Tuesday, February 9, 2021
Freezing temperatures are on the way with single digit nighttime lows predicted. It hasn’t been this cold here in a very long time. Some snow is also possible.
New strains of the Corona Virus are popping up across the globe daily, or so it seems. Media and medical professionals still recommend getting the vaccine. New infections have slowed down again.
Palo Pinto County reports 2648 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 61 deaths.
Sunday, February 14, 2021
It’s snowing and eleven degrees here. The high for today is 23. Our church worship service was only online. We are having trouble keeping the livestock watered due to freezing temperatures. Twice a day the guys go out in the freezing cold to break up the ice.
Tomorrow’s high is 19 and more snow is predicted for Wednesday. We aren’t expected to get above freezing until Friday. A winter storm warning is in effect for all of Texas, and Governor Abbott has already declared a state of emergency.
Former President Trump was acquitted yesterday in his impeachment trial.
Palo Pinto County has had 2709 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 63 deaths.
Monday, February 15, 2021
It’s 14 degrees and this afternoon our water pressure dropped to a trickle. The guys melted snow for the livestock.
The power grid struggled to keep up with energy demand. Many homes across the state are without electricity. We have not lost power, and we are fortunate enough to have a fireplace and wood to burn. The Dollar General near us is out of propane and milk.
Tuesday, February 16, 2021
Water is still a just a trickle. The water company said a pipe to one of the main pumps froze and they are working to thaw it slowly so that it doesn’t break. Due to freezing temperatures, it may be Friday before the problem is solved. They told us to bring in a bucket of snow to melt for flushing toilets, and we can take water bottles and fill them at the water department, but they also only have a trickle there. We have drinking water, and we’re melting snow. But we are unable to shower or wash dishes.
My sister and a family friend have been out of power for thirty hours. They are in Tarrant County and the electric company isn’t making any guarantees of when it will be restored. In Palo Pinto County some homes were completely without power while others experienced spotty off and on service.
Thursday, February 18, 2021
At our ranch, the anticipated second wave of snow/sleet never materialized. The main roads are clear, but the ground is still snow-covered. We’re still hoping our water will be restored tomorrow. Most of north Texas (if not the state) has been told to boil their tap water before consumption for the next few days.
I had cooked a lot of food on Monday without cleaning up before the water shut off. I never thought I’d be excited to wash dishes, but I can’t wait to get to them. We’re out of clean bowls for reheating and eating the beans and stew I’d made.
Texas is in a state of emergency with power outages lasting for days throughout the state. Several have died from carbon monoxide poisoning and structure fires due to people trying to keep themselves and their homes warm. Stores are out of food or electricity and gas stations are out of fuel. Trucks can’t make deliveries to businesses closed due to power outages.
The weather conditions have forced most COVID-19 vaccination sites to close. The infection rate is falling. Palo Pinto County reports 2738 positive cases and no new deaths.
Monday, February 22, 2021
We finally got water service again, a little more than a trickle, on Saturday. On Friday Sturdivant Progress Water Supply issued this along with the boil water notice: “Please, do not use water for any non-essential purposes until we can fully restore tank levels. This means laundry, washing dishes, bathing or showering or any other non-essential use of water.” Remember we’d been out of water since Monday. But we were joyful at the possibility of flushing the toilets and washing our hands. And we held to the hope of showers in our near future.
Temperatures were in the seventies yesterday, and the sky was clear. But Texas is still in survival mode. Some schools are closed or working online while busted pipes are repaired, and to give families who’ve been without water or electricity time to get caught up on laundry, baths, etc. Local restaurants are unable to serve drinks or ice due to water boiling restrictions.
A few Texas children froze to death. I never thought I’d say that. It’s horrible.
Today the US marked 500,000 deaths from COVID-19 and 28 million people have tested positive.
Sunday, February 28, 2021
Weekend weather was cloudy and wet. We no longer have to boil our tap water, but there is still a lot of air in the lines.
Due to decreased COVID-19 infections and increased vaccine numbers, Governor Abbott is considering lifting the mask mandate.
Palo Pinto County reported 2768 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 67 deaths.