Posted on 01/22/2005 4:04:20 AM PST by SamAdams76
Well all the stops have officially been pulled out by the weather prognosticators. They are on a "war footing." The Northeast is getting a true BLIZZARD this weekend. Not a "nor'easter". Not just your basic snowstorm dumping 6-10 inches in Boston and New York with a mix and changeover to rain along the coast. No! We are talking 20-30 inches of windblown powdery snow in many locations with no chance of a mix with or change to rain whatsoever.
The temperatures are currently running zero or below zero across most of the Northeast this morning so the cold air is in place and fully entrenched. With the high winds expected with this storm, This will be a true BLIZZARD.
So as I sit in the epicenter of it all (my area is expecting over two feet of snow), I thought I'd start this thead so that Freepers can give us reports of how conditions are in there area. And you don't have to be in the Northeast to participate as this storm is currently affecting Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and West Virginia as it heads to the East Coast where it is expected to undergo what the weather nuts call "bombogenesis" and literally explode into a superstorm as energy is transferred over the comparatively milder Atlantic Ocean.
So there you have it. Even in areas where plenty of snow falls this time of year, you have people running to the supermarket early this morning to "stock up", as if somehow a few feet of snow is going to stop all commerce and transportation for the forseeable future (the reality is that we should be all shoveled and plowed out by Monday morning no matter how bad things get).
The local TV stations around here have gone absolutely bonkers, as they are wont to do. It's even more extreme this year because TV "broadcast" stations are struggling to maintain their relevancy in a high world of internet, satellite radio and many other distractions that consumers have these days.
Weekday "anchors" are being rolled out of bed early this Saturday morning as they throw on their hairpieces and head to the studios for all-day "wall-to-wall" coverage of this blizzard. Seasoned reporters are being sent to Home Depots where people are already nervously buying shovels (even though they likely have 7 or 8 shovels in their garage already) and supermarkets where silly old ladies are buying gallons of milk (that they normally never drink) and loaves of bread (that they will never eat and end up throwing to the birds). Other reporters will be sent into the streets to do interviews with snow-plow drivers and "public safety" officials. More junior reporters are being sent to the sides of highways for liveshots where absolutely nothing is going on presently. But they will stand there nevertheless, filming the traffic going by and commenting on "how dangerous" this highway will be in just a few more hours. Then when the storm hits, these same reporters will retreat to rest areas where they will continue their liveshots as their cameramen instruct them to "sway in the wind" and "hold on to their hats" to help convince the viewers at home that the storm is severe indeed.
Yes, it's going to be a fun weekend in New England and the Northeast in general. But the beauty of this is that is is on a weekend. If we are going to get a true blizzard, the timing just couldn't be much better. We are able to get our normal errands done on Saturday morning and then in the afternoon, we can retreat to our homes and stoke up the fireplace as the snow moves in. Then tomorrow (Sunday), we can sleep late and take our time shoveling out. Then we have a perfect excuse to sit around the warm house all afternoon watching football as THREE out of the four teams still playing are all in the snow-bound Northeast. The ratings ought to be phenomenal, provided the power doesn't go out.
So post conditions in your area here.
Outside my home (approx 30 miles northwest of Boston near the NH border), it is -11 degrees! It is daybreak and the skies are mostly clear with some high clouds. It is COLD out there, almost too cold for snow. But it's coming, at least that's what they tell me!
I'm right under the top strip of yellow on the link here.
http://www.wixt.com/weather/large_doppler.aspx
Snow began exactly at 1 pm.
Moderate snow now..........visibility about 1/4 mile.
Deer have already lunched 5 feet from the house.
Poor animals tonight..........
LOL I have no where to go as the roads are getting worse by the minute. I'll be bumping into freepers a lot ;-)
"You know, I'm going to start thanking
the woman who cleans the restroom in
the building I work in. I'm going to start
thinking of her as a human being"
How are the conditions in Philadelphia at this time?
I do not envy you..Today weather in Texas is to brag about..but wait til summer! Stay safe!
Lord have mercy..That traffic cam in Washington makes me very thankful today isn't inauguration day.
I know, the winds, blowing snow sideways and the combination with the cold temps is making this a nasty storm.
I just came back from the store and the roads are slick.
It is supposed to warm up monday to around 30.
I always worry about the birds. It is hard on the larger animals but they have a lot of bulk.
What keeps a 5 oz bird from freezing solid?
Most churches have already cancelled for tomorrow. The radio stations have been broadcasting the cancellations all day and the list gets longer and longer. What's amazing is that the first flakes haven't even started falling yet but according to the local radar I am monitoring, the snow is knocking on our door (eastern Mass.).
I know.
Good luck to all.
LVM
I was just looking at your photos on the thread that is now locked. Nice shots and I have to ask about "Brown Dog". He/she's holding a real nice point but I can't recognize the breed. I had a German Short hair some years ago and that photo made me think of how enjoyable it is to see a good pointing dog lock up like that.
Knock Knock!
Who's there?
Candygram....
Looks like it's just getting warmed up.
Has Hitlery and Ted Kennedy blamed Bush yet for this storm? I guess if they don`t they will say he was unprepared.
FXUS61 KBOX 221651 AAA
AFDBOX
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
1150 AM EST SAT JAN 22 2005
.UPDATE...
...HURRICANE FORCE WINDS ARE POSSIBLE SUN FOR CAPE COD AND NANTUCKET ALONG WITH A SLOWER STORM DEPARTURE SUN...
WE CONTINUE TO BE IN AWE AS WE REVIEW EACH MODEL RUN AND EVALUATE UPSTREAM CONDITIONS. 12Z ETA AND GFS ARE NOW EXTREMELY CLOSE ON THEIR SOLUTIONS...ESPECIALLY ON THE MAGNITUDE AND TRACK OF THE 500 MB AND SURFACE LOWS. BOTH MODELS CONTINUE INDICATE STRONG HEIGHT FALLS WITH 500 MB LOW AS IT TRACKS JUST SOUTH OF NEW ENGLAND TONIGHT AND SUN. AT THE SURFACE...THIS LEADS TO EXPLOSIVE CYCLOGENESIS OFF THE NEW JERSEY COAST TONIGHT...AND CONTINUING SUNDAY AS SURFACE LOW TRACKS OVER THE BENCHMARK (40N/70W).
It is rare that the forecasters become more excited as the storm approaches. Usually they hype up the storm in the beginning and then gradually back off as the storm never quite lives up to initial expectations. I think we in Southern New England are in for a real experience tonight and tomorrow.
I am now home for the day after running multiple errands. I'm going to bring as much firewood to my garage as I can because I don't think I'm going to be getting to the woodpile again anytime soon.
Red
I was in Buffalo for the Blizzard of 1977 and the Panic of '78 which mainly missed us but did trap 500 people at the old Aud who had gone down to watch the Sabres.
I'd just moved to Buffalo in 1977 from Los Angeles, and when the blizzard began at 11:00 a.m. I was at work in a downtown hotel. Mommies went screaming into the blizzard to rescue their children from warm, dry, safe schools and trap them on buried streets in freezing cars with no food or water; manly northern men went into the blizzard to prove that it was no big deal... and sensible people who worked in hotels rustled up bedding and mattresses, filled up all the bottles and pails with water, and settled down to work. When the work day was over we went down to the bar and drank and played cards. We were there for 3 days and when we came out to either hike home through the drifts or catch a ride with someone in a jeep or truck, we confronted 12 feet of snow and a really interesting couple of weeks coping with it all.
Currently it's -16 with a -27 wind chill, and snowing steadily. Since this is Toronto and not Jamaica, no one is particularly concerned. The grocery store was pretty busy at 8:30 a.m. when I went to do my normal week shopping, but people seem to be going about their business.
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