I'm playing around with a drabble fic concept I thought of last night. This isn't beta'd, outlined or particularly character mapped. It's a drabble because I can't commit to long chapters. I have to get back to TWW, and I've been putting it off.

Let's just see where this one goes, yeah?

Summarry: Bella never liked a guy who's liked her back. She's finally found her groove when a stranger starts sending her mixed tapes. When her assumptions prove wrong, will she send mixed signals to the real man behind the music?  A 90s High School drabble fic

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/7706050/1/Mixed_Tape

Did someone I know get me a weekly subscription to a gossip rag?  I've been getting weekly mailings from a mag that I shall not name (for fear of bots). Hmmpph. They're not my normal read, but they did coincide with the opening of Breaking Dawn. Kinda win, I guess. Thank you Periodical Fairy, wherever you are.

- Me

Power was restored to our home Friday night. I wasn't at home, but my husband left me a singing voice mail,

"I've got the power!"

Sweeter words could not have been spoken.

My husband and I have enjoyed this quiet, simpler week together. We've interacted nicely (for the most part) as a family, enjoyed toiling around our home, etc.. I have a greater appreciation for daylight hours and ways with which to fill them.

One of the last dark nights at home I started reading Edith Wharton's Ethan Frome. I can't believe I graduated from school and never read a single thing the old dame wrote. It was a short read, a bleak read and written 100 years ago. I'll probably make an entry in my effleuragereads blog about the experience.

I missed fanfic, if I'm honest. I've just begun catching up with my emails and alerts. sleepyvalentina had a birthday and has posted a ton of updates. I can't wait to read them! Happy birthday, Colleen!

  My kids are getting cabin fever and getting quite obnoxious. I've offered to drive them to the mall (Which has power) for a brief shopping excursion with Grandma. ("That's boring!")

  I've told them to get outside and play in the yard, rake leaves. ("Eh, no.")

  Instead, misery loves company and they choose to share their boredom with me, interrupting this quiet time I've carved out for myself. Phooey.

  No school today, as if we couldn't guess. I should know soon about tomorrow. I expect to go to work tomorrow. My power is still out. Hopefully, it will be restored by Saturday at midnight.

  That's all for now.

"Plunge and Scrub!"

- Far and Away , 1992






  I did laundry today (small load) in my bathroom with a large plastic tub and an antique washboard that I took off my mom's knick knack wall. This might sound pathetic, but everything I know about using a washboard comes from the movie "Far and Away." I had one of the kids snap this picture before the battery power died. I washed just small stuff like socks and underwear -- things that my hands could actually wring out and lightweight enough to stand a chance of drying on one of the clotheslines. My knuckles are raw and hurt a lot.

  I was thinking that one of the area historical preservation groups should hold a small workshop series called, "How to Thrive for up to 10 Days Without Electricity Using Old-Fashion Household Methods". It would teach individuals how to use a washboard to clean clothes, inform on what kinds of things -- like oil lamps, firewood, cast iron cookware -- to have on-hand for such unexpected emergencies. There should be a class devoted to canning techniques and maybe one about amusements for the children. I'd absolutely sign up for a workshop like this!

  The weather is warmer now outside. My husband says that is the reason why my recent attempts at keeping a fire in the fireplace have failed. He thinks it's easier to start and maintain a fire in the cold conditions. Speaking of warm weather, my perishables are about ready to toss now. The outside warm weather prevails and the packed snow in the cooler is losing it's integrity. Phooey.

  I'm still amazed that we have hot water! Oldest child brought her boyfriend in from a neighboring town for a hot shower. He remains without power.

  At a previous reckoning, the power company said that electricity was not likely to be restored until maybe Thursday. The newest thing I heard was possible restoration by Saturday. If everything stays as-is, we'll manage with dumb foods like canned goods, pancakes and pasta.

  I miss my oven, ready access to a telephone, NPR and my washer & dryer. I've got a huge laundry mountain in the basement, piling up. I was behind in washing before the storm.

"How quickly we forget how beautiful it is to gaze upon the stars on a clear, cold night."

- Mr. Effleurage
10/31/11

  It's just after 5:30 AM on Monday morning. My husband and I are in the kitchen, brewing Earl Grey tea on the gas stove. We looked out the kitchen windows up to the night sky; stars and their constellations were bright and visible without electricity in the city.

  We've made a few latent "discoveries" in the past day. Foremost, was the discovery that we have hot water. Our gas-lit hot water heater is indeed working and the oldest child has had a hot shower already. 

  Secondly, my husband discovered that we could heat our chilly kitchen by turning our gas burners on full-blast. It has brought that room's temperature up to almost 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

  We're listening now to FM radio in the kitchen. Mr. Eff is eating some of our homemade pizza I cooked on the grill today. It came out OK.

  Today is Halloween. Our kids were looking forward to dressing up and trick-or-treating. It's not recommended, according to the Mayor.

  The radio personalities say that, "1979 was the last time that we had a measurable snowfall by Halloween."

  Three people have died from this storm. UPDATE: at least eight people dead.

  2.8 million homes without power in the Northeast. It could be a week to ten days before power is restored.

  Today is the aftermath of a big snowstorm in the Northeast -- our first snow of the season. We knew this was coming. The weather reports on television indicated somewhere around 8-12".

  The snow started falling yesterday whole I was at work. The snowflakes were large and wet. As I left work at 3:30, I remember thinking how pretty the snow was and how it looked as though I was driving through a snowglobe. That quaint picture was soon amended. Within an hour of coming home, our electricity flickered and went out.

  My stepdaughter and I drove out to Ace Hardware for artificial firelogs and "D" cell batteries for our lanterns. We were lucky to find a supply. Last night, we couldn't have known how long we'd be without power... -- Or heat! The firelogs came in a box of six and were supposed to last for three hours each. Mr. Effleurage lit the fireplace all night and kept the fireplace doors open to let in the warmth. The logs lasted only ninety minutes each.

  My husband and I kept an ongoing vigil last night as tree limbs, heavy with snow and still leaved, fell from high. Our backyard was walloped with big branches from our ginkgo tree. Our next door neighbor's cars were hit repeatedly by the maples on the treebelts. I was torn between pitying their poor cars and calling their owners idiots for leaving them on the street!

  It's daytime now. We are still without electricity. I put everything from the refrigerator out back onto the porch to keep cool. I packed frozen goods into a blue cooler with fresh snow and left it alongside the milk. I hope none of the food spoils! We are fortunate to have a gas stove. I light it with a match or lighter wand.

  The children are dressed in layers. We're wearing lots of polar fleece, getting cozy with warm blankets...
  The snow is beginning to melt off the tree branches. They are so low, bowed under the weight of the thick snow and their unshed leaves. It is dangerous outside, under tree limbs which still might fall. Many have already fallen onto our neighbors' power lines. One bigger branch fell onto our lines last night, but Mr. Effleurage pulled it off with the help of a tall wooden ladder.
  So my kids keep asking,
  Honestly, I think it's too soon to answer that question. It's 11 AM. This dinner will likely be a first for me: homemade pizza cooked on the propane grill! Gotta do what you've gotta do, right?

  I hope the electricity returns sooner, rather than later. I would love to take a warm shower. I feel stinky. At the moment, the best I could do is fill the tub with cold water and add boiling water from the kettle for temperate water.

  Our cell phones don't work, probably unusable because of network pileups. I don't know. My husband said that when he tried to place an outbound call, he got a message saying that service was restricted to emergency calls only. Our regular landline is a VOIP, dependent on the internet and electricity. I feel kind of isolated. I'm also worried about getting gasoline for the vehicles. With no electricity, gas pumps don't work. My husband still has to commute to work -- work never lost power.

  Thus far, I don't know if the children have school. We aren't able to ascertain whether any parts of the neighboring town have power. Surely they wouldn't send kids to school without heat and electricity!?

  Tomorrow is Halloween. I didn't buy any candy. I thought I still had time. Bum deal.

  The oldest child took my vehicle to get some dry firewood at her boyfriend's house. I am grateful to her for making this errand. I miss the Sundays when our extended family used to spend time together.

 

Happy Birthday, Kalimando! I got the giggles when I found this one. I hope that your birthday is peaceful and that the people you love truly celebrate you. :)

BTW, One of my kids wants to be Alice Cullen for 10/31! LOL!

<3, Jen

 I've been reading less Twific lately, and haven't written anything since Springtime. Eh, I guess it comes when it wants to.

My kids have reading lists for the vacation, so I've been spending more time at the library picking out print books myself. I always wanted to write a blog that wasn't wholly connected to something like the PTO or my fandom blog. Something more personal, just for me. Yesterday, I put up a book blog up on wordpress.com. It's not entirely what I envisioned because I'm cash poor and can't pay hosting and domain fees, but it'll suffice.

In case you're interested in what I'm reading or you want to talk books, visit my book blog: