Déjà Vu, The Sequel

I feel like I should just repost those frosty pics from December. Except this time really all you can see is white quilt. Many of our beloved trees have lost a few too many inches around the middle, top and bottom. The bushes that are still somewhat identifiable look like never-been-harvested cotton plants. Yesterday, it snowed chunks of cotton candy. Today, it turned into horizontal snow. Trees too tall to sway are waltzing. Beautiful and surreal, yes, but a bit disconcerting. The gutters are frozen, menacing icicles the width of jousting poles have materialized, and Rockerfeller-Christmas-sized trees are bearing their own weight in snow. The city has temporarily halted plowing until the weather improves.

Thanks to Snowmageddon 1.0, last week we lost power and internet and phone service was down for days. As soon as services returned, our office reopened and we worked diligently to help our customers. We still have power (knock on wood), but internet and phone service will go where the wind blows. Until then, as roads are closed so is our office, but we are doing what we can online. If you need to reach us, please email or tweet and we will respond as soon as it is possible, while we still have some contact with the rest of the world.

It was only a matter of time before Jack Frost used the DC area as his playground! I can't complain...much. We are grateful to be warm and well fed, which is more than others can say. Of course, I do wish I had marshmellows...

Blizzard Update

The DC area welcomes a few inches of snow each winter. When Mother Nature drops 18 inches of the white stuff in under 24 hours, apparently we call that a blizzard in this area. I grew up in Connecticut but learned how to drive here, so I'm entitled to call us DCists winter wimps. What do we do when a "blizzard" strikes? Prep the roads? No. Have the plows on stand-by? No. We watch the shower of flurries, in childlike awe, from our cozy living rooms while sipping creamy hot chocolate and listening to carols. Basically, we step into a Christmas card.

It is Sunday afternoon as I write this post and there are plenty of kids sledding down the streets but no plows in sight or within earshot. Sure, the deadline for 12/24 delivery with standard shipping has long passed, but we were hoping to be able to ship out tomorrow items eligible for regular (USPS) expedited shipping. There is still hope, but we just don't know what the roads will look like or if USPS will be picking up tomorrow.

. . :: . .SHIPPING UPDATE & PROMO. . :: . .
If you need your USPS-eligible order delivered to a DC area address before 12/25, it should still arrive by then if you order by noon tomorrow, 12/21. To improve those chances, place the order with (USPS) 2-3 day expedited shipping. To sweeten the situation, we will deduct shipping cost on orders with product totals of $55 and above when we charge your card if you type promo code "blizzard09" in the message box above the green button at checkout. Be sure to read the general holiday shipping notice.**

View from front of our house. There were houses just beyond these woods!

 

Boughs-a-breaking in our backyard. 18" on that table. That's our ancient grill in the center. We officially can call its time of death. See the path on the right? We had to dig it so our dog, Simon, could find his way to his outhouse.


The black blur is Simon, snow-loving dog.


Why shovel when you can make snow angels?!

**Offer valid online only December 20, 2009, at 12 a.m. ET through December 21, 2009, at 12:00 p.m. ET. Free shipping valid on standard and USPS 2-3 day shipping only anywhere in the US. Additional shipping charges will apply for items not eligible for USPS 2-3 day shipping but placed with expedited shipping (items that ship only via FedEx/UPS, including furniture, diaper bags, jewelry marked as shipping out in up to 10 days). Final Sale Items: eligible for free standard shipping only. Not valid for cash or cash equivalent. No adjustments on previous purchases.