I remember the Enid ice storm in 2002. We lost tree limbs, were without power for over a week, I came down with a respiratory infection, and my best friend died of cancer. It was my birthday. The grocery store shelves were empty and lines at the gas station snaked into the street. ATM’s didn’t work and stores allowed you to write a check. T-shirts were made for the survivors of that event.
When the weather forecasters began their doom and gloom reports this week I panicked. I couldn’t do that again. They were wrong. I knew they were!
My husband and I talked since that week years ago, about buying a generator. But we didn’t because what were the chances of using it? That would never happen again.
Still the TV tried to frighten us into believing the end of the world was near. I bought food and ice melt. I made certain all the laundry was done before we lost power. I had lots of candles. The fireplace was stocked. I talked about buying a bag of ice to put in the ice chest in the garage. If the frig lost power, I could move the food to the ice chest. We would warm it up on the grill out back. We’d done it before. Instead I bought a large bottle of wine. Maybe I could just forget the whole thing! (or not).
Friday came and we had rain. Saturday the same. This morning we have some ice covering that doesn’t even bend the tree limbs. Roads are fine. It rained in Enid with very little freezing. We needed the rain, not the icemageddon of 2002. I know not all the state has been so lucky. People lost their lives on I-40’s ice-covered surface. My friend slid around going to the grocery store to feed her family after a hospital stay. We were lucky, but first we were scared. How did humans survive without central heat and lights?
The wine didn’t turn out to be very good. I’m thinking of making a sauce for chicken. But, we are still warm and dry.
AUTHOR FEST POSTPONED TO MARCH 4 In an abundance of caution, due to the potential of bad weather this weekend, the Enid Public Library’s Author Fest has been postponed until March 4, 2017. If you have questions, please contact the library or me.
It’s coming! The very first Author Fest presented by the Public Library of Enid and Garfield County and the Enid Writers Club will be held on Saturday, January 14, 2017. Forty Oklahoma authors have signed up and will take over the downstairs library that Saturday morning. Many will read from their work and will have their books with them for selling and signing. The library is creating a booklet so attendees can have their favorite author autograph it. The fest will be held from 10 am to 3 pm.
Each year as I begin a series of blogs, I try to find a theme to follow. This year that theme is “something new.” I will try each week to bring a new experience to my blog. This week I am interviewing local artist, Robert Steele (portrait by Wes Gray Photography). I’ve known Robert and his wife, Julie, for over 20 years and we don’t see each other as much as we used to. But like old friends do, we recently gravitated back to each other due to reunions, deaths of friends, etc. And for the first time, I bought some of Robert’s art. He is also the artist for the Q-Spot in Enid and uses many different media for a canvas. His art can be insightful, funny, strange, but always unique, like the artist himself. So, please welcome local Enid artist, Robert Steele.
The scent of my mother-in-law’s Italian Cream Cake recipe wafting from the oven for the big dinner tomorrow, I prepare our annual Christmas Eve dinner. It was something we did years ago with kids – snacks and Christmas goodies in front of the fire. There would be plenty of food tomorrow. When I was young you could bet I was cooking for Christmas, probably still wrapping, and the frig was full with items for the family dinner tomorrow. So we had snacks for Christmas Eve. No one ever complained. And years later we still do it.
It’s coming! The very first Author Fest presented by the Public Library of Enid and Garfield County and the Enid Writers Club will be held on Saturday, January 14, 2017. Forty Oklahoma authors have signed up and will take over the downstairs library that Saturday morning. Many will read from their work and will have their books with them for selling and signing. The library is creating a booklet so attendees can have their favorite author autograph it. The fest will be held from 10 am to 3 pm.
The Christmas wreath is a standard in our home. It hangs on the inside of the door. It is too thick to hang between the wooden door and the storm door without being crushed, so I hang it so the people on the inside of the house can feel its Christmas spirit. 
If you spent your life believing your fiancé died in a storm and then found out your father had him killed, what would you do? If you thought the people of your small town didn’t know who your father was – but they knew all along – what would you do?
Thanksgiving is next week and I’m sure you and your family have big plans. Mine has been sending email messages for a week deciding on a menu. The person who hosts the dinner takes care of meat and then everyone brings something. I’m a planner and without a plan, I am sure we will not be able to pull this monumental task off. Probably we could, but what if everyone brought only sweet potatoes! So I plan.
Peggy Chambers "Views from the Hammock" site 