Tuesday, February 01, 2011

Guard Patrol


The people who get paid to tell us what the weather will do next say we are due to receive between a foot to fifteen inches of snow over the next twenty-four hours. This, on top of the two inches that fell last night, should make my commute to work in the wee hours of Wednesday morning just terribly interesting.

But enough about me.

If you'll be snowed in Wednesday - or if you just like to play with the kids and grandkids - Reader's Digest has some indoor snow fun for you.

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Gale force winds, a snowstorm, and frigid temperatures had taken their toll. Snapped electrical wires were sparking and snapping on the snowdrifts all over town.

As a local policeman, I was assigned to the area around another downed wire to provide security for the site and keep the public safe.

It was just after midnight and about 20 degrees below zero when I arrived to relieve the patrolman who was currently on duty. He pointed out the thin line swinging furiously from the main junction box and then hastily beat it to the relative warmth of his patrol car. Pulling up my collar and reaffixing my earmuffs, I took up my position for the next few hours.

Finally, just after 5:30 in the morning, a utility truck arrived and a lineman hopped out. He climbed the utility pole and then descended a few minutes later, laughing.

"Well, officer," he explained, "I'm afraid you have successfully guarded a frozen kite string all night long!"


[Wit and Wisdom]

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WORDS for YOUR WEEK: "Weather is a great metaphor for life - sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad, and there's nothing much you can do about it but carry an umbrella." (Terri Guillemets)

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Mark's Musings is available via an RSS Feed, a Facebook Note, the Amazon Kindle and via e-mail each weekday (usually). Subscriptions are free. ISSN 2154-9761.

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