The never ending storm

Hopefully by the time this newspaper column is published, our ongoing wind storm will have stopped. However at the time of writing, the voracious winds continue pummeling the valley. However, amidst this chaos in the last nine days, there have been so many great stories of helpers, charity and generosity. Strangers have bought fuel, delivered food, hauled fallen trees, offered transportation, dug out drifts, and many other acts of compassion. We all are buoyed by this sharing and gratitude.

However, the facts on the ground are less lovely. It’s been hard. It’s been long. It’s been wearying. It’s been worrying. The normal malaise of January carries its’ own stress which is often eliminated by indulging in the “cozy quotient.” In other words, during the darkest and coldest month, we have learned to enjoy quiet reflective activities and dig deep into the comforts of a cozy home. Plus we have learned to do our daily short outside refreshment in nature and the limited light.

But the reality was this extensive storm, lengthy outages, and add-on stressors meant homes were not all comfort and cozy. Nor was outside refreshment stimulating. In fact it was a fight to keep things going. Our huge and abundant snowfall turned into wet, heavy chunks of ice which were then polished up nice and slick by the wind. Crusty bergs and slippery roads are everywhere, along with debris. Children may be enjoying this and the fittest of us might be reveling outside. However the old, the sick, the injured, the poor, the busy mom and dad, the first responder, the isolated, the depressed, and those “on the edge” are not doing well with these cumulative challenges.

Capable Whine of Admission—We can handle snow. We can handle ice. We can handle wind. We can handle cold. We can handle dark. We can handle an outage. We can handle an earthquake. We can handle a hurricane. But we CAN NOT handle all of these things at once! It’s too much.

Lost Dogs—Over the last month more than a few poor dogs have been lost. Some have become scared, some have become separated, some have faced frightening tragedies, and some—have just been dogs—and run off. The ramifications of a lost dog in this bitter weather is horrible—because no one is in control. Social media has been full of helpers. And the rescuers in the Valley have done amazing search work to find these dogs and admiration is high for their commitment. To Pepper. Scarlett and Benji (and all the other lost & found dogs out there)—welcome home and never, ever go away again.

Things To Do: IF the wind stops, there is sledding and skiing and some sweet ice skating on the polished water bodies. IF the wind continues, go find some calm respite and relief by visiting the Butte or Chugiak. Here are some other fun things to consider: January Ladies Horse Camp event is offered by Our Little Farm in Palmer on Saturday. Basketball is this weekend at Palmer High School. Flight Night is offered at the Palmer Train Depot on Saturday night by Palmer Moose Hockey. Our local Valley for Performing Arts presents a mystery and comedy play this weekend entitled The Game’s Afoot; it’s in Wasilla but worth the drive. Next Monday is Dr. Martin Luther King day. And the 19th is Palmer History Night at the Moose Lodge!

Barbara Hunt is both Palmer writer and artist. She works hard to keep the robust pulse of Palmer, Alaska. She shares the good stuff in the weekly Palmer Alaska Buzz Column in the Mat Su Valley Frontiersman and daily on the Palmer Alaska Buzz Facebook Group. Her “Palmer Buzz 2022 Community Calendar” is available at Palmer shops. Contact at bhunt@mtaonline.net or text 907.315.3222