Snow Day

  It’s a little early for snow in my area, but yesterday, we got about 2-3 inches.   The forecast had called for rain mixed with some snow, but until Friday night, I don’t remember hearing any talk of accumulation.   Sometime around 9:30-10 am, I started to notice some snowflakes falling in what had started as rain. Soon, it looked like mostly snow, and I figured I had better get out and do my shopping at that time, so I quickly took off and got what we needed.    The snow was just starting to cover the ground when I got back home.

  Once I got inside, I noticed the roads were getting messy, and I wondered if this would turn out to be a surprise snowstorm that caught everyone unaware.  Not long after that, I was getting reports of downed wires and spinouts on the roadways.  The fire siren went off a few times, and every so often I would hear emergency vehicles passing by.  Apparently people weren’t expecting the snow to come until later in the day, and it was now causing a mess.   But since today is supposed to be sunny all day, I think most of it will melt off.  By midweek, we should be back to more seasonable temperatures in the 60’s.

  I remember once back when I was I middle school when we got a few inches of snow in early October.  But between then and now, I don’t remember any real snowy days before November.   It’s usually late December or January before we get any major snowstorms.  Where we live at is just close enough to the ocean to get somewhat milder winters than the rest of the state.  We get plenty of cold weather, but precipitation usually comes with a warm front, so the temperature often warms to around 40 degrees, and it often arrives as rain.

  I guess I’ll take living here over some areas.  Montana and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan are two places I’d like to visit sometime, but only during the summer, or in early fall.  My brothers once encountered snow in June as they crossed the Montana Rockies during a cross-country trip.  That’s unheard of here.  The furthest west I’ve ever been was Indianapolis, and that was on a Labor Day weekend about 9 years ago.  I have taken trips to Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, but both of those journeys were during the summer, as well.  I’ve never been beyond the East Coast during the winter.  I like snow sometimes.  Snow can make anything look nice, and I don’t mind seeing it in October once in a while.  But I don’t want to live in a place where I can’t see the ground between November and April.