A White Christmas Was Nice but, Enough Already!

Two weeks before Christmas we had a blizzard and at least 12 inches of snow.  December 23rd was rain and then sleet.  So, I had some lovely pictures from that night!

And then it snowed beginning Dec. 24th in the morning.  Nearly every church cancelled their services.  We didn't, oh noooo, not us stubborn german Lutherans!  Well, we only had the 3PM service, which was great as there were probably 600 people there (the place was about full!) in spite of the horrible roads, I saw many visitors and folks from other churches.  It was awesome!

That night after we left my folk's house (live 5 houses away) we kept driving (4WD truck) and went all over looking at Christmas Lights.  Everyone was home with their twinkling lights as a blizzard was a comin'.

Same angle but, taken today, January 9th.  So, we had that Christmas Blizzard.  Then we had another one Weds. of this week.  That's three blizzards!  1975 was the last time some of us oldtimers remember this much on the ground. 

This is in our neighborhood, mostly elderly people.  But, nearly every youngun (under 70) has asnowblower and I don't think anyone has to hire as these men go out in groups of 2 and 3 and do each other's and then the homes of the single gals or elders. 

This is my parent's home.  Five houses to the south of them is our home.

Our home.  Hey!  How many of you have seen the following picture?  It's gone out across the country, even among pictures in the Wall Street Journal.

The man on the left is Steve Sempeck.  He's the owner of the buses.....and the owner of our town's bowling alley.  It burned down on Jan. 7, '10.  Extreme cold temps.  Brutal.  the ice is from the firefight!

I'm standing by the pin setters taking a picture of where the lanes were.  Gutted.

So sad.

The gentleman in the dark coat was an employee, his gal is to his right.  I chatted a while.  He doesn't know what he'll be doing.  He also had 6 of his own bowling balls in there.  She was crying, her mother played in a legue there and had bowling balls in there too.  I told them I had been praying for the owners and the employees since I heard about it.  The owner said he'll rebuild, and to tell my mother, "we'll have her bread pudding too".  Every time my Mom eats there she has to have their bread pudding, she's obsessed.  Small towns.  We all know each other, or know someone that they know. 

Although sad, I heard so many positive affirmations and lots of gratitude.  Oh, the place closed down early the night the fire started on account of our THIRD blizzard of the season.  So, When that Diner (IN ELKHORN) opens up again, I'm there, for a chicken dinner and bread pudding!