Blizzard of '11

The beast is here, up from the great plains. I hear from a friend in Oklahoma that it shut down the whole state.

It's been snowing now for about four hours; the wind is howling through the neighborhood. The trees roar and houses creak back at the wind. The snow is coming "down" sideways.

The temperature has gone down only a degree or two since noon. It's not so terribly cold out, yet: 21 F now.

The one thing I worry about is that the power will go out. Not so much for me -- although I don't relish the thought of the cold night -- but rather for my Mom, who is dependent on oxygen and respiratory treatments. We have plenty of oxygen bottles, but foregoing the regular treatments for any length of time would not be good for her. So I pray that the Lord will be merciful to us all, and keep the power on.

Here's the "before" photo of my street.