Friday the 13th Storm

by Kathie Macfarlane

On Friday the 13th of October [2006], Buffalo, New York endured an unusually early snow storm. Meteorologists referred to this event as a Perfect Lake Effect Storm with the cold jet stream passing over a very warm Lake Erie producing two feet of snow in the metropolitan area and northern suburbs. The weight of this amount of wet snow pressing on tree limbs still laden with leaves resulted in tree limbs snapping and entire trees toppling which in turn took down electric, phone, and cable wires resulting in 300,000 people being without power, some for up to 10 days. The following tells the story of that storm, from the perspective of Maggie (Rocky Comfort #379) who experienced her first snow and a week long storm aftermath.

Friday the 13th Storm

It has been a little more than a week since the storm first hit. My emotions have run the gamut from surprise at my first encounter with snow to a feeling my Mom referred to as depression when it was cold and dark, then to the resolution that life continues to be good as long as we are with the people we love. Continuing life in the routine we established during the storm’s aftermath was viable, but I think we are back to normal now and I sure am glad for that.

It had been raining most of the day before the rain changed to a heavy, wet snow in the late afternoon. I don’t like going outside in the rain much less this wet snow. My feet were just drying, it was dusk, and my stomach informed me it was time for dinner. I didn’t understand why my people didn’t turn on the lights. This seemed most unusual. My dinner was ready and I ate every morsel of meat and kibble as usual. The evening passed in darkness except for the flicker of some candles, one of which smelled like cookies baking. A shiver let me know I was feeling colder than usual but I didn’t understand why. We retired upstairs to bed uncharacteristically early. I welcomed that because I usually have a nap in one of the comfy chairs in the family room during the evening often dreaming sometimes scary dreams sometimes fun dreams filled with my friends and me playing.

I didn’t sleep well that night. My Mom and Dad were frequently awake listening to the sounds of trees cracking and limbs dropping to the ground. They spoke quietly, not to me, but to each other. We all drifted in and out of sleep that night. I was relieved when morning dawned because things always seem better in the light. It was unusually dark that morning, but Mom escorted me downstairs without turning on a light. She opened the door to let me out and just laughed.
“Maggie, this is your first snow!” she exclaimed.

White snow was everywhere. I had never seen anything like that so I backed away from the door. What happened to my patio and yard, I wondered. What was this white snow? My Mom said it was okay and I know that those words mean nothing will hurt me, even though I may be scared. It didn’t seem quite right to just walk into the snow so I took a running leap from where I was standing. I landed, all four feet on the patio, but I couldn’t move beyond that. The snow was higher than my back and my feet couldn’t move. I looked around for help somewhat puzzled but not too anxious and my Mom’s hands plucked me out of my plight. Wow, that was something I had never experienced before! I asked to go out again, but didn’t know how to move in it. The young man came and shoveled a path for me, but I could only go as far as he shoveled. I usually go to the other side of the yard so I don’t mess the grass near my house. How could I get there? I have observed squirrels arch their backs and push off from their hind legs. Maybe that would enable me to move in this snow. I made one leap, arching, pushing, and then extending my front legs. That seemed to work quite well. I tried again and found that if I kept the motion going I could get to the other side of the yard. Arch, push, and extend. I was leaping through the snow amazingly easily. I wondered if I looked like some gigantic squirrel, minus the fluffy tail of course. I made it across the yard and back and by this time everyone was laughing as they watched me head toward the door. I was so proud of myself for my ingenuity as well as keeping my yard clean near the house. Mom had a towel ready to brush the snow from my fur but how was I going to get all these snowballs off my feet?

I did so want to play in the snow so after breakfast I begged to go out again, sitting by the door and then putting my paws up on the glass and jumping just as high as possible. My antics caught Dad’s attention, he opened the door, and I bounded out. This time I tasted the snow; it was smooth, cold, and moist and did it taste good! There was so much of it how could I consume it all? Mom repeatedly told me to stop eating it, but I used my selective hearing and ignored her.

My morning walk wasn’t very satisfying because there was so much water to walk through at the end of the driveway. I don’t like getting my feet wet because they take infinitely long to dry. People don’t seem to mind walking through water, but then they only have two feet to dry. By the time of my afternoon walk, Dad seemed to have gotten the idea that I didn’t want to walk through the water so he lifted me over the big puddle and we walked around most of the others. I saw Jack, the Papillion who lives next door. He is very small, just a puppy, so his people don’t let me play with him. His ears are enormous and don’t have the lovely shape of a Kerry’s. I can’t wait until he’s bigger because I think I could have fun with him.

The next day was similar except that there didn’t seem to be as much snow. The house was cold, cold enough that I had difficulty taking my morning nap. Mom dressed me in a sweatshirt that she said had belonged to Kiery and that it had kept her warm her last winter when she was so old and sick. Although I felt humiliated, I did feel warmer, but I certainly hope they take it off before walks. I wouldn’t have wanted any of the neighbor dogs to see me dressed like that. I do have a perfectly lovely dense deep gray coat that usually keeps me warm enough.

My people were busy every minute that day. They were in and out all day. I wanted to go out but was reduced to watching from the windows. I chewed my bone for a while then played with all of my toys. Finally just after supper Mom took my sweatshirt off and attached my leash. My tail wagged at first as I was thinking we were taking a walk until we went to the car. Involuntarily wagging so fast I think my tail was actually wagging my whole body. I was thrilled to be going some place, but where? Could this be the night of Puppy School? That’s always so much fun. I see the very timid Savannah, Kasha the English Mastiff, Ginger the protector of our group, and Ziggy the Pomeranian who knows every command and is the star of the class. I try to keep up with Ziggy but there are so many interesting things to see and sniff there that I often loose my focus. I know what I should be doing, but I like to do things when and how I want to do them. After all, treats aren’t everything in life. This was going to be the highlight of my day, actually the highlight of several days. I was so excited when we approached the door especially since Mom had taken off my sweatshirt. I could hardly wait. Once inside I quickly discovered that my friends weren’t there. After some discussion with a strange person, we turned around and went back to the car. What could have happened, I didn’t want to go home. I absolutely refused to get back into the car. I flattened myself in the down position on the pavement wanting to disappear into the parking lot so I wouldn’t have to leave. I wanted so badly to play with my friends. Mom told Dad that class was cancelled and we didn’t know because we didn’t have phone service. I was incredibly sad the rest of the evening. Nothing, my toys, a massage, treats, could lift my spirits. Bed time couldn’t come soon enough. I don’t usually like to be a lap dog, but that night Mom wrapped me in a blanket and I just lay on her lap. I just didn’t feel like doing anything.

It was incredibly cold that night, especially when we left the comfort of the fire to go upstairs to bed. Lately, Mom and Dad have been giving me the choice of sleeping on the bed, on the floor, or in my crate. That night I chose the bed so I could be close to my people and it seemed to be warmer. Sleeping is hard when you’re cold, I remembered that from the time before coming to my family and I was cold, so cold that night. Even curling into a tight circle didn’t help. Part of me was barely warm and the other was cold. I wished I had a Newfie friend to cuddle with and share his warmth. This was definitely more than a “one dog night.” I hadn’t slept much and was thinking about morning when we could go downstairs near the warm fireplace when Mom’s hand touched me. I think it was very early in the morning; she said, “You poor thing, you’re so cold,” and then she pulled me up to the pillows. Lifting the covers, she maneuvered me to a spot just next to her and covered me. It was toasty warm there. She held me tightly against her and I was so grateful to be held and to share the warmth under the covers. I turned to give her some kisses and before I realized it I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I knew it was morning. My Mom and Dad were stirring as they usually do just before getting up, but I was so warm and snug that I didn’t want to get up and I didn’t want them to either. I wished we could just stay warm in bed all day. I would have gladly given up breakfast for that and maybe dinner, too. I just didn’t want to get out of bed.

I didn’t play much that day. I just didn’t feel like doing anything. I lay by the fire watching my people come and go, but I didn’t sleep much. Everyone tried to get me to play but I just didn’t feel like it. The next two days were the same. The young man said my eyes looked so sad and I couldn’t even put my tail up. Dad took me for several walks to get me out of the house. The snow seemed to take away all of the good smells and I didn’t see any of my neighborhood friends. That was okay because I wouldn’t have wanted them to see me in my sweatshirt.

Dad found something on the rug that made him very upset. He cleaned it up and told Mom about it.
All she said was, “Oh Maggie, Maggie, Maggie.”

The next day it happened again. I hope whoever is making this mess stops because it makes my Dad so unhappy and he seems to have enough to do without cleaning the rug. I worried about him during those days. I think he took me for some extra walks to help me feel better, but also to help him take a break from all of the work clearing downed trees and branches, keeping the generator running, and making sure the fire was going strong.
Throughout the week my meals seemed extra tasty. I heard something about using the defrosting meat in the freezer, but I didn’t know exactly what that meant. When I first came here my meals were served warm. I had never had food like that before and I didn’t exactly like my meals warmed. By this time I had gotten used to warm food and didn’t give it much thought anymore. This week was different. The warm food going into my tummy made me feel warm all over at least for a little while. I think I now know the meaning of comfort food. Warm food on a cold day is definitely comfort food.It was just about a week after the storm started that I began to feel a little less depressed. My life changed greatly when I came to my forever home. I remember being so nervous when I first arrived that I couldn’t keep my tail from between my back legs. The other dogs I had known were left behind and that made me sad to be here without them. The young man had commented then that my eyes looked so sad. I almost felt that way again this week. Things here seemed so good. Now my life was changing again. Even though I didn’t like most of the changes, the cold especially, I decided it would be okay as long as I was with my people. My people had made a difference in my life and they were still here. I don’t know what made we want to play with my pig, but I did play a little that day and chewed my favorite bone as well. My spirits lifted a bit. Mom and Dad were pleased that my tail was up, but I just couldn’t manage to wag it yet. I just didn’t feel like it.

Once when Dad came in he was so upset. He flopped into a chair and I could tell he was just about worn out from work. I put my feelings aside and thought only of him. There must be something I could do to help. The only thing I could think of was to jump into his lap and give him my best Kerry kisses. He seemed surprised to have me land in his lap and I must have given him a million kisses because he smiled and hugged me. I was so glad to be able to help. I even wagged my tail much to my surprise. Maybe my job is to help my people when they are exhausted from work or sad or just plain weary. I think helping others helped me as well.

After eight days, I think I was getting used to my new routine except for the cold. After dinner, I played on my blanket by the fire for a while. Mom was knitting a blanket for a cat we know. I didn’t like the cat because she hissed at me. I was glad she only stayed for the weekend, but I did like the young woman who brought her. After a little while, I jumped into a chair for a snooze. Although it wasn’t as close to the fire, it was warm enough. I think I had just fallen asleep and there was a very peculiar noise in the kitchen. Both Mom and I were so startled that I barked which is something I rarely do and she jumped up. We both ran to the kitchen and I’m not sure who got there first. Somehow the mixer switch was turned on and the mixer was running making that awful noise.
Mom yelled, “Hallelujah! The power is on.”

She was so excited that I got excited too. I jumped up on my hind legs and danced on two feet. Mom hugged me. I could feel her relief and I could feel my tail wag just to know my Mom was happy, so happy.

The aftermath of the storm was over. I had learned a lot from this experience. The comforts I had become accustomed to were taken away. My people used a great deal of energy to keep things going in the house and clean up outside. What remained constant though were the caring and love of my people for me and my love for them. I know I can give up my new comforts and adjust to what I have to as long as I have my people and they have me, but I sincerely hope this is the only storm we have this winter.