Today on Anderson Pond we're hunkering down for the "Bombogenesis" storm that is ripping up the eastern seaboard from the Florida Panhandle to Maine. Bombogenesis is a popular term that describes a mid-latitude cyclone that rapidly intensifies. Here in the Upper Valley, far inland, on the Vermont border, we are not expected to see much snowfall, maybe 4-6 inches which is fine and needed for snow play - snowmobiling, snowshoing and skiing. But we are expected to see a lot of violent wind in the 35 mile an hour and more intensity which means the dreaded "power failure".

And to top it off, the following days after the storm are suppose to bring the return of negative degrees up to 40 below zero! We just came off a Christmas and New Years break with several nights in the negative teens and even -20 degrees one night. Temps like that take all of the fun out of winter. No one likes to go skiing in negative number days.

Yesterday was beautiful here in Grantham, NH. The high was 20 degrees. The sun was shining and the x-country ski trails were packed with finely groomed trails. A perfect winter day around Anderson Pond - which I skied around the outer edge over a foot of snow on top of probably 12 inches of ice. It's probably a mile around the edge of the pond and gives a nice perspective of the landscape. I saw a few animal tracks as well as snowshoe tracks and fellow x-country skier's trail.

Today was an early start to get the chores done before the winter blast. Snow had already started to fall as I made my way to the dump, the post office and a stop at Rum Brook Market for milk, bread, some curried chicken salad and a sample of their bagel sandwich.

I've had friends visit me in the various remote locations we've lived in the past like on Mount Desert Island and they've remarked how they could never live more than five minutes from a gallon of milk. But in my experience I've never lived more then five minutes from a convenience store even if our house felt remote to visitors. Tremont Maine was dotted with little supermarkets, convenience stores and gas stations that had stores attached. In Etna, NH we had a little village market with milk, bread, a deli and every kind of beverage you could think of - craft beers included.

Here in Eastman we are minutes from "downtown" Grantham which as a couple of restaurants, a pizza joint, a Dunkin Donuts and a couple of gas stations with attached convenience stores. My favorite is "Rum Brook" with has a limited gas station but a full service convenience store with all kinds of stuff from camping items, to staples, to household stuff and a great deli.

This is where I picked up my before mentioned bagel sandwich. At first I wasn't sure what I was getting when I picked up the tin foil wrapped package but I saw a couple of Snow Day kids walking around with them. All I know is it said "Cheddar". It wasn't until I got to the car and unwrapped the warm bundle that I discovered the most excellent bagel sandwich - Cheddar cheese bagel, fried egg and wonderful, thick smoky bacon. So good!

Back home these isn't much to do but watch the snow falling on Anderson Pond from the big living room windows. When it stops snowing later this afternoon I'll fire up the electric snowblower and clear the driveway, maybe rake some snow off the roof and make some paths around the house including a trail to the pond and a trail to the propane tank in case we need a delivery.

Crossing my fingers the power doesn't go out. I spent sometime yesterday stacking wood closer to the house in case a fire need to be made. This is the third house I've bought in a remote area that didn't have a back up generator. I put one in the house in Seal Cove, Maine and I put one in the house in Etna, NH after suffering through several days without power. When you rely on a well and septic system, living without power can be difficult.

Here at Anderson Pond at least we have a water company providing water and the rec center has showers if it comes to that. Still losing power is a pain. Last time it was out for only six hours or so but it usually wakes you up in the middle of the night when everything clicks off and the fire alarms start chirping, or the power company starts sending automated phone calls.