Contrasts
My niece sent me this picture taken on my brother's farm near Richmond, KY. They still have no electricity there. They have an old fashioned cook stove and are using it to cook and keep warm too, so it has come in real handy. It is pretty isn't it? Those weeds bent over look like hoola hoops to me! You can click on it to enlarge it some.
I have another brother in Richmond and they had no electricity yesterday and I don't know if they got it back today or not. Then my other brother lives in Frankfort, KY and they still have no electricity. They were all hit hard. I just thank the Lord that it missed us!
If you read Judy's Blog she lives in that same neck of the woods and she may not have electricity and service restored either. I'm sure as soon as she can she'll post on her blog.
Some people have no electric, no water, no phone, no internet.....it's like living in the dark ages!! Actually, I'm sure it is to many people, especially the younger ones! That first day we had no phone service, no internet, and lots of the cell phones were not working. There was an editorial in the paper about it saying that some of the younger ones at the newspaper office were very distraught that they couldn't call anyone on their cell phones, send a text message, and they had to actually get up and walk down the hall and deliver a message instead of e-mailing it!
They would never survive if they had to live like we did growing up. No inside bathroom. You got up shivering and shaking and ran to the Warm Morning heating stove, that your Dad had gotten up earlier and got the fire going in, so it was nice and warm. Then you turned and warmed your front and then turned and warmed your backside! Back and forth! Usually we got into our clothes right there in front of that stove. Then we usually washed our hands and face in cold water. I don't recall that being a big deal. But for a bath I wanted warm water, which had to be heated on the stove first. Mom always had a nice breakfast cooking, usually with sausage or bacon, eggs, biscuits, and gravy. There was some sort of sweet goodies to put on your biscuit if you had a sweet tooth, usually jam, jelly, syrup, or honey. All good!! Ah, the good old days!!
Kids today would survive it but it'd sure be a drastic change for many of them!
I have another brother in Richmond and they had no electricity yesterday and I don't know if they got it back today or not. Then my other brother lives in Frankfort, KY and they still have no electricity. They were all hit hard. I just thank the Lord that it missed us!
If you read Judy's Blog she lives in that same neck of the woods and she may not have electricity and service restored either. I'm sure as soon as she can she'll post on her blog.
Some people have no electric, no water, no phone, no internet.....it's like living in the dark ages!! Actually, I'm sure it is to many people, especially the younger ones! That first day we had no phone service, no internet, and lots of the cell phones were not working. There was an editorial in the paper about it saying that some of the younger ones at the newspaper office were very distraught that they couldn't call anyone on their cell phones, send a text message, and they had to actually get up and walk down the hall and deliver a message instead of e-mailing it!
They would never survive if they had to live like we did growing up. No inside bathroom. You got up shivering and shaking and ran to the Warm Morning heating stove, that your Dad had gotten up earlier and got the fire going in, so it was nice and warm. Then you turned and warmed your front and then turned and warmed your backside! Back and forth! Usually we got into our clothes right there in front of that stove. Then we usually washed our hands and face in cold water. I don't recall that being a big deal. But for a bath I wanted warm water, which had to be heated on the stove first. Mom always had a nice breakfast cooking, usually with sausage or bacon, eggs, biscuits, and gravy. There was some sort of sweet goodies to put on your biscuit if you had a sweet tooth, usually jam, jelly, syrup, or honey. All good!! Ah, the good old days!!
Kids today would survive it but it'd sure be a drastic change for many of them!
posted by Rachel at 1:53 PM
14 Comments:
The way you grew up sounds nice. It reminds me of when I was young and for 3 months we traveled and camped from MN to TX up to CA and everywhere in between when we moved. I don't think anything could taste better than my mom's breakfasts over the camp stove. We have lived here in Erie 10 years and I've never seen icicles like these before. I don't know if it is the thaw/freeze cycles or what but it looks like the ceiling of the Carlsbad Caverns on our roof and the roofs of just about everyone in town. It's dangerous, you could get impaled by an icicle.
Kids may survive something like that but I don't know how long it would take them to get in survival mode. Everything these days is at their fingertips. And if it isn't they see that it is. And to me, that toughens nobody. People are raising a bunch of softies these days.
Some of my Arkansas and Kentucky blogger buddies have been without electricity, but they're getting back online now one by one.
I love the memory of your childhood mornings. You're right about today's kids. Mine panic when the lights go off for two hours and they can't play Wii or e-mail friends.
In 2005 we didn't have electricity for three weeks (after one of the five hurricanes came through Miami). It was hot and dark, but we bonded with our neighbors and actually got to spend more time together as a family. Actually, it wasn't so bad.
You are so right about the young people - I have seen them text each other across the table instead of talking - serious. We are losing our ability to communicate face to face.
I sure wish your mom had invited me over for breakfast that sounds great.
Ralph
What wonderful memories of your childhood! I've been wondering how things were in your area. So much devastation from the ice storm.
Glad you're safe!
xo
We had a wood stove to cook on as well. We often used corn cobs instead of wood.
My cousin in north Arkansas has not power and may not for a week or two. We were without power for a week with Ike. We evacuated over to Karen's she didn't lose theirs.
Did you have to eat all those cupcakes or did you get them to town for the girls?
Stay warm, I'll return for the church sign. Remember that I give driving lessons.
..
Boy did you nail on that one....When Hurricane IKE came our way and we were without power for 12 days, we did just fine...Sure it was hot, but we survived......But I have to say, we were prepared....I have a butane single burner cook stove that I cooked on, we had a generator that kept our freezer, refrigator, one lamp, one fan and the computer going. We had our candles, lamps and flashlights prepped and ready. We didn't have air-conditioning but I lived for 16 years without that so it didn't bother me that much. We actually made a game out of it and did well.
I really feel for those without heat, warm water and etc.....I think I would rather take the heat than the cold....I keep praying for all the people up there who are suffering from all of this....I hope they get their power back soon.
Hope your brothers get their power back soon.....Glad you are OK!
I didn't realizxe that such a bad storm had gone through your neck of the woods Rachel....I have not had the news on at all.....! I'm glad you have been hit as hard as some others---Especially those of your family...!
It occurs to me that some of these kids don't remember a time when they DIDN'T have cell phones....AMAZING, isn't it?
I lOVE your description of you got warmed up as kids....But how wonderful that your Momma always had a good warm breakfast every day---You would NEED it!
I remember standing over the floor furnace and waiting there until my legs practically burned but I loved it. Thankfully I only remember indoor plumbing though my siblings might remember an outhouse.
The ice storms remind us how vulnerable we are with our dependency on technology. The ice storm in the North East in 1998 saw no electricity for over three weeks in the depth of Winter. it was so severe 1000 of the transmission towers collapsed due to the weight of the ice. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_ice_storm_of_1998 These storms can be deadly.
Rachel,
Well, I have some of those same early memories.
It would be very hard for folks to have to go back to those times- kids or adults!
I've been very concerned about the bad weather this winter...but it will soon be past!
Oh! The kitties are cute! :) I know you enjoy them !
Take care,
Junie
Rachel, that sounds like my childhood. I can remember breaking ice in the water bucket in the kitchen when we first stepped out of bed in the mornings.
I remember one time waking up and there was snow on my bed. There was a big crack beside the window.
I hope it never gets like that again. The kids wouldn't survive and neither would I.
My kids would feel as if they were being tortured if they didn't have cell phones and computers. Then, if they lost electricity and heat, they'd just keel over.
:-)
Kentucky got hit so hard with this ice storm. It does look pretty, but I know it has been awful for many people to deal with.
You haven't posted much about your three brothers.
I'd like to know more about them some day.
I am SO thankful that the bad stuff did not get you.
Your memories of years past sound so nice because your house was filled with love. Momma fixing a hearty breakfast and Daddy stoking the fire in the stove to keep his kids warm.
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