Oh, Dear

The U.S. Weather Service has issued a severe weather advisory for this region:

Winter Storm Watch now in effect from Thursday evening through
late Saturday night...

* snow accumulations: 1 to 2 feet of snow possible above 2000 feet
with 2 to 5 feet of snow possible in the mountains.

* Timing: snow will begin Thursday. Periods of moderate to heavy
snowfall will continue through Saturday night.

* Locations include: Chester... Quincy... Burney... Paradise and
area highways.

* Winds: south 15 to 25 mph with gusts up to 50 mph.

* Impacts: snow will likely impact travel on area roads and
highways. Chain requirements are likely.

I'm just above 2000 feet. One to two feet of snow in three days is pretty bad. It usually means power outages, especially when the snow is accompanied by wind. One year when we got two feet of snow we lost the electricity for three days— and that wasn't even a very windy storm. If I vanish over the weekend it will probably mean I'm stuck in the 19th century— but I'll be without a 19th century fire in the fireplace. I really ought to have laid in a supply of wood this year.

It's so cold this morning that the water has frozen in the garden hose from which I usually fill the feral cats' front yard water bowl. A glimpse of my likely future.