Notes From The Bunker

Hunkered down inside my house with the wind blowing and the snow still falling, I have become a news junkie. When I am home, the TV is a constant companion, but usually Bravo is streaming live on my TV. Due to today's "historic storm" the TV has been left on the local news channels that have been bellowing emergency information and snow fall totals all morning long. As of now,12 noon EST, in my part of the state we have recieved over 20" of snow with no indication that it's stopping. 

I say bring it! I just made a beef stew in the crock pot and I'm about to make some spiked hot chocolate! We are lucky because we still have power so the play list is qued up and the backgammon board is at the ready. Even Buddy has his storm provisions. He's got a gorgeous bone that he's been happily devouring at my feet for the past hour. 

The govenor has issued a state of emergency warning as well as a driving ban. It's a winter wonderland and I'm curious, so maybe later this afternoon I will venture out into the majestic surroundings. It's not so bad here. In fact, it's a quite cozy sense of community with all the neighbors checking in on each other. With the entire state is virtually shut down, it puts us all in the same boat if just for a day. It is a uniquely New England experience, and one that brings us together. A safe, warm feeling, so I can't resist but state the obvious:

While the weather outside is certainly frightful, my fire is definitely delightful! And yes, we've no place to go, so why not let it snow? 

The New England Experience

A major snow storm is predicted for these parts later today, all day tomorrow and into Wednesday morning. Forecasts predict up to two feet or more of snow dumped into our area in the next 48 hours with close of 32 hours of heavy snowfall.

And that means it's time for the New England experience.

I was born and raised in Massachusetts, so I've seen my fair share of snow storms. I even survived the Blizzard of '78 as a kid who was out of school for over a week. Yes, it snows a lot here and yes, we always manage to survive it. This time they are predicting a blizzard with 24-28 inches of snow with potential flooding and strong damaging winds. OK-so that means a few things to us:

• Check the salt, sand and ice melt in your garage. I can't even imagine what Home Depot looks like today, but I'm pretty sure its got SOLD OUT signs everywhere. 
• Buy batteries, candles, matches and flashlights. These are essential storm preparedness items.  Also-charge all essential electronics, cell phones, lanterns, lap tops and Ipads. 
• Food and Water-It's insane how crazy the region gets over food and water. We have known about the severity of this storm for just about 24 hours and our local markets are already bare bone! I took these pics this morning at our local major supermarket. 

                                                 

• Test the generator. Power outages will be a reality this storm and we don't know for how long. Because of the severity of the weather challenges in this region, most people I know have invested in hard wired generators. It's just smart business for most of us who live in older towns where the power lines are still above the ground and the investment comes back two fold on storms like this. 
• To me-the snow storm means people will home SHOPPING ONLINE! Why not take advantage of this fact and have an ONLINE SALE?!!! Go to www.candybarcosmetics.com this Tuesday, Jan 25th and Wednesday, Jan 26 and use the code SNOWDAY at checkout to receive 20% off your purchase. 

It's like this: we bitch and moan about the big storms and yes, it can be dangerous, inconvenient and bad for business but the one thing we all know to be true is that it is uniquely New England. I was talking to my mom today in who is in Florida and she told me that this snow storm is the lead story on every newscast down there. She then told me that she's a wee bit envious. She said that despite the nuisance of a snow storm, it's that warm and endearing feeling you get while hunkering down with your family that she will miss.  

I gotta agree with her on that. 

Bad Weather Stew

Are you kidding me?

This time they got it right. No beauty emergencies today, that's for sure, so it looks like a lost day of revenue. I just made that FAB, slow cooker beef stew you see up above and I'm hunkering down for a day-long blasting of snow.

• The beef stew I made is from a blog called Butter with a side of Bread. I have made it before and let me tell you, it is just about the closest thing to perfection on a day like today!

• My Guy was out last night, so it was a Real Housewives of Beverly Hills MARATHON> Those bitches are so juicy...always fighting and swearing. It feels like home when I watch it! No wonder I love it so much. I'm half kidding, but really, after the latest episode, I was left feeling pitty for the ladies. Yes, they get paid a ton of money per episode and they have attained some twisted form of celebrity, but they fights and the petty drama that goes on makes me wonder about the toll it takes on their real lives...they have to fight to stay relevant or they get axed! I guess it no different than any other job except their bad behavior is rewarded.

• I bought a coat for my dog. Yes, I did and you know what? He needs it! He's an old fella. (we're not quite sure how old exactly-pound rescue) And his little Jack Russel body is slowly shedding hair. He doesn't mind his little velcro coat, it's bright orange and waterproof and as a matter of fact he kind of likes it! He has taken to wearing it around the house on really cold days. But on days like today I'm wishing I bought one for Buddy too. ( See Buddy here- it's funny. He's my Boxer)

• Tequila? A no no for Candy. Went out for My Guy's birthday on Sat night. I think I had a good time. 

• Since I'm  stuck at home today, I've decided it's the perfect time to study. I'm in the process of putting together The Candy Bar's E-Commerce site and I've been doing a ton of research on social media and online presence. It's very interesting and very motivating! So the good news is the day won't be a total loss! Happy Hump Day Bloggers!

NY-Seeee

So I was in New York yesterday, seeing my baby girl Frick and taking care of some business. While I was there, I experienced something I had never seen before. Snow in the City. Sounds like the title to a  bad HBO series, but it was quite a feat to behold. 

When I entered Penn Station on Sunday afternoon, the entire place was a see (sic) of color. I never saw so much blue and orange in my life. Denver fans to one side, Seattle fans on another and the orange and neon green wigs they were sporting were popping color all over the station. Once in the city, life returned to normal because by then everyone was safely ensconced in New Jersey. The best of all was the view from my hotel room where the Empire State Building was lit up in both neon green and neon orange. Too bad the game didn't live up to the hype. 

In the wee hours of Monday morning, about 4 am, Frick and I were awoken by some angry Denver fans who were taking out their anguish on the floor ice machine. The kicking and the screaming I'm sure, woke everyone on the floor up. But there was another sound in the wee hours of that morning...it was the sound of ice and snow hitting the window. That morning when I woke up I could see the rooftops of TriBeCa covered in white and whatever green trees around were covered with crystallized snow. For me, it was an amazing site. It was snowing pretty hard by the time I got on my way to work and all the majesty of the snow was lost. It turned into a slushy, black mess. 

NYC is not really conducive to snow, and that was evidenced by the traffic and slush that everyone tried to ignore. Yes it was a pain in the ass, but I have to say it was beautiful. And the snow continued all day, never tapering off, creating a huge inconvienience to all. Bonus for me, that it did not delay my train! The ride home was a spectacular site. The snow covered trees and rooftops proved to be a gorgeous distraction and it majesty, restored! 

In all the years I have been traveling to and from the city, I can't believe I have never seen snow in the city. It's kind of hard to believe. I actually had to see it to believe it.