Now that was a storm.

…and it struck a little early.

According to the forecast I saw, yesterday was supposed to be colder than Friday and then today was supposed to go all to hell.

That would have been reasonably good timing, because yesterday evening was the scheduled time for one of S&L’s famous all-neighbors parties in honor of a couple of newbies. And the party went off wonderfully well – but we were all aware that the wind had come up an hour or two beforehand and the storm jumped the gun and broke while the party was going on. Which meant…

…not everybody even made it home under their own power. Super-heavy wind, sideways snow, temperature dropped 20^o in an hour. The one family that doesn’t have 4X4 ended up stranded and we ferried them home in two different vehicles. 4X4 is usually unnecessary in the boonies – but you don’t always get a lot of warning about when it’s going to stop being unnecessary.

The storm stayed just long enough to make the homeward trip an adventure, then the sky cleared completely. And you know what that meant…

Single-digit temperatures for the first time this winter. Landlady normally comes over for coffee before heading home Sunday morning, so I was in a hurry getting the cabin’s indoor temp presentable.

Funny thing: At one point last night, supper table conversation turned to a list of all the dangerous or possibly-dangerous game we’ve seen so far this winter. One neighbor claimed he saw two bears on his game camera, and was an eye-witness to the brutal murder of a coyote by a mountain lion. That was … motivating news. And then this morning while Landlady and I were enjoying coffee, her dog suddenly wanted into the cabin and when she got in she was trembling and the hair on her back was all standing up. She had seen or smelled something she thought called for immediate human intervention or at least comfort. I asked Landlady if she was carrying, and she admitted she was not. So – I lent her a rifle and she didn’t even give me a funny look. That’s not weird. Right?

Then I went off for chicken chores…

…and I have to say at least the storm aftermath made for a beautiful still morning.

Here’s how strong the wind got last night…

That’s the inside of Landlady’s woodbox, which is on a covered porch normally sheltered from the wind. Except it can come whistling around the corner of her dining room hard enough to rip open the lid, which is why I keep it locked with that snap link. But snow blew into the box even though it was locked shut.

I got home to a nice warm cabin…

…got my coat and boots off, and then looked at the voltmeter…

“Dammit, Joel!”

And put it all back on again…

And now hopefully I can relax, make a mocha and stay indoors until afternoon chicken chores.