Winter Storm - 90M people under wind chill alerts

[Velar Fricative]

Dec 21, 2022 17:34:26 GMT -5 AJL said:

We're all freaking out here in Texas because we have PTSD (I'm not even joking) from Winterpocalypse in 2021. Remember when our electrical grid failed and the governor blamed it on windmills freezing up (they didn't) rather than the issue of petroleum lines freezing (they did)? And then ERCOT promised to do something to make sure the same catastrophe didn't happen again (they've done jack shit.)

So, yeah. I'm banking on a) not having a precipitation and b) warmer temps coming on Sunday to keep me from losing my shit.

I’d be freaking out too. I saw a report that Texas has assured residents the grid won’t fail and even I’m scratching my head over here because did they actually learn and take action after what happened in 2021? Hope everyone down there remains safe!

[bronxgirl]

So am I an idiot for driving to Cleveland this weekend? We were supposed to go on Friday which now does not seem prudent and were going to reschedule to Saturday. i hope this isn't a disaster. I didn't see Cleveland or NE Ohio mentioned in the article, but they mentioned the Great Lakes area several times. We'd be driving across PA.

[macmars45]

Dec 21, 2022 15:48:26 GMT -5 picksthemusic said:

Up here in the PNW, we have been having snow and cold temps for the last week. Once the weekend hits, it's non-stop rain and thunder/lightning storms. So that's what we get.

You mean the Seattle area right?

In central WA it's highs under 15 and some snow with -20-30 wind chill from tonight-Friday morning. Sunday we'll finally reach freezing. Then more snow. No rain or thunder storms in sight.

[christy082]

Dec 21, 2022 18:52:03 GMT -5 bronxgirl said:

So am I an idiot for driving to Cleveland this weekend? We were supposed to go on Friday which now does not seem prudent and were going to reschedule to Saturday. i hope this isn't a disaster. I didn't see Cleveland or NE Ohio mentioned in the article, but they mentioned the Great Lakes area several times. We'd be driving across PA.

I'm in the same country as Cleveland and we have a winter storm warning all of Friday until 10am Saturday morning.

[Velar Fricative]

Dec 21, 2022 18:52:03 GMT -5 bronxgirl said:

So am I an idiot for driving to Cleveland this weekend? We were supposed to go on Friday which now does not seem prudent and were going to reschedule to Saturday. i hope this isn't a disaster. I didn't see Cleveland or NE Ohio mentioned in the article, but they mentioned the Great Lakes area several times. We'd be driving across PA.

I don’t think you’re an idiot, but you should monitor and be prepared to cancel at the last minute. We won’t know how icy roads are even in NYC, let alone towards the worst of it. Also, driving through PA is the absolute worst even when the weather is beautiful lol; I’d be worried about getting stranded in the middle of nowhere if things haven’t cleared up.

[whattheheck]

I'm in a northern NYC suburb and moved my holiday plans (to travel to NYC for a few days) back a few days so that I can be home to run the generator if we lose power so I don't come home to frozen/burst pipes. The joys of home ownership.

[dirtyred]

Dec 21, 2022 15:07:27 GMT -5 basilosaurus said:

Dec 21, 2022 12:56:54 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

OOOOOOOOH! I may have to find it and watch it. LOL!

DONT! it's terrible. And yet I watched it in theater in Denver during a snow storm because a friend invited me, and I took the bus because despite my Subaru this Florida girl wasn't going to drive the entire mile. Yes, I walked home because buses had already given up.

I've experienced -40 in Colorado as a child. My FIL went to college in Fairbanks so thinks that was like spring break.

Regardless the temp if it's colder than your used to it prepared for it such. And it can be dangerous. Bundle up, keep your pets and people safe. I'd send you all hot cocoa but don't want delivery drivers out either

My husband and I watched it in the theater and in the middle of the movie, the power went out. The whole theater laughed.

[chilerellanos]

It was -15 with a windchill of -48 when I walked into work this morning.

Thankfully we didn’t get very much snow in Nebraska where I live but the weather did disrupt our plans last night (our Christmas celebration since I work the holiday).

[picksthemusic]

Dec 21, 2022 19:36:59 GMT -5 macmars45 said:

Dec 21, 2022 15:48:26 GMT -5 picksthemusic said:

Up here in the PNW, we have been having snow and cold temps for the last week. Once the weekend hits, it's non-stop rain and thunder/lightning storms. So that's what we get.

You mean the Seattle area right?

In central WA it's highs under 15 and some snow with -20-30 wind chill from tonight-Friday morning. Sunday we'll finally reach freezing. Then more snow. No rain or thunder storms in sight.

LOL Yes. My dad lives in Spokane, so he keeps me in the loop of the dropping temps and snow dumps there.

[pixy0stix]

Boston terriers could not survive in the wild. I cleared a spot in the 3ish inches of snow for the dogs to potty. Usually they're on their own at that depth, but I want them to go outside even if it's -15. Two dogs stayed in the boundary and came right in. The Boston bounded out to mid-yard, and within 30 seconds refused to move. I had to coax her in slow step by step. She would have just frozen outside like a statue.

[glitzy07]

MN here. According to my weather app, we got 11.65" of snow in the last 24 hours and it currently feels like -30. I was out driving in the snow last night because I had a massage appointment and then I decided to swing through Costco on my way home for a few last minute things. Costco was absolutely dead at 8pm and the roads were so quiet. It was eerie.

I feel like I might be kidding myself by not being that worried since I've lived in MN my whole life and already lived through the "Polar Vortex" of 2019, but we're just hunkering down and hoping for the best the next couple of days.

My H still has to work in person the next few days. He works in a grocery store and the blizzard conditions are definitely messing with the traditional traffic patterns he would expect in his stores the couple of days before Christmas.

[nothingcontroversial]

Dec 21, 2022 18:52:03 GMT -5 bronxgirl said:

So am I an idiot for driving to Cleveland this weekend? We were supposed to go on Friday which now does not seem prudent and were going to reschedule to Saturday. i hope this isn't a disaster. I didn't see Cleveland or NE Ohio mentioned in the article, but they mentioned the Great Lakes area several times. We'd be driving across PA.

You should pay attention to the conditions in the Laurel Highlands. I grew up near the top of one of those mountains, and we often cancelled our travel plans to see family in the next county over when the weather got bad. 

Are you taking the PA Turnpike? I hate the PA Turnpike, but I took it in the winter because I was more confident that it would be maintained, as opposed to taking Route 30 or Route 31.

Edit: I don't have a lot of experience with I-80 across PA because almost every place that I drove to was in the southern part of PA, and I live in the southern part of PA. 

[spindle92]

Pray for the ranchers.

It is currently -29 at my family's farm in southwestern North Dakota, with a wind chill of -66.
They are working cattle today.

[estrellita]

glitzy07 That's how I feel too. Polar vortex, blizzards, meh, that's winter in MN! Haha. Coworkers on the east coast asked if we're all stocked up. The grocery store is just down the road and I doubt they'll close, so no 🤷‍♀️ But if they do for some reason, I suppose we have enough stuff to get through a couple days with no issues until it opens again.

Not saying that to downplay it for anyone else. We just already deal with a lot of this stuff that it's not much of a difference for us. I did have to laugh that they closed my work today and tomorrow. We ALL WFH or have the option to now, lol. We rarely closed when we DIDN'T have that option 🙄

[chilerellanos]

Dec 22, 2022 12:33:03 GMT -5 spindle92 said:

Pray for the ranchers.

It is currently -29 at my family's farm in southwestern North Dakota, with a wind chill of -66.
They are working cattle today.

Yep, we are a ranching family also (as are many of my friends), and it is absolutely brutal for them.

[icedcoffee]

Dec 22, 2022 12:33:03 GMT -5 spindle92 said:

Pray for the ranchers.

It is currently -29 at my family's farm in southwestern North Dakota, with a wind chill of -66.
They are working cattle today.

That's unfathomable.  I hope all the animals are ok and your family can get inside as quickly as possible.

[yellow23]

Dec 21, 2022 16:38:54 GMT -5 breezy8407 said:

In MN and its snowing and really cold, so nothing we haven't seen before so far. However, the blizzard warning is ominous. I don't recall seeing the stern wording in the warnings from the NWS. I went to Super Target to get a few things last night, and it was cleared out. We usually don't see empty shelves here before weather events - not to this extent. I know the holidays have something to do with it, but even the yogurt section was cleared out.

It might just be the holiday or possibly just Target. I was at Target today and it’s wiped out, we are only getting rain and have no weather warnings so no one is stocking up for a storm.

[Velar Fricative]

I really feel for everyone who has to do work outside in these conditions. I hope everyone in your life that that pertains to remains safe.

[cattledogkisses]

We’re supposed to get up to 75 mph wind gusts. Isn’t that close to hurricane strength?

I’ve never been happier to have a generator.

[tiramisu]

Hoping all of you make it through this safely, with power intact. I'd also send you all cocoa and/or cider if I could.

[StrawberryBlondie]

Dec 22, 2022 14:13:03 GMT -5 yellow23 said:

Dec 21, 2022 16:38:54 GMT -5 breezy8407 said:

In MN and its snowing and really cold, so nothing we haven't seen before so far. However, the blizzard warning is ominous. I don't recall seeing the stern wording in the warnings from the NWS. I went to Super Target to get a few things last night, and it was cleared out. We usually don't see empty shelves here before weather events - not to this extent. I know the holidays have something to do with it, but even the yogurt section was cleared out.

It might just be the holiday or possibly just Target. I was at Target today and it’s wiped out, we are only getting rain and have no weather warnings so no one is stocking up for a storm.

Meanwhile, my Target, which is normally terrible at stocking, was really well-stocked this morning despite the -30 weather and blizzard warning.

[AJL]

Well, it’s here. It’s 28 degrees in ATX with a windchill of -10. It’s bananas! Stay safe and warm, folks!

[rubytue]

Dec 22, 2022 10:54:45 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

Boston terriers could not survive in the wild. I cleared a spot in the 3ish inches of snow for the dogs to potty. Usually they're on their own at that depth, but I want them to go outside even if it's -15. Two dogs stayed in the boundary and came right in. The Boston bounded out to mid-yard, and within 30 seconds refused to move. I had to coax her in slow step by step. She would have just frozen outside like a statue.

My Jack russel is like this. We tease her that her little legs can’t keep her belly dry. But she flat out refused to go outside in the rain. Like all excited, can’t calm her down. Open the door, and she takes one look then runs as far into the house as the leash lets her. And she is learning the signs. We grab the rain jacket, she goes into her crate. I sware this dog isn’t going to poop for days.

[redheadbaker]

Dec 22, 2022 10:54:45 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

Boston terriers could not survive in the wild. I cleared a spot in the 3ish inches of snow for the dogs to potty. Usually they're on their own at that depth, but I want them to go outside even if it's -15. Two dogs stayed in the boundary and came right in. The Boston bounded out to mid-yard, and within 30 seconds refused to move. I had to coax her in slow step by step. She would have just frozen outside like a statue.

I often wonder how Carl managed to survive as a stray. 

A) he looooooves anything soft and squishy, and if there is a pile of soft things, he will get on top of it. 

B) he leads an "eat first, ask questions later" kind of life. How did he not kill himself?

[rubytue]

14 hours. That’s how long it took for the urge to poop to overcome the fear of rain. And it’s still mid-50s here, just we’ve had 13.5 hours of rain. No poop length breaks. I have no idea how this dog is going to handle it once the rain freezes tomorrow.

Oh, and she has a patch of fake grass on the covered porch. But she won’t use that.

[lostrn]

Dec 22, 2022 22:04:19 GMT -5 rubytue said:

14 hours. That’s how long it took for the urge to poop to overcome the fear of rain. And it’s still mid-50s here, just we’ve had 13.5 hours of rain. No poop length breaks. I have no idea how this dog is going to handle it once the rain freezes tomorrow.

Oh, and she has a patch of fake grass on the covered porch. But she won’t use that.

I have to drive my dog to a nearby park when it's raining or he won't do a thing. Last night I had to take him to two different parks before he would actually get over his fear and do his business lol. Today is going to be bad I think.

[cattledogkisses]

Dec 22, 2022 20:14:00 GMT -5 redheadbaker said:

Dec 22, 2022 10:54:45 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

Boston terriers could not survive in the wild. I cleared a spot in the 3ish inches of snow for the dogs to potty. Usually they're on their own at that depth, but I want them to go outside even if it's -15. Two dogs stayed in the boundary and came right in. The Boston bounded out to mid-yard, and within 30 seconds refused to move. I had to coax her in slow step by step. She would have just frozen outside like a statue.

I often wonder how Carl managed to survive as a stray. 

A) he looooooves anything soft and squishy, and if there is a pile of soft things, he will get on top of it. 

B) he leads an "eat first, ask questions later" kind of life. How did he not kill himself?

This was Blue Dog, to a tee.  I also wonder how she managed to survive as a stray for as long as she did.

[underwaterrhymes]

We had to bribe our dog with cheese to go outside to pee this morning. Now he’s got the zooms and is racing around the house.

[seeyalater52]

The cold temps elsewhere are just terrifying. I hope all of you and your loved ones stay safe.

It isn’t cold here but the wind is outrageous. It sounds like a train outside and my dog is not pleased. Thankfully we still have power for the time being.

[NewOrleans]

😂 at everyone’s documentation of their dogs.

Hope everyone is safe (and all the dogs are warm and cushy).