Arran Snowed In
 

Mr & Mrs Limey are seriously snowed in.
No power since Friday I think (possibly Thursday.)
They have a Calor Gas camping stove, an open fire and a coal-burning stove, but are basically confined to one room, cold and miserable.

Limey, being the amazeballs person she is, was also looking after the OAPs next door. They were picked up by ambulance today, to take them somewhere warm where they could be assured of taking their medication at the right time..

Arran is national news here. Which is why I wanted to let you know how cut off they are, rather than burying it in a thread about me, me, me.

Sounds unpleasant, but disaster sex is fantastic.:blush:

Tell that to the two male cats!

Oh that sucks !!!

Any idea when the weather will clear??

Snow drifts are amazing over here too. We had a blizzard pretty much non stop for two days. Crazy strong winds, so one part of the lane would be scoured to a glass finish by the wind and then the rest of the lane under a gigantic snow dune. at night, when it's quiet and lit by the streetlights, it looks like some strange saharan landscape.

On the way down to mum's earlier, people were digging chanels out to the clear side of the road for their cars. The mountain of snow piled up in the middle dissecting the road. Everywhere you look there are huge mounds of the stuff.

I ran out of Carrot food this morning. Saw it coming from a couple of days ago, when the snow hit and the village was cut off. He's been on chicken broth today :P

Oh, and I have juuuuust about enough milk for a cuppa before bed, because the shop was out of milk and out of powdered milk too. I did manage to get some coffeemate for morning.

I just hope the buses and trains are running tomorrow. have to be at uni for 10am. It's almost two hours at the best of times. And if the lane is as bad in the morning as it is right now taxis won;t want to come up there, so it's a walk to the main road for a bus, then a walk from the bus station across town to the train station.

I'm hopeful. The main roads usually stay pretty workable, it's the connecting streets that cause the problems.

[eta] by 'main road' I don't mean the high street, but the roads linking towns.

We just saw Arran on the news here! Amazing shots of the snow. It looks like it's covering some houses completely! Is that true, and if it is, would it then follow that it would insulate the house somewhat if there were some way to heat it in the first place?

Screen grab from a BBC video
Attachment 43461

I hope Mr & Mrs Limey have some good blankets or sleeping bags to cuddle in close to the fire. And enough food to last until the roads are cleared ... and if all else fails, what Bruce said. :p:

It sounds like they've got the whole damn empire in high gear to take care of Kintyre and Arran, so the Limeys will be OK.

Well, not really. The Limys do not loive in a village, the "village" on their address comprises approx 5 houses.

If it was a matter of life or death they could make it to Blackwaterfoot with a shovel and a couple of hours to spare; it's 9 miles and the roads will be damned near impassable.

I just hope their gas holds out. They have two full freezers to make their way through - Limey admitted she was considering putting everything out in the snow and just turning them off. That would make the cats happy, I happen to know there is some yummy chicken in there...

Hello!
we've had no power since Friday 8am. Have a coal stove and two-ring calor gas burner. Lots of blankets and cats on the bed. We have the phone (landline) but no innernets, no mobile signal (never have that anyway).
Am in a borrowed office in Brodick today trying to get a little work done.
All food in the freezer is now basically at "eat or waste-it" stage.
The road past the house looks like this:

Welcome back, you beauty!
So glad to hear you're all okay.

Now go do some work and stop playing in the Cellar.

One last picture!
The view from our front door on Saturday morning!

You know how I told you and Mr Limey (and the rest of the Cellar as it happens) that I wished I was snowed ib with you?
Changed my mind. Loks too damned chilly. I forget I feel the could now when I'm immobile.

Much love to you all x

We got a nice bout of snow, but we're so damn populated we only got a two hour delay this morning. Yeah, the street fixin' people are quite proud of their new beet juice concoction. I've heard it's beet juice.

I could really go for a hibernation.

limey, where you live is so beautiful and idyllic. It fits my fantasies of a serene life. This may or may not be true but it sure comes off that way.

Wow that road photo was scary! Do they have the equipment on the island to deal with this or do they have to ferry it in?

Um, couldn't you put it in a cooler outside?

I will answer for Limey in her enforced absence. TWO freezers full of food.
She'd need a stack of coolers for that.

Not criticising your suggestion and I may be wrong, but Limes is a very practical gal. She'll have cpndsidered all options. Now she can leave the house she'll have more options anyway.

Have sent some non-refrigerator provisions just in case.
Although Lord alone knows when they'll arrive.
Probably tomorrow!
Limes got the cake I sent her the day after I posted it.
The 'rents got the postcard I sent from Arran the day I got home. Six days after it was sent. Not quite sure wich postal service to lay the blame on there.

Phone's down....weirdthough, cus broadband is still intermittently working.




Mum's car was too deep in snow to dig out safely, so bless her, not only did she walk up the hill to take care of Chops this aft (I was out the house at 8, so he'd been on his own about 4 hours) she also then walked to the pet store and got supplies. That's an hour round trip on foot, with a small but surprisingly heavy sack of kibble on the return leg.

Am very grateful.

The snow's been melting, but it was snowing again about an hour ago. Just a light dusting thankfully. I'm really hoping this is it now.

Wait, they've got two freezers full of food they have to eat or lose, and you send more food? :haha:

And the Isle of Man got some too.

Fuck fuck fuck. It's snowing again here.

How's things in Arran now? Seems weird hearing people interviewed on the news from Arran. I listened to the radio and some bloke was talking. I thought...bet Limes knows him!

:lol:
These they can keep in the cupboard.
They'll need sustenance while the other food is rotting after all...

I intended to send it as soon as I got back; Arran has small shops (compared to the mainland) and an almost totally white population. So they don't always have access to the well flavoured/ well spiced food we enjoy here, I mean. Not suggesting that they might get lost in the snow with their albino skin tones...

Although I did send something that really needs something else to go with it. Something they had in the freezer. But the somethings also have a long shelf life.

No spoilers, sweetie.

Following Sundae's advice we ate the rapidly thawing chicken from the freezer with a Thai curry spice kit yesterday evening. I think that's the last cooking I'll be doing at home as I want to reserve the camping stove fuel for breakfast coffees. We'll be patronising the free food stations much more from now on.


Sent by thought transference

Glad you're doing ok limey. :)

The star of the show ... a French stove of indeterminate age whuch is keeping us warm of a night time.

Sent by thought transference

Wahey! Scored another as cylibder for the wee camping stove!:):D

Radio 5 Live had reports from farmers in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland earlier.
The Welsh hill-farmer damn near broke my heart, talking of digging out dead lambs, and sheep aborting in the snow and having no electricity to help them. I knew the farmers would be hard hit, but it really brought it home. He has a (nearish) neighbour whose son is a soldier home on leave, and he had come to help and lend his muscle, but there wasn't much he could do except pray for a thaw.

Almost makes me feel guilty to be almost-veggie these days.
These people need our support.
I'm just glad Arran's supermarkets/ shops are the Co-op. I trust them and their Red Tractors (assured food standards branding.)

I was SO cold earlier I had to go back to bed.
Then the 'rents came back from shopping and switched the heating on.
I wasn't even wearing a hat. Damn I'm lucky in where I live, even if the rest of my life is falling apart.

Glad you're okay babski.
Sent them cats out for some red hot meat.

Glad to hear that you're hanging in there! I hope power will be restored for you soon. At least you have the means for morning coffee for a while longer. :)

Both Limey and Dani need a pint (of coffee) every morning to get going.
Said so before in our Glasgow thread, so I'm not rubbishing them behind their backs.

I just need a pint of wine.

Damn it Limey, you mean to tell me Phillip hasn't arrived with the pizza the Queen sent you. :haha:

Seriously though, it sounds like you're coping well, and little miracles like a cylinder for the camping stove, are a sign that everything will work out OK.
Hopefully with minimum long term damage to your community, and lots of good stories to swap over a drink at the social club.

Parcel of Indian ready meaks arrived today! Now I know what's for dinner tomorrow. Thanks Sundae darling!

Sent by thought transference

Bloody hell - good delivery really does only work one-way!
Morrissons have stopped stocking Gits - at least according to the disinterested assistant I questioned.
To be fair, he showed me this range as an alternative.
You know what? I can't even remember the name!
Gits is certainly memorable.

Anyway, I wasn't sure if you had rice pancakes or not, but I checked the best before date and as they're vacuum packed they can wait until you get more duck.

Ditto Indian food. Cupboard. Nothing can stop your cupboards working. Not even faeries.

You're lucky actually. I craved one of those meals to the extent I had to ask my Dad to help me wrap it up. I admitted to him I wanted it immediate scoffing. He said, with a Serious Frown, "I'll take you back to Morrissons if you really want." And that shamed me. So they were all packed and sent. 'Cept not with panda tape, as discussed.

Love y'all.
xxx

Thanks again Sundae! It's nice to know you care! Now on day 6 without electricity at home. Getting kind of old now. Most other places, including those with far more snow than us have had generators installed providing intermittent power at least.

Sent by thought transference

six days? Oh Limes, that's just horrible.

I felt hard done by when my landline went down for 48 hours :P No electric I think would send me mad.

You'd think that the utility would start by restoring power to the areas without generators and move on to those with. 'Getting kind of old' is generous of you, Limey! Hang in there - hope you don't have to put up with this much longer.

My personal low point was emptying the freezers yesterday and throwing away seven carrier bags of spoilt food including good quality butcher meat and about 20 home-cooked meals. Made me cry.
Today we have abandoned the cats to their electricity-less fate and are off on a long-planned trip to London so that Mr L can go and see Arsenal play at the Emirates.
I'm shattered.
Sent by thought transference

I'm so sorry Limey.

Oh honey that's horrible. Glad you're getting away from there for a while.

Just read your post to Mum. She felt your pain. She sends her love.

I know how careful you are with food, and not letting things go to waste, so I also know it's not just the money, it's the care and effort which is lost.

Enjoy London, chick.
Photogs would be nice.

ETA, I'm sorry Mr Limey is going to see The Arsenal as well...

I'm so sorry, Limey. What a shame. I hope your trip goes well.

Sorry Limey. That happens around here all too often. People end up having huge feasts and invite everyone they know to eat everything up before it all goes to waste. It's a small silver lining, but I don't really know how that plays out if everyone else also has freezers full of spoiling food, though.

Yeah, that really sucks. After one of our more recent power outages, a friend bought a generator just to keep his freezer going. He buys meat by the animal, so he's got a lot of money tied up in that freezer's contents.

That's a good plan, as it appears the current weather patterns are going to be with us for awhile. Don't forget food that has thawed, but is still cold, can be refrozen if the means are available. Might hurt the texture a mite, but safe to eat.

Bruce, my difficulty was that I was going away and had no idea whether or when power would be restored. It's all in the bin now, I'm afraid.

Sent by thought transference

Yeah, that's why I said, "if means are available", I realize in your case it's not.
Just throwing out some wisdom many people aren't aware of.

Limey throws out food.
Bruce throws out wisdom.

I still love them both. But Limey has some Indian meals in her cupboard.
So it looks like food wins.

Sorry limey. I don't know squat about soccer, but I hope Arsenal at least wins the game so you two can have something to boost your spirits.

If you think this is going to be happening again......

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Pack-Mountai..._sbs_grocery_3

80 meals, 25 year shelf life, £430.00:eek:

Of course, just rotating a large supply of dried beans, fruits, rice would also do the job much cheaper. Add some dried or jerky meats for you and the cats.


Being snowed in requires that you:

1) Have a large supply of wood or an uninterrupted supply of gas for heating and cooking.
2) Have a good supply of water. Melted and boiled snow is fine. White, not yellow.
3) Have an adequate supply of food. Cold items like granola are fine, but heatable foods are more comfortable.
4) Fuck like bunnies.

Check.
Check.
Check.
Check.
:D


Sent by thought transference

I don't think limey lacked for food, surplus was the problem. :haha:

Perfect prescription (from a Canuck who spent lots of time in the snow belts of northern Ontario). :D

Ianto.

Just made me laugh (even though Limey still had a landline.)
Because you just gotta love a bit of Ianto., right?
Or a lot of Gareth David-Lloyd if JB is to be believed.


Ah shoot, thought this was also the clip where Owen [the character, not the actor Burn] suggested they all had sex. Y'know. Just to pass the time.

Still, it never happened anyway. Not on TV.

Wow.

Is it usual to have that kind of weather this late in the year?

Just for the sake of the contrast, I'll mention here that last Wednesday, as I was helping put a new roof on the first aid post at a festival in south-central New South Wales, it was 41 bloody degrees, with evening thundery showers.

That weather belongs in Darwin in December. WTF?

Zengum, it's not usual to have that kind of weather on Arran at any time of year! We only get snow every couple of years and even then it's a few inches which is gone in a couple of days.
That snowdrift is still there today, 10 days later. It's only half the height now, but any other year a three-foot snowdrift would be considered ma-hoo-sive :eek:

Sent by thought transference

We usually dont get it so late here. Though there've been a few early March snowfalls.

Apparently it was a lot more common during the first half of the 20th century.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotlan...lands-21999542

:eyebrow:

I dinna ken how ta gang fra the braes to yon Arran, but, fook me.

Okay, Brits, WTF?


*stifles giggles*

To be fair, it's all about what you're used to and equipped for. My town would be paralysed by two inches of snow on the ground.

Unprecedented for that area of the country :p We get much bigger wildfires onthe moors near us.

Plus, you know, that whole 1666 thing.