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1.28.04 — Sunday Drive
Here are some pictures from Sunday night's
snow adventure. Officially we received 13+ inches of snow. There
are dump trucks in parking lots loading up and hauling it all
away. Plows have come through, exposing the ice rink below. It
doesn't look like temperatures will be above 25 degrees this week,
so the ice and snow are here to stay. This afternoon it is a whopping
5 degrees with -1 windchill.
Pleasantville
in the snow.
Entrance to Wilderness Ridge (across the street
from our future neighborhood).
The white on the rocks isn't snow, it's a frozen waterfall.
1.27.04 — Digging Out
The sounds of digging out are different in the Midwest. We're
used to hearing the scrape of shovels against cement in an otherwise
peaceful, snow-covered community.
Around 9 pm last night we heard a motor in our driveway. There
was an all terrain vehicle with a plow moving all of the snow
from our driveway to across the street. There was also a man with
a shovel working on our steps, and another with a heavy-duty snow
blower digging out the car. After they were done, our neighbor
came out with his snow blower, but promptly went back inside.
Too cold to be outside if you're not getting paid to be there,
I guess. And then around 10 pm we heard a grumble from outside.
The neighbors across the street were using a mini bulldozer to
dig themselves out. Not a plow—a bulldozer!
People take snow removal seriously out here. And they don't let
it stop them from getting around. Schools were closed, but people
went to work. If they got stuck in a drift of snow, someone with
a bigger truck came by and pulled them out. A lot of the drama
we're used to just doesn't exist out here. In fact, most Nebraskans
think their winters are pretty mild compared to other Midwest
cities—even Omaha. I guess it's all relative. We're just
thankful that we are renting during our first winter—our
landlord takes care of all of that for us.
1.26.04 — Snow Job
Someone has pulled a snow blanket over our eyes! Yesterday the
weather report varied. We heard 1-2 inches and 3-4 inches. Either
case, with the winds we get, isn't a big deal. Every time it snows
T always asks if we can go out driving. Every time I say no. Except
yesterday we snacked on what I was planning to make for lunch
today, so I told him we could go driving in the snow if he took
me to the grocery store.
We thought the best time to go grocery
shopping was during a Husker game. We now know it's Sunday
night during a snow storm. We saw two other customers. We were
in and out in no time. The drive, however, was surprising. I would
say we had six inches by then, and it wasn't letting up.
This morning we woke up to more snow and
winds. The news is now saying 10+ inches. That's a big difference
from yesterday's forecast! Oh, and did we mention the ice storm
that hit late Saturday night? So under all of this snow is a layer
of ice. Since the winds have started, drifts have started to form.
First thing this morning we couldn't see the bottom step of the
patio. Now we can see the cement and the grass around it. It's
very weird to have that much snow and still see the tips of grass.
And the winds usually clear off the roads and driveways to make
for easy driving and parking (but form drifts between the road
and your driveway that are impossible to cross!). Not today. This
has to be a "plowable snow."
If it's not, we don't know what is!
1.25.04 — Bonus Update
This
is the most amazing description of visiting India. Although we
didn't visit Jaipur, the stories of New Delhi and Agra are exactly
how we remember them—especially the road to Agra, which we
did ride on after dark. Scary! And the combination of people,
colors, cows, dust, majestic architechture, smells and food all
ring true to us.
1.25.04 — Change of Plans
What happens when you try to plan your weekend? Nothing goes according
to plan. We did do dinner and a movie Friday, but it was Subway
subs and The
Mask of Zorro on TNT (which is running a bazillion times this
weekend—in case you really want to see it).
Since we didn't get out Friday, and the ice storm hadn't materialized,
we decided to have ethnic night out on Saturday. We found a new
Indian restaurant to try, The Tandoor, and it was fabulous. Of
course we are comparing everything to House of India in Columbia,
MD, which is a 10 on our scale. The Tandoor was an 8. Mulligatawny
soup was good, as was the Chicken Tikka Korma. The Lamb Madras
was to die for, and it was nice to have some red meat without
worrying about mad cow. T ordered achar
(with mango, peas, green chilis and lemon), and finally got me
to try it. (Salty!) The only disappointment was dessert. We ordered
Gulab
Jamuns (don't let the photo fool you, typical desserts only
come with two balls), and they came chilled! They were really
small and kind of hard. We are used to Gulab Jamuns being warm,
soft and gooey.
We are going to make the Roasted Coriander Chicken tonight to
keep up with the Korma Club; we're already a recipe behind. The
ice storm came during the night and it's supposed to snow today,
so we probably won't go anywhere but across the street to the
grocery store. A good day to make bread dough for naan.
1.23.04 — Weather Weirdness
We're supposed to get sleet and ice Saturday evening, but today
was absolutely beautiful. 61 degrees! It makes you want to go
outside and do the Snoopy
dance. (This server is getting slammed with visitors. You
may have to try a few times before you can get through. It's worth
it, though!)
1.22.04 — House Interiors
We're working on choosing some interiors for the house. We've
been going to Barnes & Noble to look at magazines and books
to find pictures of rooms we like. It's very exciting, but a little
overwhelming. We've tackled whole rooms at once, but never a whole
house. Power still hasn't been run to our neighborhood, so the
framing has not yet begun, which means we have a few weeks to
make these decisions. Unless our builders come across a generator
to speed things up. Yesterday, workers were laying brick around
the parts of the foundation that are ready.
Other than house stuff, things have been quiet in Pleasantville.
Friday nights are usually date nights, which involve going out
to dinner. We might try and see Along
Came Polly tomorrow. It depends where we wind up for dinner
because it's only playing in two
theaters, one of which is in the north part of town. Yeah,
we know that's not far. We used to drive to D.C. to catch a movie
and now 15 minutes away is across town. Shame on us.
Saturday nights have become cook-an-ethnic-feast nights. This
week we are making Roasted Coriander Chicken from the Korma Club.
We're also thinking of making lentils and maybe some naan. Last
week we skipped the ethnic feast because we went to a party. The
week before we made Chicken Mangalorean with red kidney bean dal
and pooris. Actually, that was the first official cook-an-ethnic-feast
night. If you see anything here you want to try, send us an email
for the recipe.
1.15.04 — House Exteriors
We've made some decisions about the house: Cambridge brick, Champagne
siding, white trim, and Natural Timber roof. Basically, we've
fallen in love with this house:
The colors make it feel very different than the
original style we chose. It's amazing
how texture and color can change an exterior so dramatically.
1.14.04 — Elkridge in the News
It's not often you hear about Elkridge, MD in the national news.
Even though we are half way across the country, our immediate
reaction to the big accident was as if it was right down the street.
It's weird to feel tied to two different towns, 1,300 miles apart.
Even weirder to see the smaller of the two in the national newspaper
morning
roundup. (Second to last paragraph.)
1.13.04 — Warm Spell
Not much has been going on in the Heartland, so that's why the
Blog has been quiet. We could tell you about the wonderful, sunny,
45-50 degree weather we've been having, but we don't think anyone
in the Northeast
really wants to hear about that right now, do you?
1.06.04 — Cold Snap
It was 1 degree this morning. 1 degree! The coldest day of the
year so far.
We have an update on the house: Things are on hold right now
because LES has
not installed power yet. The builders need power to move forward.
We'll keep you posted.
On a completely unrelated note: Chipotle is owned by McDonald's!?!
1.05.04 — We're Back
We are back in Lincoln after two fun-filled, whirlwind weeks back
east. We left 60 degree weather in Baltimore and returned to 16
degree weather in Lincoln. Plus snow. Good timing, because even
though we only got 5-7 inches, we had one of those scary winter
advisory warnings. Any later and we might have been stuck in Minneapolis.
...VISIBILITIES COULD BE REDUCED TO BELOW A HALF MILE AT TIMES.
ANY TRAVEL IS STRONGLY DISCOURAGED. IF YOU LEAVE THE SAFETY OF
BEING INDOORS, YOU ARE PUTTING YOUR LIFE AT RISK...
The builders have started our house. Check out the new update
on the right for the latest house news.
I will post holiday pictures in the next few days. Happy New
Year everyone!
Last month's Blog.
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