I don't remember how long we'd been in El Paso when we experienced our first sandstorm, and we were nowhere near prepared for that phenomenon. The first thing I noticed was that the wind was blowing stronger than usual. Then when I went out the back door, I saw this huge cloud building up. Cloud, huh! It was sand, and it was a-coming hard. If I had had any idea what we were in for, I might have been able to take some precautions, but....
Well, the wind hit first, then the sand. Not just a little bit of sand. The air was sand. There was no delineation between ground and sky. It was a wall of sand propelled by a big wind. And it went on and on. I don't remember how many hours, but it seemed like days!
I described our little houses, not much more than new shacks, really, and during the sandstorm we came to find out just how poorly built they were. Sand came seeping under the doors. Sand came seeping around the windows. Sand came seeping up through the floorboards. The air inside the house wasn't breathable. We wet towels and wound them around our faces so we wouldn't be breathing sand. It was unbelievable.
By the time the storm had passed, there was so much sand piled up by the doors, that we couldn't open them. We literally had to shovel our way out of the house. A broom barely moved the amount of sand that had collected inside the house.
Every inch of that house was covered with sand. I had to strip the bed, take everything to the laundry, and vacuum the mattress. Sand had penetrated everything. Took down the curtains, shoved the sand off the windowsills, then swept everything outside. Then I had to wash down windowsills and frames, windows, all the surfaces had to be washed down. After that was done, I had to wet mop to get the rest of the sand from the floor.
Because the cupboards were open, every single dish, every pot, pan, drinking glass, all the silverware had to be washed. But I had to clean out the sink and the dishpan before I could wash the dishes. Oy! Then the shelves had to be washed before I could put the dishes back.
Now if this sounds like an exaggeration, just ask another Texan about sandstorms, particularly a Texas who lives in the western part of the state. I hope never again to experience that particular piece of weather--not never!!
Tomorrow....haven't decided yet. Maybe the poker game, or maybe the taco fiasco.
Shalom.