We Made the Weather Channel

Yes, our little corner of Pennsylvania made the national news this weekend when a freak snowstorm hit us on Saturday.  Jim Cantore, from the Weather Channel, actually came to town and was broadcasting live from our area as the snow came down.  Now remember....this was October 29, not the end of November or early December.

It was a really wet, heavy snow too, which made it particularly devastating to tree branches, fences (like our neighbor's fence seen in the distance from our backyard), and power lines).  The towns just south of us got about 10 inches of snow Saturday.  We got about 5-6 inches of snow before things tapered off and I suspect it was actually more but the weight of the snow just compacted everything down.

I kept expecting us to lose power.  The lights were flickering all day and several times they went off but came right back on.  I was working away on my computer most of the day and even when the power went off, it came back so quickly that my computer just came back up without rebooting.

We were the lucky ones.  When all was said and done, over 250,000 people in our area were without power.  Ugh!  Even our church was without power until Sunday afternoon.  Our church staff decided to cancel most of the activities and one of the services but they went ahead and had one service without power or heat and over 170 people showed up.  The heat generated was from warm hearts and good fellowship.

I got a lot of knitting done Saturday and Sunday.  It was the perfect time to snuggle under a blanket in the recliner, find some episodes of a British comedy to watch (I'm currently working my way through past seasons of the British show "The IT Crowd," and to work on winter knitting.

I finished this cowl.  The pattern is the "Nougat Cowl."  I love the colors of the yarn, don't you?  It reminds me of the changing leaves of trees in autumn (not that you'd know it, looking at the trees in my yard after our winter storm).  This wasn't a Christmas gift.  I took a quick break to knit this up for myself.  When I saw one like it at my local yarn shop and found out they had some of the same yarn available, I just had to snap up a skein and whip one up, too.  Now that it is finished, I'm working on a Boo Boo Bunny for little Luke.  His sister, Mika, reminded me that Luke didn't have a bunny of his own.  She was holding HER bunny at the time, which I had made for her when she was a newborn.  That was all the incentive I needed to get busy on some knitting for baby.

Stay warm!  Winter is obviously just around the corner.

Killer Apple Antics

Every so often you stumble across something so funny you just have to share it.  Today is that day, my friends.  In keeping with the "scary" theme of Halloween and with a tip of the cap to someone who did a great job of musical editing, I give you......The Attack of the Killer Apples!  Enjoy.

Freaky Friday Faves

It's Friday again and if predictions hold, this could be the start of a "Freaky Weekend" so I'm calling this post, "Freaky Friday Faves."  Yes, things are afoot for the weekend and I'm excited to see if they pan out.  But more on that in a minute.  Let's get started on five things that have or had me feeling blessed this week, shall we?

1.  Our little Mika - Isn't she sweet as a daisy in this picture?  It is always a joy to receive a weekly update on the grandchildren, especially since the update is accompanied by new pictures.  I can't wait until she gets here for Christmas.

2.  Our little "spud", Luke - Not to be outdone by his big sister, our grandson, Luke is getting cuter every day as well.  From the pictures we've seen, he seems to be quite the smiley boy and I have a feeling that this is indicative of a good-natured personality.  Boy, I can't wait to hold this little guy again.

3.  It looks like the new iPhone 4s is on its way to our house.  We got the notice yesterday that the Commander's new iPhone was enroute and due to arrive here today.  Since we ordered both phones on the same day, I'm hoping that means that mine will also be delivered today although so far, I haven't received any email to that effect.  Even so, I can live vicariously through his enjoyment of his new phone.  At least I have my new iPhone case here and all ready for my phone, when it arrives.

4.  Snow is in the forecast!  Yes, you read that right, folks.  They are predicting 3-6 inches of snow here in south-central Pennsylvania  for tomorrow afternoon.  This is October.  If the snow arrives as predicted, it will be the earliest appreciable snowfall on record in this area.  Could this be a harbinger of things to come this winter?

5.  Bad A__ Housecleaning - No, that's not me.  I just couldn't resist sharing this picture with you.  A friend posted it on Facebook. I don't know who to credit the pic to (so sorry for that) but just love the humor.  Wow, if I tackled my housecleaning like that, I almost think that dirt would cower before me, or at least run to the neighbor's house.  Sadly, I haven't reached this level of cleaning yet.


Do you have some highlights to share for this past week?  Why not blog about them and then jump over to Living to Tell the Story and click on Mister Linky to join the fun?

Pardon Me While I Locate My Brain

"No, no....you DON'T want to keep going!"

Something happened on my way to visit my mom in the nursing home.  I went one way and I think my brain decided to go a separate way.  You see, I was driving on the Pennsylvania Turnpike just one stop over from my town.  It should have taken me about 20 minutes.  Well, you know how your brain kind of goes on automatic pilot when you're driving sometimes?  Maybe that's what happened.

"Maybe I need one of these smart cars to tell me what to do."

As I approached the exit, I noticed police cars set up at the exit ramp with flashing lights, a long line of cars and trucks sitting on the ramp and lined up all the way through the exit terminals and down to the road I wanted to go on, and a temporary electronic sign set up by the exit saying "Caution...accident.  Expect long stops."

"No problem," I thought.  "I'll just go on to the next exit and get off there and take the back roads over to the nursing home.  That way I'll avoid getting stuck in this jam."

So I sailed right past the exit and got about 200 or 300 yards past it when I suddenly realized......oh, no......I'm on the Turnpike, not Interstate 81.  The next exit isn't one mile down the road.  It's 22 miles down the road.  It's like being in a cattle chute.  You can't just turn around and head back.  You have to stay the course and keep on going until you reach the next official exit before you can loop around.  It wouldn't have been so bad except that it was a gray, rainy day, most of the leaves have already fallen off the trees, there was a mist hanging around so that there wasn't even much of a view to see, and I had lots to do at home.

I called the Commander to get some sympathy.  "Hey, it could be worse," he said.  About 10 minutes later, he called me back.  "Where are you?" he asked.

"I'm heading back now.  I finally made it to the next exit," I replied.

"Oh, too bad," he answered.  "I was just thinking that you might want to take Route 11 back when you get off the Turnpike because the exit you want will probably still be blocked."

He was right, of course, but it was too late to do anything about it.  I did the logical thing.  I sailed past the exit I wanted AGAIN and just headed on home.  I'll try again tomorrow.

"Hey, brain....where in the world are you?"

Guess my brain was lost in space today.  Thankfully Mom wasn't expecting me so she wasn't disappointed.  Luckily, I had gassed up the car the other day, too, because my tank had been rather low.  Let's hope I can figure out what road I'm on by tomorrow.  Oy!

Disguised as a Book

BookBook Case for iPad

Wow, this company ships quickly!  I ordered my BookBook cases on the 24th of October and they arrived today, the 26th of October.  Talk about a pleasant surprise.  Let's take a look at the iPad case, shall we?

Here is what the case looks like before you put the iPad inside it.  There is a leather thong-type strap that hooks around a leather circle.  There is an elastic strap on the top of the side where your iPad goes as well as two leather tabs on the bottom that the iPad slides into.  The inside is a nice soft suede that provides a non-scratch surface that won't damage your iPad screen.

Here is how it looks with my iPad inside the case.  I had to take my Smart Cover off the iPad but all that means is that I have to put it to sleep myself now and not expect it to go to sleep automatically like it used to when I'd close the cover.

BookBook case set up as Stand

When you want to use this case as a stand, you slip the top of your iPad out of the elastic and take the leather strap out from behind the iPad.  It sounds fussy but indeed, it is a very quick operation.  Now you put your iPad back under the elastic and then fold your case open, taking the leather strap around, under, and back to the little circle thing (sorry, I don't know what the official name for it is), and then adjust the angle you want for the stand before wrapping the strap several times around the circle to secure your stand.

iPad in Upright Stand Position

 Reverse the procedure when you are finished using your iPad in the "stand" postition.  When you aren't using it with the "no-hands" approach, you can just hold it like you would a book on your lap and it will stay open while you manipulate your screen as normal.

 BookBook case Spine

Put your iPad in sleep mode or turn it off when you're done using it and zip up your case and this is the end result.  It looks just like a book.  How cool!

BookBook iPhone case 

I also got my case for my new iPhone 4s (which still hasn't arrived).  I wanted to show you how the two cases compare in size.  If you've ever seen a pocket-size New Testament, my new iPhone case is about the same size.

Waiting for my new phone

Now I just have to get my new phone and then I'll take out the "dummy" filler and slip that baby in my new case and put a few credit cards and my driver's license on the other side and I'm good to go.  Oh, guess I'd better slip a twenty in there as well, in case I get hungry for a snack.

Device Cases for Booklovers

If you've been reading my blog, then you know that I LOVE to read.  Books have been some of my favorite things since I was just a kid.  In the past few years, I've changed the way I like to read books, preferring now to read them electronically on either my Kindle or on my Nook.  Still, it's nice to give the appearance of a book and with that in mind, I've found some covers for the technical gadgets in your life that will show others that you are a fellow booklover.

1.  Zazzle has a wide variety of iphone cases for booklovers.  Check out the selection at this link.
http://www.zazzle.com/for+book+lovers+iphone+cases

2.   This vendor has got to be one of my current favorites. BookBook makes covers for iPhone, iPad, MacBook, and MacBook Air. Right now I have a cover on order for my iPhone 4s and my iPad and when they arrive (well, and when my iPhone arrives), I'll be sure to post a review of these covers for you up here on the blog.

3.  DodoCase covers can be simple or more elaborate like this Fantastic Flying Books of Morris Lessmore Case for iPad:

4.  Gelaskins offers covers for Kindles and Nooks like this one designed by Colin Thompson.  You can also submit your own photo which they can make into a custom skin for you and they do a great job.




Nedrelow - offers simple traditional book covers that you can personalize with your own custom texts or purchase with text the company offers.



So what are you waiting for?  Go check these companies and their products out and see how you can advertise your love of reading.