Weather in our area is usually mild and humid, without the sudden Continental variations you find in the Middle West. We don’t have tornados in spring, only the subtle differences of various precipitations: persistent drizzle, stubborn shower and/or rough downpour.Of course, some variety may sneak in the midst of all this humidity.
For instance, when a wind storm went through the state, we knew what it would entail. We heard the weather warning, felt the blasts of air on the house, and gathered candles and flashlights. I put the cattle on the stove to prepare a bottle.
The effect of wind on those lines, with the occasional help of nearby broken branches of trees, is predictable and we know what to expect. The lights flicker once or twice in the evening – another hint of what is to come – and suddenly we are in the dark. We saw some lightening in the sky and since there is no thunder, that means transformers have blown up. 
From our previous experiences whose longest lasted three days, we have collected some know-how as well as good flash-lights. Their batteries have the size of a small bilingual dictionary. The candles provide some glow; the flashlights are used to move around in the house. We also have a small radio that works with a crank. It includes a flashlight and boasts it can also recharge cell phones but we did not find any plug that would allow that.
The lack of TV and computer motivated going to bed early while the house slowly got colder. We could not even rely on pups that are known for their three-layer warm silky fur: our two cockers spaniels curled up with each others at the end of the bed without any concern for us. We felt somewhat neglected…
Early morning, the faithful wife got up, took care of the dogs, prepared hot tea thanks to bottle she prepared before the power went off then went back up with two additional blankets to arrange on the sleeping husband.
Eventually the power came back that day round 3:00 PM. The basic joys of daily life were brought back to us. The pleasant move of the switch bringing up light in a room! The soft and automatic voice that says “welcome” when you get to AOL! The simple joy of zapping in front of TV!
A few days later, snow replaced wind and it has been falling since last Sunday. The temperature went down around 20 so the snow stays put. A little like in the Paris area, the lack of habit in snowy conditions create some confusion on the roads. 
This type of climatic condition allows for some artistic challenges when it comes to taking pictures. Some of those challenges are still partly unresolved. For instance, taking color pictures of a black cocker on a snow background.
Those unusual phenomena may merge: for tonight, more snow AND a wind storm are forecasted. That should be interesting…
Always the faithful and dutiful wife. I love it! Hope he does the same for you once in a while.
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