Chickening Out

After going home quickly after my work day, I drove back to work because they have electricity here. I will spend the night at my sister's house (also here). When I arrived home, my house was okay. No huge trees fell on it. My nutty cat is okay though she's a bit insane with terror. I gave her a few treats and brushed her fur. Oh, and cleaned her litter because I felt guilty for leaving her in the dark with shitty crappy litter. 

On the way home from work, when I first turned my car onto my road, one of my neighbors who I have known for 15 years (at least)  wouldn't let me continue the drive up the road because the road near the "resort" (a fancy name for trailer-park) is blocked due to the storm.

My neighbor is getting old (he's in his mid, maybe late 80s) and didn't recognize me.  I could see him driving toward me in his silver van, maxing out his speed at about 3 mph with a trail of other cars behind him. He stopped his van and started to warn me. I explained to him who I was. "Oh, Yes!" he exclaimed in recognition. Through the van window, he yelled at me, "WHAT DID YOU DO TO YOUR HAIR?" I hollered back, "I had cancer. I went bald and this is what my hair looks like now!" He said, "Well, you look great!"  I said, "Well, thank God for cancer!" He's a Republican Baptist so he was all over my "thanking God for cancer" comment - in total agreement. Only then I was allowed to continue the drive home as he lead, at  molasses-speed, a caravan of suicidal neighbors further down the road.


Before coming back to work, I cleaned out my fridge to find 127 assorted containers of 60 calorie chocolate pudding, 5 opened and half-full bags of frozen pineapple tidbits, a soon-to-be-stinky chicken carcass that I didn't have time to cook yet, and a half package of partially frozen bacon from when my husband was alive. 

Did you ever notice how being without electricity can be insanely motivating? It's usually about the time when I want to use the elliptical or get on a treadmill or dry my hair with the hair dryer while using some power tools. Having no electricity usually translates into time to climb in the hot-tub with a bag of freshly microwaved  popcorn though first remember to turn on the crock-pot while watching TV and listening to the radio at the same time you're vacuuming. I am 100% sure that electricity was invented during a power outage. Power outages are that motivating. 

I brought a few things back with me (pudding!) to put in the fridge here and I parked the chicken carcass on the front porch as a warning to the others.

Today's storm is supposed to be much worse than Tuesday's. I hope the newly assigned chicken doorman is up to the task.