The Best Bits of the Week with Morgan, Part one behind a scene with a member of the show, Welcome everybody.
Abby is joining me this weekend for best Bits.
Hello Abby, Hello, we are warm and we are safe. After winter Storm Fern has attacked so many of the states in the country, but we are here. That is wild.
And I didn't know that it was called winter storm Fern.
You know. Fun fact. Yes, Fern is my great grandmother's name.
It is.
Yes.
So when I saw Ferne.
I was like, oh, Grandma Fern, what you doing up there?
You're like, why are you doing that? Yeah?
And she was a firecracker, so, you know, honestly makes sense.
That's cute. Oh my god, Fern.
Yes, okay, So talk to me about your winter storm experience.
What happened for you over the past week. What's been going on?
Oh my gosh. Okay. So I left last Friday after the show to go to Denver Broncos game. So it was kind of good time. It was kind of good timing for me because like the weather was it was cold there, but like it wasn't crazy.
Well, no, in Colorado, they know how to handle all this. This is what they get all the time. Exactly. Yeah, yeah, that's no cold eyes. They're prepared for it.
You know what's crazy, though, is I was talking to somebody and they said a lot of people there are transplants, so they don't know how to drive on the roads.
But this is the that's true. The drivers, I'm not worried about. But the infrastructure of the city is equipped to handle stuff like that.
Right, Yeah, Okay, So I left. I got there Friday evening. We went out to eat, everything was good. We went to bed early because I knew it was going to be a crazy weekend. Then the next day we slept in. It was Saturday, and I was like, I want to kind of explore a little bit, and so we went to Red Rocks.
Wait, have you ever been to Denver before?
I have, Yeah, yeah, but it was like it was pretty brief, and I was like, super young. I've been like on the outskirts kind of Denver, like Greeley. That's where my grandma lives. But I had been one time to visit my friend. She lives in Golden and so I got to go see Red Rocks. Like I took her car and that's that's about it. So I've seen Red Rocks during the day. Still haven't been to a concert that's on my bucket list. Have you been?
No, but it's on my bucket list to go to a concert there too.
Oh my gosh, I cannot wait. Yeah, we might need to figure that we work in this industry shortly. There's someone we could go see at Red Rocks on a weekend.
And yeah, they're announcing like new dates, so I yeah, I need to look.
If you see the one you like, we should do that.
That'd be so fun because that'd be a.
Fun trip for us to go take together and we could find ways to get there and make it all happen.
Oh my gosh, it is so cool there, Like there was it was too freezing that when we went to see it, but we went in like the Trading Post is kind of like a store next to it, which is really cute. And then after that we went to Laramer Square, which is kind of like downtown and that's where they have all the Broncos jerseys like hanging, and there was like a block party happening with like a DJ, and like the cheerleaders were there in the mascot.
Okay, what city is Mile High Stadium in it's in Denver.
It is in Denver.
Yes, it's like right downtown Oka, Denver. Basically, Okay, I'm probably wrong, but like it's very like tall buildings and we went down she said us downtown.
I've never been. I've never been to the stadium.
I've been to Denver a bunch, but honestly, I know that those stadiums can be in all kinds of cities. So that's why I didn't know if it was downtown Denver or if you like outskirts or where you were at.
Yeah, it was like downtown and they're actually building a new one right now. O. They're like in the process they found land that I think they're gonna start building the stadium on. But so we went to that square and there was like that dance party and it was freezing, like so we just went to dance party. I mean, oh yeah, dance party, block party. Yeah, people were dancing.
The mascot was there. We got our picture with him, and then we went into a bar to get a drink because it was so cold, and we like parked far away and we were walking, but we were like, we have to get used to it because the game is Sunday and it's gonna be even more freezing, so we're like, we can handle this. And then we went to Corey Kent at Grizzly Rose, which is a really cool venue.
I saw that.
I saw that, and I have heard great things about Grizzly Rose.
Oh my gosh.
I also love Corey Kent as he was so good.
I've seen him before, but this time I was like, oh my gosh, and people were like into it. It was really fun.
Arzly Rose is a really cool venue to see an artist at.
It is like, I want to go back. It's they have like a saloon looking bar. Inside they have pool bowls, like a mechanical bowl, and then like a photo booth. What else do they have? Dance floor? People were two stepping. It was awesome. I was like, we need that in Nashville.
Yeah, we don't have our own Grizzly Rose. Grizzly Rose is very popular. It's one of those not stadiums. It's one of those venues I think a lot of artists love to play at. It's one of those top tier ones.
Oh my god. It's so cool. And it's funny because a friend I went with she got married there. She knows the really yeah, and he was there and he's like the nicest guy ever, Like he's so hands on, like he cares about his bar. And then they presented Corey Kent with like a silver buckle like belt buckle because he sold it out. Oh they do that when artists sell it out. And I was like that is this is so co cool?
So there was the Latter Music weekend. Yes, yeah, the broncos.
I know, it's like I might as well. I'm here, might as well just like do everything I can.
As you should.
Yes, And so we got home late and then we got up early. Well it was like seven thirty to get up and start like preparing for the day.
Because what time was the game at?
The game was at one, okay there, but the tailgate started at ten and we had to be there by like nine forty five and it took us a long time.
Was this a tailgate of somebody you guys knew or was it a tailgate of the friend who knows the coach?
It was so we got the tickets through the coach and then we got the tailgate through one of her friends. They were kind of separate, but it was like a nice tilgate like people paid I think, like two hundred dollars to get in and it was like unlimited drinks and food. Like I would I mean, if I was a Broncos fan living in Denver, I would pay for that because it was really cool. They had like an auction in there, a whole bunch of food. Some of
the players like showed up from like past teams. I think they were both in the superwl one of them in the Super Bowl. Both of the guys.
Okay, that's at one point when the Bronco was played in the Super Bowl.
They were they were in it, and I don't remember their names, but I got a picture of them signing autographs. I didn't want to wait in the line because I was so cold. And then there was like a silent auction, like I said, music going. So that was really fun.
Oh that's so fun.
Drink I started drinking.
That's like you know how they call if you don't go regular camping, you go glamping. Yes, that's exactly the lamping version of tailgate. I know.
So I really didn't get to see like the parking lot, like actual tailgating, because I kind of wanted to see that because I heard it's like really crazy. But I was kind of along for the ride, you know, like I was with them so well.
And again, you're not going to have that experience normally.
You can always have the parking lot tailgate experience when you go back. This particular experience, is it always gonna happen?
Oh my gosh. It was like it was so crazy. I was like, how am I getting the VIP treatment right now? And really cool? And so we started. I mean I had five layers on, so I had three pants. I had like the fleece laggings sweatpants, and then I got ski suit, which I had already bought because I was like, oh, this will be good. It's really cute. It'll be good for like skiing or you know, when it snows. And it ended up like matching the Broncos color. So I was like, I'm wearing this.
It was perfect. I loved your outfit.
Yeah, And then we got Cayenne pepper and four do that?
Hey? I talked about this part did you did? But it doesn't work?
I chat shebted it right before we left the hotel and it said you could get like burns on your feet or blisters, and I was like, oh, my gosh, I don't want like sore feet, Like what if we don't want to burn our skin? Yeah, and then have to walk all day. I was like, I know the football players did it with their football players, and they're like tough and they'll do anything, but.
Likes, I say, the football players are not talking about the blisters and h on this seat now, And so I was like, no, let's not try that.
But then we got foil because if we saw that on a video where you put a sock on and then you wrap your toes in aluminum foil and then you put another sock on. And I tried that, and like halfway through the game, we took the sock off and it was just in pieces the foil, the aluminum foil. Yes, it like it just shredded from us walking. So that obviously wasn't working. It wasn't keeping the heat in. Supposedly it's supposed to like keep your heat in.
I understand the keeping the heat in, but maybe it's not meant for like if you're doing out activities, you're just supposed to lay there.
Yeah, I guess, oh my gosh, you know it was crazy. We went to Target and they had foil in the lock boxes. You had to go get an employee with a key. Why people are stealing foil, I don't know.
I wonder if there is something with extreme cold weather and something with that, but I had that's an interesting Okay, let me while you keep talking about your story, let me google some.
Situation. So that's what I did with my feet. I had snow boots on, and then my hands. I have like handwarmers, like electric han warmers that I actually use at work, right and I both use them because it's always freezing here. And I took them and that was like the saving that that did everything, because they get so hot they like burn your hands, and so I just put them in my pockets and I just have my hands on my pockets the whole time, and it like worked. It was warm. Yes.
Did you guys also do a trick of cardboard where you stood on cardboard for some of the game?
Uh huh. We took in a cardboard box like folded up and we stood on it and our feet were fine the whole time. I was standing by a girl next to me. I finally was like, oh my gosh, come on the cardboard because she just had regular like cute boots on no, and I was like, what are you doing? Because she was like, I know, I almost wore like snow boots, but I changed last minute because she looked super cute. She had like on cute jeans and I was like, you have to be freezing.
Oh heck no.
And one of those situations. Listen, I love I love looking cute.
I'm all for an outfit for a reason, yes, but in that situation, I am over practical. Oh like practical and comfort over cute. I do not care. I will look like a michelin man. Yes, if it means me being warm.
That's how I looked and felt. I was like, I am not attractive right now, but hey, I'm warm.
That's all I got. Okay. I did look up fitinyl use prompts downtown Target to lock up in aluminum foil, so I think shoplifting is another reason. For some reasons people are shoplifting the aluminum foil. I'm wondering if it's connected also again to drug use. Oh my gosh, no, it's yeah.
That okay. I was like, there has some reasons.
It's also five dollars. Well, Anna says thieves use aluminum foil to create booster bags, which are shopping bags or purses lined with foil. So it seems like a few different things.
Okay, so Foyle is being used and that is crazy. I couldn't believe it.
Yeah, so you see your ilumin foil locked up, that would be why.
I mean here it is. Yeah, it's like downtown. The target is literally it's one of those like downtown ones. So yeah, I mean there's probably just people coming in all the time. I don't know.
Okay, So cardboard, you made a friend with the girl who definitely dressed cold over over comfort hm. And were you so happy to be there experiencing it? Were you ready for it to be over because you were cold? What were all the feelings?
No, I loved every minute of it. I was just trying to like take it all in. So I was like this, I'm never gonna have these seats again. We were like tenth row and I got to see the goal. We were kind of like on the end zone on the side, so you'd like see one of the touchdowns at the beginning, and I was like, this is awesome, Oh my gosh, we're doing great so far. And then it, I mean it went took a turn or we went downhill, because they did start out really good, and then we
didn't kick that field goal. It was kind of a bummerku then we would have been tied ultimately, but well, Annie snow was playing such a huge role too. I mean, you guys see anything if you're sitting in those seats, did you see stuff when the snow was hitting or could you even like so we could see it was hard to see the football, and then you couldn't see the lines on the field. It was crazy because the first half it was sunny and I was like, I am so prepared, I'm so warm, like I am gonna
be comfortable the whole game. And then we went to the bathroom after halftime, came back out, it started snowing, and it was just like, I mean, it was like a snow globe. Seriously, like you're in there, just snowfalling. Everybody loved it, like they were just embracing the snow, like they're like, this is so cool.
Okay, you know what. I know. We talk a little bit in part two about like your top five moments, and I asked you about your brother, because your brother is a big reason of why you're a Broncos fan. I think your brother was looking out for the weather because I think he wanted you to have both experiences where it was like full clear day, you can't see
what's happening, you're cold. But then also everybody talks about the experiences of when you're in a weather situation at a game or a concert, whether it's pouring down rain or snow, and I would imagine Mile High Stadium being drenched in snow is an experience in itself.
Yeah, so I got goosebounds and you said that that's that is crazy.
I feel like it that way to give you both and not just five minutes of clear to then have this. You had a first half that was bright, you were good, you were warm, surviving, and then second half to get to experience the snow fall in Mile High Stadium.
Mm hmm, oh my god. Like he would have loved He was a huge, like the biggest Broncos fan ever. He would have like loved this so much. So I kind of felt like I was like living like I don't know for him, like being like, oh my gosh, I wish we could have done this together. But yeah, it was.
It was so cool. You were channeling him, trying to make sure you experienced everything.
Yeah, take it all in.
Was happy about it despite the weather.
Yeah, and it was cool because there were no like annoying fans, like sometimes that can like ruin a game, you know, Like I've been to one where someone was like cussing me out in Nashville. It a Titans game because I was the other team and I'm just like I'm not doing anything. So there were Broncos fans behind me, and then there were a few Patriots fans in front
of me, and that they were like nice. So I was like it was fine, Like everybody was good vibes and I was like it was like that the whole time, which I really liked that.
Thatwas should be. Yeah, that's that should be at concerts, as should be how it is at games. Everybody's going out and spent harder money to be in a place like that, and it's supposed to be an experien regardless of what happens, you know, regardless of the outcome, You're supposed to have a good time. That's the point, huh, that's.
You know how you see those videos on social media.
I forgot the point or whatever.
That's the point.
The point is to.
Live and experience and enjoy the experience.
I know, And I actually like eyes behind me. They were like so positive because I was getting so nervous. I was like, we're gonna lose. We're gonna lose this game. And they're like, you got this. We still can do this, and I was like, thank you. Guys. Usually it's like the other way around, where like they're like negative and they're like, oh, you suck or I don't know whatever.
And I know that's part of sporting events. Yeah, that's the whole you know, vibes or whatever. Yeah, but it's also like, dang, you're at a cool NFL game and it was a championship game and there's so many things riding on it and there's snowfalling.
This is cool. It was wild. They were like blowing off the snow with like like blowers, like leaf flowers basically snowblowers.
Snowblowers.
Yeah, and people are like I saw them commenting. They're like, why don't you use a shovel? And I'm like, that's so much faster what they were doing. It was actually working.
Everybody's an expert somewhere, Okay, I'm glad you had so much fun.
No, it was so fun. And then at the very end, like a minute and a half, everybody started leaving, like funneling out, like all the Broncos fans. And then we're like stuck in the parking lot for thirty minutes. Meanwhile, my flight leaves in like two hours.
Oh gosh. And I was like, I'm assuming you were going straight from the game to the airport.
Yes, well, we had to go to the hotel Impact first, but I thought the game would be over at let's see four thirty, we'd have time to get to the hotel. My flight was at seven, we'd have time. No, we got stuck on because it was snowing. So now it's at a standstill, you know, driving because people I thought it would not be an issue with driving, but it was.
There are a lot of transplants any big city now.
Yeah, Oh my gosh. So we're stuck there. Like an hour went by, and I'm like, okay, we are boarding in an hour, like so we took an uber. We rode with them. It's complicated. This is why I was so stressed. I don't think I've been that stressed in a long time. I was like shaking and like yes, because we had to uber with them somewhere just kind of out of all the craziness, or ride with them. Then we ubered to our hotel, ran up to our hotel.
Never packed that fast in my life. I just threw everything and I was like, I hope I don't forget and just throw it, which I I basically took my ski suit off and left everything else on. So I flew home in three layers. I was switch wedding.
In fairness, you're probably uncomfortable on the flight, but when you got here, yes, it's probably worth it.
Uh huh. But on the flight, oh my, I was like sweating. I had to take a shower when I got home because I was like, I feel like I just ran like a marathon.
That's wild. And the flight wasn't impacted.
No, it was delayed thirty minutes, which is what saved us, because if it would not have been, you don't think you would have made it. No, because we had to return our rental car. You have to get on a train or the trolley, and the Denver airport is much the shuttle. The shuttle to get there, then you have to get on the train and go from the terminal all the way to the sea gates. And I was like, oh my god, I can't do this.
So when did you arrive at your gate?
So we got there, oh man, Like luckily it got delayed again, okay, till like seven thirty I think, so originally got seven. Yeah, we got there like seven ten okay, dang. And luckily they kind of delayed the boarding too, because I think they were like de icing the plane or the crew wasn't there yet. Then we did sit on the runway and they had to dece the plane for like thirty minutes. And I was like, Okay, is this safe? Because I know they canceled thousands of flights. Why are we still going?
Why are we the other what's still going in this moment?
And we had at the point of you coming home, we had already gotten snow, but we had not started to get ice yet. So I think that's why you had this again. Everything about this past week was about certain times, moments of time. Yeah, And I think you guys had a sliver of time where you had to make it before the ice, like the sleep mixture was falling and it had a hit. Yet Oh my god, and I think that's why you guys made it.
Yeah. I got in at like eleven thirty and then like my fiance picked me up in his truck. So I was like, oh my gosh, I'm nervous because my friend lives like really far away and she had to uber home because her husband couldn't get out.
No.
Uber was like one hundred dollars. I was like, you can stay with us, but she didn't have power at her house and she didn't want to make him. They have six dogs and she didn't want to make him like be by himself. It was just crazy. But luckily he could pick me up because he had four wheel drive.
Wait and that's hold on pause, timeline wrong my side. It was Sunday night, Sunday night. Stuff had already fallen, right. I don't know why you guys made it.
No, I know that's what I was saying, because like when we got on the highway, there was no one else on there, and he was going like ten miles and it was solid like black ice. You could just it was solid.
Yeah, how, I don't know, did your guys is playing?
I don't know. I kind of wanted to get stuck there, so I could have just like explored Denver.
Yeah, hang out for a while.
I'll be back when it's all okay again, right, because I knew hero is just gonna be stuck inside because it's not any more snow. It's not a fun snow. It's now ice where you don't want to be outside.
Oh my gosh, Okay, we have more to talk about. We need a quick break. Can be right back.
Well, so speaking of all of those timelines, because now I'm gosh, it feels like this past week is it's just been a plur general. So yeah, still don't know how you made it. I'm it's a miracle you made it back.
There were ten thousand flights canceled that day.
Must have been the pilots and those Slight attendants really wanted to be in Nashville for some reason.
I thanked them. I was like, thank you very much for getting us here safe.
Yeah, that's wild because it was so it was Sunday morning, so we on Friday. I had prepped, I had made chili, I had all my batteries, all my things were charged. I was ready for a winter storm.
I knew it. We grew up in Kansas.
I'm not unfamiliar with snow and the inches and you may be stuck inside for a little bit.
Kind of vibes right, Saturday hits, Oh we're good, this is snow outside. Let's go sledding.
So we went and sled at Capitol Hill, which is my favorite hill to sled in in Nashville.
I post not been and it looks so fun.
It is the best time. I'm telling you, every snow day you will find me there, Like if there's an actual snow day, I will be there. We looked scary.
It looks like you're going really fast.
It is you are going really fast.
That's what it was funny is so I posted a video of like all the contractions.
People were using.
It went viral and people were going bonkers over it, which is funny to watch because a lot of people are like, there's not enough snow. I'm like, well, then explain how I was moving at that speed down the hill because it's not just grass.
There is something there and there isn't all and that defense there.
We we got maybe like three inches of snow maybe and it was not falling super hard on those hills and stuff. But you can bet Nashville used it as an opportunity, and we did, and it will. It's so fun.
You have to go.
I do. I need to.
It's the best experience. And there's a party. There's always a DJ there at the bottom of the hill.
He's playing music. People are drinking.
Like you have people down it's very much like a mountain in Colorado. You have people down at the bottom with the DJ and they're drinking and dancing and vibing. And then you have people on top of the hill who are sledding and doing the activities.
That is so cool.
It's such a vibe. And I always go.
So we got out. We ventured out Saturday. I was like, oh, the roads aren't bad.
This is good.
I got four wheel drive. You know, this is what the Broncos made for. So we went and had that. We had a great time. Came home, made some homemade fondue. Life is good. Okay, we're stuck inside. It's a little cold, that's fine, go to sleep. Six thirty am. All of a sudden, the power just out. That's Saturday morning, No Sunday morning.
Sunday. Oh my gosh.
Six thirty am Sunday morning. And I'm like, I look at my fiance and I'm like, power's out. He's like, it'll it'll come back on. I don't think so. I don't have a very good feeling about this one, because if it just went out, it's not good and it's not coming back on easily. Like we sat there for laid in bed for like an hour, being like, okay, it could just come back on, maybe it's a fluke.
It never came back on, and I started panicking. Panic like set in and I don't something about Everything felt different and normally I would have just rode it out, stayed at the house, tried to figure things out. And I looked at him and I said, I just don't feel like this is normal, and I don't feel like we should stay here because we don't have a heat source at our house. There's no fireplace, we have nothing
to stay warm. There's nothing, and with power out that takes away any opportunity for like a space heater or anything like that. I don't have a generator. I don't even have like a we didn't get a rented generator.
We didn't do anything like that. We have candles.
We have candles, and if we did have a gas, we have a gas stove, but like that also, I don't like running the gas stove without the hood because carbon monoxide. Like every time I cook on it, that hood is on.
That's the thing too, that's scary. The people were like doing those heaters and.
Stuff, yeah, because caught onnox side. Yeah, and you're not if you're you know, especially in a situation with no power, your windows are all closed, you're you've sealed vince because you don't want cold there coming in, and then you're putting a thing in there. That's it's like the worst case scenario, which is why I didn't want a generator. I just generators freaked me out unless they're properly installed
and you have like the whole thing. And there were so many things online where was like generator needs to be away from your house.
I was like, what frick do you put it?
You put it in the front yard, just sits there in the front yard.
Where is it gonna go? Can't go in the garage, can't be in the backyard by the fence, like where's it supposed to be? And so I just was like, we're just not not gonna mess with that. But I looked at him and by nine am I was fine. I was on the phone. I called five or six different hotels trying to figure out what everything was happening, Who had power, who didn't have power. Some of them weren't even answering because I don't think they had power.
And also I was like, I'm not pain in an insane amount of money, like this is not this is not a vacation stay, right, give me like the cheapest option that is dog and cat friendly, and that's where we'll be. And that was what we found. We found like an extended stay type place. So we had a little kitchen area and we had free breakfast, yes, which was the selling point for me.
Yeah.
And they welcomed Drummy and Hazel, which was perfect. Not a lot of places allow cats, lot allowed dogs.
Oh I guess I didn't think of that.
Yeah, And a lot of them also have weight restrictions on dogs. And there was not that whole hotel. Man, it was it was a dog party.
Oh really, that's so cute. It was elevator and stuff.
Yes, it was a dog party. So we had like after that, we load everything up. We took all of our stuff in the fridge and we put it out on the deck. We just put it in bags and it was on the deck and we were like, uh, if it goes bad, it goes bad. If not, at least we tried. It's out there. It was all frozen by.
The time we came back, but probably as hard as a rock.
It's like hard as a rock Yep, everything was safe cold. So now it's like it was in the house de thawing when we got back. We had to like leave it outside of the fridge for a while to get it just to like go back to normal. But yes, we use Nature's refrigerator for kitchen items. Love that we turned off our water and we had drained all the pipes because we're obviously worried about pipes freezing. I know
you experience that. We're gonna talk about that, and so we I mean, like we tried to prepare the house as much as possible, stuffed blankets and towels everywhere, trying to keep it as warm as we could inside until like we could come back, and we went and stay at the hotel with the thought like what we brought was for one night, Like surely this will be a one night thing. We'll go back, that's what you think, Yeah, yeah, that's what you hope, right, and you know it's getting
to be midnight, Sunday night. I'm like, this isn't no, this is getting worse. I have a feeling and I'm starting to see stuff online and I'm like, this is not looking good for anybody. And so I go down. I extend it another day, mind you. I extended each day by the day, by the day.
You were lucky, well, because.
I didn't know. That was the crappiest part, right. It was like, you can't cancel a hotel room, right if you do it within twenty four hours. So if we get power back on, I'm paying for this night.
I were staying like if you it's like six pm and you you're like, oh, we got it back.
Yeah, And I'm like, and that's stupid. And so every night, like before we went to bed, I didn't. I would go and extend it. I want to extend it like the morning of until the last day, which was where the problem.
Ended up being.
Oh, but I'd go extend like the night before and be like, okay, we're saying another night, I guess. And so I kept doing that each night at a time, like just assessing the situation. There was no like up until Tuesday evening, there wasn't even a glimmer of hope. Nobody had even been in our neighborhood based on our neighborhood group chat, because have you ever seen Gossip Girl?
Do you know the references to gossip Girl.
Where's probably some spotted xoxo gossip Girl. So our neighborhood group chat was doing gossip Girl spotted moments of the Lineman neighborhood.
Okay, that's funny, like.
A picture of a truck, and it was like spotted on Da Da Da Street xcrossip girl, and it became a funny update. We didn't see anybody in the neighborhood until like Tuesday evening, and that was our first sign of okay, they're starting to look at the area. And then Wednesday, I had we were coming to work and I have I felt like we had just gotten our groove with our hotel living and just making the best of what we're working with, and literally I go up.
I didn't extend the night before because I was just like, I feel like we're fine, this has been working out. I'll extend before I leave for work, I go up to the desk. She just like, we're completely booked.
We see, That's what I was thinking when you were like.
I extended the day of and so Wednesday, I'm like, I start panicking.
Panic sets in. I'm like, we have to go to another place. Hazel.
I had to take her to the emergency er in the ice storm.
You did, ye oh no, yep.
She was stressed out from the whole situation, and because she has kidney disease, stress makes everything much worse. And cats with stress often get utiyes and UTI's connected the kindizi's it's all, you know, interconnected in them. And when they start peeing blood, you're in emergency territory already, And so we had to Black Ice were driving like five miles an hour. I'm like, we have to. She needs medicine.
There's no way she survives this if we don't. Like those first twenty four hours when they start peeing blood are super critical. And thankfully she hadn't shown any of the other signs yet that she did last year when she was hospitalized, where she like stopped eating and started hiding and like really was showing bad signs. This was just her peen blood and so we rushed her to the er vets that was already on our We were already worried about Hazel and having to then move her
to another location to add to her stress. So I was panicked that she said that, and I knew it was also on me because I didn't do it, but I I didn't have any information. I was just working with what I was given at the time. And so I go to work. Of course, my fiance is keeping his calm, cool head. He's like, we got this, I'll pack up, I'll see you when you get back.
We'll be fine. And so I'm panicking.
But thankfully there was a listener named Jeff who actually met at iHeart Country last year. He's super nice and he had an extra house here. They live in Wisconsin and they have a house here, and he's like, you can go and stay. I'm like, thank goodness, so nice, so nice. So shout out to Jeff and an amazing wife. And because also with I have a dog with Addison's disease and I have a cat with Kenney disease, both
of them can't be stressed. I can't take them to the houses of our friends who were awesome and offered their houses for us to stay, which would have been great, but I can't put them in those situations. Like a lot of them had kids, a lot of them had other animals, none of which worked for Remy and Hazel, and so it was like this situation where I had to put them first. And you can't warm a cat, right, we thought about just staying at the house. You can't
keep a cat warm. You can't put clothes on a cat.
I know don't.
And they only cuddled with you when they want a cuddle.
Oh yeah, they run, they run from me.
I can force my dog to cuddle with me and be under a blanket. So there was just so many honestly, just thinking about them that entire time. Yeah, so there were so many factors. But as we're leaving the hotel, we had packed up, just checked out, and we're like sitting in the car with everybody packed up, everything's there.
We're about to head to to Jeff's house and I get a text from the neighborhood group chat and was like spotted exox girlsip girl, we have power, and I like tears of relief where I was just like, oh my gosh, we get to go home.
And it was like the perfect time.
Of just like that's like perfect timing, perfect timing, and I'm just like like my whole body was just like, oh my gosh, it's over.
I think hopefully.
I don't know, because then we have to go.
Back and assess the situation.
Right, So we go to the house, the house with thirty five degrees inside inside you could see your breath.
Okay, I was going to say, could you see Oh, brutal.
Thankfully, though everything else was in good condition, the power flickered for several hours when we first got back. They were still working on it, clearly and trying to do different things. And it wasn't really until about four hours later that we finally got steady power. And it wasn't until ten o'clock that evening that we finally got like actual heat to finally sustain in the house.
Really. Yeah, So it went back on at what time and went back around about twelve thirty okay, and then it didn't get like comfortable until ten.
Oh my, I can't imagine the people that were staying in their homes without any power, without any heat source.
No, I don't know how they did it. I mean, like maybe under a blanket if you just stay under a blanket, but outside.
Of that that would be so cold, and we were under like we were under blanket. I mean, we had gloves, we had our ski bibs, we had all of our winter clothes on. Yeah, and under blankets and we were still crazy. And that was with the heat coming back on.
And I just like him and I both looked at each other and we're just like, we have so much to be grateful for the fact that we were able one to keep the girl safe, which was the number one priority, but to that we got to come back home and we're in a position that now our heat is back home, and there's so many people that didn't and like you want to talk about the gratitude that both of us were feeling and just thinking of everything
that everybody was going through, like I did. My whole body was like you know when you feel like the weight lift off to your shoulders, Yeah, I felt that, and like my body feel like a sigh of relief while also like crying because I know there's just so many people that were still dealing with what we're still at the tail end of experiencing.
Uh huh. It makes me so nervous, especially like elderly that are like alone or like don't have anybody to check on them. Oh my gosh, I hate that thought. Like I'm hoping, I know, and I've seen a lot of that, the people reaching out me like Okay, you know, let's check on them. And that's still that's just always like the worst part, and it is.
And like I I tried to reach out to a few different people who were posting like that they had elderly and we were gonna as soon as we got power back, I was like, I'm let's help, Like I know, we got it back, let's go. And I I'm still waiting to see responses from some of them, hoping because I just like, those are the things that you wish happened for you, right, so why wouldn't you do the things that you wish happened for you? Yes to someone or other other people? And it's like a small gesture.
It's not hard.
No, like showing up with warm soup. Yes, like sitting in a cold house and you just need something warm. Warm soup would would make all the difference, you know what I mean, And that's so easy, But it's just it was it was crazy times like there was.
My heart was like, yes, that is a lot. I don't want to tell you. Don't want to talk about mind just I don want to hear it about.
But you had pipes burst. This is another side of this.
It didn't they didn't burst it luckily. Well, I have to go check today. I'm actually really nervous because it froze on the outside, luckily by the meter.
Okay, wait, hold on pause, I'm taking a break and I want the rest of this.
All right, So it froze at the meter.
Okay.
So my fiance's house has been fine, the one that we live in, his kids are in. He never lost power or anything, which is so wild. Yes, that's amazing. But then my town home, which is across from town, it's like forty five minutes from his house. While I was gone in Denver, like the power went out a day I or a day and a half, maybe two days. Because I was asking my neighbors, I was like, do we have power? Because I'm really nervous. I did prepare
before I left, Like I left dripping fosets. I left all the cabinets underneath, and I turned my heat up like higher in case it did, like go out.
You know.
But then I went and checked on it the other day and I had no pressure in my water, and so I called the water company because it usually happens where it freezes at the meter every year because it's in the ground, there's not a lot of sunlight that hit it's that spot, and the insulation's not good because it's in like a whole bunch of like rock, so it just like keeps it freezing. And so they usually come out and fix it. But this time they came out and they're like, oh, there's water there, So I
don't know why it would be. Why you don't have any And I'm like, oh, my gosh, that means my pipe. It's my pipes that are like frozen. And yeah. And so I went back last night after like the sun was out because it got warmer here yesterday it was like thirty six.
I think we.
Saw some sunshine.
It got some sun Yeah, And I went back over and I did have water, so that's good. But I was only there for a little bit to check it, and so I'm like, I hope that it didn't.
Like, yeah, well, it's so hard.
I mean, I remember when we first turned on the house of all like when we turned all the water back on and everything was churning back on. I mean that house was just like singing. It had so many cracks and pops and noises, and I was like, what is happening?
What's going on?
Like and you're panicking, right because you're hearing all of these noises, thinking everything's just busting at the seams. Yes, but that's also just getting flow back to where it's supposed to be in like a normal setting. But you had it all, you know, turned off or dripping. Dripping even causes that if you've not been using it. So
it's crazy like the inner workings of all that. We were having that conversation of because Ray mentioned when we got back home, I had turned on emergency heat, and I was like, it was an emergency, like it took you know, eight hours to finally get any version of heat happening, and so I was joking like, what's the point of emergency heat.
He's like, I think you could have had that turned on.
And then Abby and I were having this whole conversation about like pipes, and we're like, why didn't anybody teach us this crap?
I don't think I don't think he's right, I don't think.
I don't think he does either.
He said, like, you can use the emergency heat that takes like gas. But I'm like, I have not heard that. I everybody would use their because mine has that too. Yeah, in my town home it has like aux auxillary, auxilliary auxiliary.
I think, yes, I think.
And I looked it up and it is emergency and I was like, what's the point But I don't think it's gas.
But see, then you go back to the point of carbon monoxide. As soon as you start using gas, there's just still Like But my point being, why didn't they teach us how to handle these things? Yes, how to be aware of these things correct? Why do we have to utilize social media and word of mouth to understand these.
And chat GPT? I'm trying to ask. I'm like, hey, can you tell me about this?
Yeah?
What does this mean?
Do I need help? I know?
Oh my gosh, several of my friends still don't have power, Like they live in Nashville and they haven't had it for four days. And I'm like, there's still if you look at the map of Nashville, like the nes and Nashville Electric Service, like there are so many also that still don't have power.
Well, and I I mean I saw a video of our transformers getting blown over and where like the area of where I live, and I was like, that burst road. What causes those to blow I assume ice, because ice was making trees explode. That was the other thing that was wild. When we first woke up and our power was out, because you know, when your power goes out, everything's quiet. It feels crazy because there's no humming, there's
no noises from things, and it's just quiet. And when we were laying in bed, we heard five different trees explode and it sounds like a bomb going off. I'm not kidding you, Like we're just laying there and you'd be like it'd be like I p and I'm like what what's that? The first one was crazy, and then I remembered seeing on social media that trees can explode with ice, and so I was like, that has to be a tree. And then shortly after it just kept happening. It was like a boom, boom boom.
Oh my god.
Wild.
That is so crazy. I haven't heard one. I've seen like pictures that people were it's like it literally exploded.
Yeah, but I haven't heard it, and it's a wild sound. Even like my fiance went out back to cause our magnolia tree did not do well surviving in the heist.
I don't know if she's gonna survive it completely.
But one of the neighbor's trees like fell on her somewhat, some other branches of their big trees did. And he went out there. He's like, the trees are talking, like they are loud, because he was like, they're creaking and moaning and like them because they're they're all like in ice. They're encased in ice. She's like, and when you don't again, don't have power, there's so much silence and there's nobody
driving on roads because nobody's out, so it's so quiet. Yeah, he was like, the and I walked out there and it literally sounds like that, like they're weird. They're like communicating because they're encased in ice.
Wait, didn't plants talk?
Yeah?
Don't they?
We talked about we didn't we have talked about it. And I heard it, like I literally heard them talking to each other.
Oh my god.
What was so crazy though? Is like my also, my my thought process and all of this was just like thinking about the elements that are being impacted by this, right, Like you have so much structure of trees that are now gonna be gone forever. You have who knows how many animals that you know are, whether they're actual like outdoor animals like squirrels and birds and whatever. But then you think of out the stray animals and like, my mind, I'm.
Just I don't like thinking about that. It makes me sad. I know, I just can't, I know, but I want to help everything. You can't physically help them.
I know, And I'm like, how can I make sure I can help next time? What can I be doing to make sure I can assist next time. It's just it's so crazy to see and be part of. And it's it feels weird because we grew up in tornadoes. We've seen this kind of devastation happen. It was surrounding us as kids. Different types of course, right, ice storm and tornadoes are not the same, but devastation nonetheless, And
it's just it's hard. It's hard to see people go through stuff like that, and it's hard to witness and just see the impact of natural disasters and what it does to places and it's but it's again, like I go back to how cool it is though to see I mention this on part two where we talk about like the kind things that we saw, but watching my neighborhood come together, watching community come together, people show up for each other and start to support small businesses who were really impacted by it.
I mean that's you know, that's what it's all about.
It is and hopefully we can we'll continue it, not just this whole like open our eyes to be like, Okay, we should just continue helping and not just wait for something like this.
No, it should always be this way. We should always be trying to support small businesses. We should always be trying to talk to our neighbors and know each other and offer help where you can. Just yeah, So that was that was the silver lining of all of it. Was that, and Hazel's on the.
Men she's doing better. I felt really good.
And you have water again, you have power again. So there are good things that have have come out of it. And I don't just want to talk about those two things. I want to I want to do a fun thing for us to end on. Okay, because we did talk about and I'm so guy, we talked about the Broncos game because I know that was so fun for you. And I did get to go sledding at the beginning of this, which was super fun.
That looked really fun.
It was so fun, and that it was fun to watch you in Denver. So there were there were bright moments. There were And now we're on the backside. And I hope everybody who still doesn't have power or who's still struggling or is you know, in all these physicians, if you need ways of helping, I reach out. If you can't out one and two, I hope you stay warm and safe. So this is what we're gonna end on
to have like a fun, little happy note. There's a current trend that's happening on social media where you say I may not know everything, but I know dot dot dot where you fill in the blank and it's like a funny thing and I'll share mine so you maybe I'll give you something to think about. But mine is that I can cook in a stainless steel pan.
You know how hard that is?
Have you ever tried to cook in a stanless steel pan? No, everything speaks to it, okay, yoh yeah, yeah, yeah, Because like.
We grew up with cook pasta pasta, yeah.
You can cook anything, and stainless steel, but we grew up with nonstick pans, and of course those are really bad for you. As we've learned, you're not supposed to use non stick pans. Apparently the thing that made life easier is in your life harder. So I had bought stainless steel pans I don't know, over a year ago now, and they're really hard to learn to cook on because everything sticks to it. Things burn really easily, especially on
a guest stove. And so this is like an art and me and my fiance, the amount of YouTube videos we've watched to learn how to cook with stainless steel pans is absurd.
But you know what, now we have figured it out.
That is funny.
This is my skill.
That is awesome.
It's like a funny thing.
But I am really impressed with ourselves that we finally know how to cook with them. I didn't realize it was going to be such a like learning experience to change pans.
I don't know, what do you usually cook on, well, like, you know.
A nonstick pan that has like so things don't sticky, it's right oil and then nothing sticks. If you even just put oil on stainless steel and it's not heated up to the right amount, or you don't use the right oil with the right thing, everything just sticks to the sides. There's like cooking scrambled eggs and stainless steel pan as a disaster. If you don't know how to do it and to clean, it sucks even worse.
Okay, yeah, I haven't had that. I do pasta in that. Okay, it alway sticks to the bottom.
See, but there's an art to it, and now I know the art. And you know what, nothing sticking anymore.
That is a little thing.
It's little things.
So tell me what your I may not know everything, but I know hm. I may not know everything, but I know how to survive in a blizzard.
Okay, game you did?
That'd keep my feet warm? I think it worked until it broke, until I walked too much. I do think the cardboard was a huge helper that, Yeah, because when I realized when we got into our house without power, when it was the thirty five degrees and I was walking on the floor barefoot, my feet got so cold so fast, and once they get cold, there's no going back.
No, you have to thaw them out to then be warm again. Uh like you can't just like warm them up while they're so cold.
Oh yeah, exactly, yes. No, what I did is I did the sock, I did the foil, and and I did another song, and then I put a foot toe warmer in there.
I love so it heat up the foil, your little electric toe warmer thing.
No, it was just like one of the they have hackets, yes that you like shake, you know, and it takes a few minutes. I put it in there, so they were like hot. I love a good idea, and tell the foil busted.
But you didn't know the foil busted to the end, right, I didn't know. Maybe it was also a placebo effect foil.
You're like, I'm a I'm a big chicken.
I think it was, I really do. I was like, I think this is all in my head, the foil.
So you learn how to survive in a blizzard.
Yeah, I love this for you. And no, Cayenne Pepper, don't use that trick, No pep. Yeah, the ballers lied to us.
I'm scared to try it, like maybe it does work, but I was like, I don't want to get all these like blisters and it burns your skin. Someone messaged me and they said, what did they do? They were cold and they like showered in like pepper, like cayannemember.
They showered or something like how do you how do you showering cayenne pepper?
Maybe I read it really fast. They were cold and they like sprinkled it on them and they were like burning for like days, And I was like, that's why I didn't try it.
Well, that feels like that went in places it shouldn't go. I think it's a little different.
It was just on your feet, like I mean it every hole and your eyes.
Ouch, yeah, Kyanne, your lips like cayae pepper going in my mouth. I don't either, I let alone anywhere else. I don't need spicy feet.
No ouch, no spicy feet. Yeah.
Can you imagine that? That'd be miserable. I couldn't go to the game because my feet are.
You're like, I hurt my feet from cayenne pepper. So that's a no for meat dog. I did say though, that you have to make it with the foot powder. So if you don't have the foot powder, I do think you should not just put cayan pepper on your feet.
Yeah, I was gonna do like baby powder or is it different?
Would probably?
I think you need something to at least alleviate the the spice.
Touch, if you will. I wasn't willing to try it like on my first game. I didn't want to be miserable, have miserable. Okay, your next game, you have to try it. Since you don't want to try out your first game, you have to try on your next game. I'll do one foot. See the difference.
One foot's gonna be like either really warm and like golden, or it's gonna be all blistered and horrible.
Oh my god. But then I'll just like limp. I'll just limp to the game.
Get some crutches, frow some crutches from somebody. Yeah, oh my goodness.
Okay, we're getting out of here. Abby.
Thanks for being on after a crazy, hectic week. We had so much going on. I'm glad you're okay. I'm glad you made it back, and I'm glad you had fun.
Yes, thank you, that's what it was about. So fun. I went really fast. You know how things go really fast you don't want to end. Yeah, really fun.
It's always the things you don't want to end that go fast, and the things that you do want to end go very.
Slow, very true. That is life, all right. Go and follow Abby.
She's on Instagram at Abby Lee Anderson yep, yep, and I'm at web Girl Morgan And if you're interested, you could check out my podcast Take this personally. I recently had on Nick Shelton. He's great with introverts. And if you retire and you have no idea what's going to happen with your life, that's some good stuff up there.
Oh that is good.
Yeah, fun over there if you need something to listen to and keep your company over the craziness of all the weather we're getting. So again I repeat, stay.
Safe, stay warm, stay warm.
Those are the priorities right now. And if you're here, I appreciate it. Abby, thanks for joining me.
Yes, thank you, Bye, ron Bine.
That's the best bits of the week with Morgan.
Thanks for listening.
Be sure to check out the other two parts this weekend. Go follow the show on all social platforms. Show and follow at
Web Girl Morgan to submit your listener questions for next week's episode.