barb. HA! I couldn't go anywhere if I wanted to. I'm snowed in. No idea when the guys that I have a snow removal contract will be able to get there. They know that I don't have to get out. So, they get to others before they get to me which I asked them to do a long time ago. As long as I have electricty, I'm find. Now if the electricity goes out, I'll be working the snow shovel which it would probably take me a week to shovel a path to the road. I have a looooooong driveway.
My neighbors up the hill often shovel a path for me, but who knows when they'll get out.
Shirley. I don't enjoy anything about snow. I just ignore it and work around it.
Hi Lenn, Now that is an impressive amount of snow, even if you do just mostly ignore it. When I see pictures like that, I fantasize a roaring fire and a good book. The problem is when it did snow like that where I grew up, as a youngster, it was more the feeling of being snow bound. So my remedy was to get all bundled up and then just get out in it. It would be so cold and so much snow that even sledding was lousy. Falling down and making snow angels was really stupid because then being covered in snow, we would be even colder. So we would trek back into the house for the inevitable scolding that we made everything wet as we peeled off the layers. There was no winning this constant battle.
Thus then the fantasy for the roaring fire and a book was born out of need , but that was never what actually happened. It was more the meeting of the challenge to overcome what was not to be overcome, the amount of snow and the grey skies and total boredom of being stuck inside.
As an adult now with a career, I think because I already do so much work from home, these could be high work production days of reading, learning but more likley lots of phone time, talking all about how much snow there was and how cold it is as if the person on the other end of the line would either already know it or not really care, LOL.
While I was writing this to you , I was at the same time experiencing many memories and visuals from my past. So thanks for that! It was fun!
Just having the driveway and walkway cleared ( shoveled out) as I recall did help to at least make you feel like you could escape if you wanted to. Mostly, adults didn't really seem excited about doing that and kids didn't need the path in the first place. In some areas though, it is the law that the walkways have to be cleared within a reasonable time after the snow. ( or unreasonable as the case may be) chuckle
George. HA! I do the same. In fact, sometimes I have 4 TVs going at the same time so I can follow from room to room and my gym in the basement.
William. If I never have to see or feel snow again, I'll not complain. I am snowbound and don't care. As a child, I was smart enough to hate the snow. Of course, being a girl, the boys, indescribably horrid creatures they can be wanted to see who could hit me with the hardest snowball. Now, as an adult, the guys with the Prius vehicles want to see how fast they can careen down the highway in the snow and head for my vehicle driving at a reasonable speed.
Thanks but no thanks. My snow removal guys will be here sooner or later. In the meantime, I'm happy to be snowbound. After all, I have TV in almost every room.
And my computer to reach out to the world and my dear friends in California.
Lenn, Beauty abounds as long as we have internet and electricity. Thank goodness for a backup generator which turned on only once during the night. Only one of the four TV's are working. My snow shovel and I are having multiple dates today. I will be posting in a little while. Figure by the time I shovel the driveway (no time soon) and my front steps..almost there, the plow might get here.
Stay safe and warm.
Lenn: I think you might have just created a new line of business. Your awesome pictures could make some great postcards. Stay warm!
Margaret. So far so good. The road in fron of my house was just scraped. The only thing left is my driveway. Soon.
C.Lloyd. Thanks. I can't resist recording this adventure.
Lenn we would get along great. Anyone who is that much of a TV nut is a person after my own heart :)
Lenn--WOW!!! Glad you have TV reception again and it sounds like you will survive no matter what Mother Nature sends your way. At least you have electricity and internet.
I can remember an evening of playing monopoly by candelight during a power outage. FUN!
Such Puritan-inspired industriousness, even if unknowingly applied as to outcome, should be as well rewarded as you were with restoration of your television service! Isn't it odd how such "random acts of caring" end up solving a problem that you knew was a problem, but had no clue that an otherly motivated act--just get that snow off the Dish/it's the right thing to do--would prove to be the solution?
Here in Harrisburg, Pa, we got off "lightly" with only 15-20 inches.
Lenn - Ever thought of having a set of emergency rabbit ear antennas and possibly digital over the air TV receivers for situations where your satellite TV reception is not working? I always like to have backup mechanisms.
Marc. My house is surrounded by higher ground. Can't get reception by any method other than Satellite.
Nancy. Your comment is priceless. Actually, my simple solution to the problem isn't surprising since I am the original simple minded person.
Mary. No electricity just might send me to a hotel, IF I can get out, which, to date, I cannot.
George. Indeed, I am an avowed TV addict. Love it.
Lenn, what beautiful snow! I'm with you on the electricity and TV and computer all working when at home.
Maria. Still working. Fingers are crossed.
Lenn,
That's funny. We can take anything... but we need TV, and the Internet.
Hurricanes of 2004 we stayed in a condo, and because the wire to the condo is undergraund, we actually have electricity, and TV was working all the time. And that'w how we knew what was happening in the area.
Behind the window there was a mess, and not much to see if anything, but TV was giving us allthe information.
Jon. Indeed. I love my TV. I love and need my computer. Give me some electricity and I'm happy.
Back in about 2004 when Isabel came through Bethesda where I lived at the time, I lost electricity for 5 days. Thanks goodness I had lots of batteries and a good fireplace.
I have a fireplace in my present home but it's in a family room with a 2 story celiing. I don't believe I get much benefit except within about 10 feet of the fire.
Oh well.