441. Ice

I woke up about 20 minutes ago to the very loud sound of limbs breaking and falling somewhere close to my bedroom windows. A small tree, the only one left in front of the house after the first two were taken out by Hurricane Ike back in September, is now history, bent over in three places, snapped in two like wooden matchsticks. Further noises, so far, have proven to be ice and snow sliding off the gabled portion of the house as well as the garage in the back. There are two very slender and tall trees between my house and the house to the west which have me greatly concerned. Out in the alley in the back, the remains of a large tree, most of which came down back in September, are now scattered like kindling. While looking out the front door, the limbs of a tree in the alley behind the house across the street fell out of the sky, creating a noise as if they were within a few handspans. The lights have blinked a few times, but thus far, as is evident by this entry, power is on. It's been a few years since we've had a serious ice storm. I can only remember three or four really bad ones in my life - this is another one. The last I recall was in 1994 - surely there has been one since then. We'll see what tomorrow brings although the forecast isn't too promising.

I used to really like winter. Maybe I am getting old.