A Storm's Coming Which Triggers a Quest

I got up yesterday morning thinking that I would make progress on my Faculty Annual Report which was due yesterday.  But I watched various weather forecasts and started feeling a bit anxious about the threat of ice this week-end.  If we lose power . . .  and then my brain was racing.

We have alternate fuel sources, like the woodburning fireplace.  But it's not a great source of heat, and with the damper open, it lets in a lot of cold air.  A few years ago, we bought a small heater that is O.K. to use inside.  It runs on propane, and it needs the smaller propane canisters, not the big kind that fuels the grill.   And yes, we've tried the hose/valve set up that's supposed to be an adapter, and it doesn't work.

I did a quick count of the small propane tanks:  3.  Are there more in the shed?  I don't know.  We've ordered them from Amazon before, but when I went to order, I realized that the delivery date was next week, which won't help us if the power goes out on Saturday.

I thought about all the people who would be waking up to the possibility of a winter storm.  I thought of the blissfully ignorant people who would get to work and decide to get supplies in the afternoon.  I did a bit of searching on websites.  It looked like the Lowe's in Spartanburg had a good supply, while the Lowe's a mile from me did not.  The Lowe's in Spartanburg is easy to swing by on my way to work, so I decided to leave early.

But how early did I need to leave?  Would there be crowds?  I gave myself plenty of time.

Happily, I didn't need a lot of extra time.  The propane tanks were near the front, instead of the row where the website said I would find them.  Happily, an employee pointed me the right way.  I bought 10 tanks and wrote a text to my spouse which ended this way:   "If you think we need more, let me know.  Right now they have plenty but I imagine soon they will not."  My spouse wrote back and said that he estimated we'd have enough propane for 40 hours which would be enough.

Once I got back home in the afternoon, we went to get gas; we wanted to be sure we used our Ingles fuel points, plus I noticed that gas prices had risen since morning at one place, but not at the Ingles.  Both the Ingles gas station and the grocery store were jammed, but we did get both cars filled up.  Given my daily commute, I'll need to fill up again tomorrow, but hopefully that won't be a problem.

We used our fuel points and got our gas for 44 cents a gallon--WOW!!!

Then it was back home, and after a Zoom call, I spent the rest of the evening finishing my Faculty Annual Report.  It's a pleasant enough activity, thinking back to what went well in my teaching life in 2025.

Faith Lutheran in Bristol, Tennessee decided to cancel worship Sunday, which makes sense to me.  It looks like we will not avoid a significant winter weather event on either side of the mountain.  I suspect that Spartanburg Methodist College will cancel classes on Monday, but we likely won't know that much in advance.

My hope is that we have the gentler possibility:  some snow, but not crippling.  My real hope is that the power stays on, along with the water.  I hope to make good use of the time, but most important is to stay off the road.