Storm's a'comin Pa!!

Warning:  this post might be a little whiny in spots.  Sorry,  sometimes that's just how I roll.

I guess Irene is heading our way.  We don't live on the coast thank goodness but we have issues that come up with heavy rainstorms.  Our driveway is one.  Do you remember learning about erosion in elementary school?  Well, if you want, just send your kids over here to see a live demonstration of erosion.  This is what our drive  looks like now, thanks to just a couple of heavy rains in the last couple weeks.  Imagine what will happen if we really get slammed with Irene.   I am a lousy photographer because this does not do it justice. 

 

This is the Grand Canyon of Maryland.  Btw, did you know there is a 'Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania'?  There is and if you take a road trip there,  make sure you also check out Clyde Peeling's Reptile Land.  Kids love it.

Ok, back on topic.  The deepest parts of this crevasse are probably more than a foot deep.  Definitely not friendly to tires.  And we are a family of a few small cars.  It's a challenge to get up this hell hill without bending an axle.

 As you can see, there are trees on one side and a fence on the other.  Makes it tricky to go around the bad spots. 

I have an awesome big brother who very kindly pops over every now and then with his skidloader and pushes all the gravel back where it belongs and we are happy for a couple months before................

 This is the drive above the bad part.   I think this is part of the problem because of all the runnoff that picks of speed on this straightaway before hitting the hill.  Our plan is a couple of speed bumps here to slow the water down and even divert it.  Until we get that done, we are going to use some sandbags.  My sister-in-law suggested that yesterday and we are ready to give it a try.  Mr. 9patch stocked up on some bags of sand yesterday.  Cross your fingers for us.

Today while we wait for Irene,  I am getting all the laundry done.  If there is a widespread power outage around here, we are always the last to get power  back on.  No power equals no water when you live in the sticks and have a well.  In the last 10 years we have twice lost power for days, once for 6 days and once for 4. Honestly folks,  I can tolerate just about anything as long as I can have a cup of coffee and a shower in the morning.  One time when we lost power, I got in the car and drove 2 miles to a convenience store to find out that they had no power either.  So I turned around and went 4 miles the other way to a Burger King - no power there either.  Five more miles to a McDonalds where I got to wait in line and listen to city folks complain about not having power for FOUR whole hours.  Yes, I confess I was a little bitter.

 We have a generator now and we have it set up to plug into the house so we can have the basics like the water pump and a refrigerator and a light or two.  We haven't used it that way yet so I sure hope it works.  The gas cans are lined up next to the generator, our cell phones, MP3 players,  and computers are charged, candles and lighters are at the ready.  Bring it on!!

What do you do to get ready for a big storm?