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Monday 23 December 2013

Storm warning!

Darker the red, stronger the wind! Forecast for 24th December


England and Wales are currently being battered by gales and heavy rain, and it's set to get worse for them during the night.  Scotland has it's very own storm arriving later tonight and blazing on through the day. Winds of 80mph predicted.

I'm hoping the power stays on at least!  I'm all set for a siege (probably for at least a month looking at the fridge!).  The crew on our ferry did a grand job getting into the pier tonight, and final supplies arrived. Most visitors have arrived safely on the island with one or two more expected tomorrow I think. Though with the forecast whether they get here or not is another matter.

I've shown the weather map to Button and she's just gone out during a lull in the wind and rain.  Hens are shut in with ample supplies of hen food and scraps.  Charlie the barn cat has been left a tin of food on his "table" - which he will probably eat tonight! But at least he'll have some food in his tummy for the worst of the weather and mice to catch in the barn.

I've just taken my chocolate and orange cake out the oven (in place of Christmas cake), stuffing balls prepared and in the freezer.  A lovely free range local chicken (unrelated to mine!) in the fridge for Christmas dinner and beyond....

Torches with new batteries, camping lantern, gas for heater and hob (hot plate) so should be OK..... see you all the other side of the storm! And stay safe everyone! I know folk in the US are suffering bad storms as well as those in the UK.  Not good at this time of year when folk trying to get places for festivities.

Oh and Happy Christmas to those of you who celebrate!

18 comments:

  1. we here in israel hadthe first snow storm in 100 yaers.it lasted 3 days .hope everything will be ok with you and your beautiful cat,

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    1. Oh my goodness!! How did you manage!! Did you find it exciting? I can't imagine seeing snow for the FIRST time! I love it when it's crisp and white but sadly it quickly turns slushy and brown with traffic etc..... Everything is fine here thanks with both me and dear Button.

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  2. we had our first snow storm in 100 years. it lasted 3 days.hope you and your beautiful cat will be ok.

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  3. No gales here just very cold temperature - 31 C on our roof thermometer this morning. Hard to imagine those hearty Orkney lads living on Hudson Bay those many years ago without hydro etc. Enjoy your postings very much & look forward to more
    - Merry Christmas from Manitoba

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    1. Brrrr hope you are keeping safe and warm? No I can't imagine what it must have been like for the Hudson Bay folk. Orkney doesn't get much snow and it's certainly never that cold! I love hearing the Hudson Bay stories though....

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  4. No gales here today just cold temperatures -32C at 8 am. Difficult to imagine those hearty Orkney lads spending a winter on Hudson Bay without hydro etc. Enjoy your postings very much & look forward to more. Merry Christmas & wishes for a prosperous New Year from Manitoba

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  5. Do hope the storm isn't as scary as it looks on the weather forecasts - the wind arrows are just a solid white line over the NW of Scotland and beyond.

    Think of you every time these storms appear, and they seem to be endless at the moment.

    Hope you can have a very happy Christmas, and thank you for your blogs, which I look forward to every time!

    Regards, Barbara

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    1. Thankfully we've weathered quite a few of the gales now. Though still lots more to come I suspect, sigh. Yes had a lovely Christmas and thanks for your kind comments on my blog :-)

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  6. hope your ok ? Happy Christmas :)

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  7. Woosh! Batten down the hatches, snuggle up and have a happy Christmas!

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    1. At least now I've got into a routine for battening hatches!! Ah here comes another gale.....

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  8. Bright and windy here in Yorkshire. Hope you're safe and everything is undamaged. Enjoy your festivities.

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  9. You seem very well prepared, so I hope you and your household emerge from this awful weather unscathed - and that you have a very merry Christmas in spite of it! That chocolate and orange cake sounds like a good companion to have in a stormbound house. :)

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    1. Doing OK so far thanks DB! HOpe you are too and you have running water where you want it and only there! Yes the chocolate orange cake was delicious thanks - and I didn't have to share too much of it either ;-)

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  10. Christmas greetings from Nova Scotia. We seem to have escaped much of the nasty weather. 300,000 people in Southern Ontario (Toronto) without power ! They've had nasty freezing rain there, while we have mostly had rain. Stay warm and cozy my friend.

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    1. Oooh I've been hearing about Nova Scotia and various parts of Canada that are having horrific weather. Hope you are warm and cozy too?!

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  11. Hope you've come through okay. It was bad enough here on Speyside.

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    1. Kind of getting used to it now....sigh.... it's a constant theme this winter....

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