The Blizzard Of '10 : The White Stuff

[How Brown]

Last month I remember some of the British members mentioning they were having an accumulation of snow over there. Someone, and I forget who, said you folks had 4 inches of snow and that that was some sort of big deal.

Well...here in the Northeast US....in the Mid Atlantic region...some are predicting up to 24 inches of snow by tomorrow night. Its already started here....get ready Supe...and its up to 1 inch.

24 inches of snow ain't the end of the world. But in cities with streets the width of some of 20 feet, it isn't a picnic. Atlantic City N.J. ( who cares, right ?...its Jersey...) is expected to recieve 60 mile an hour winds and around three feet of the white stuff.

I'll be here all day ( did all my food shopping ) and whatshername should be out shoveling by 8 A.M. ( Gonna be nice to her since its a Saturday...)

So stop your whining, you Limey wimps....and send over some female shovelers to Philly !!!

[Donald Souden]

Howard,

get ready Supe

Braced and all, but word is that we may miss most of it by a scant few miles. For once New England will be spared a major winterstorm. Though the way my luck has been running, I would not want to bet we don't get it.

I am reminded of bad storm that hit Philly and New York in the early 90s. My elderly mom had been visiting my sister in Florida and flew back the day of the storm. Of course, New York was shut down and while only marginally better there, the flight was diverted to Philly.

To make matters worse, when I called the airline they reported "that passenger voluntarily refused to board in Sarasota." So my poor sister raced 30 miles back to the airport with three kids under 7 and searched high and low in ever-growing panic.

Finally, hours later my mom was able to get to a public phone and say that of course she made the flight and was stuck in Philly. And stuck she was for three days in the airport until they finally flew her and the others to New York. Had it been me, I would not have been so nice--there would have been blood all over the airport.

Anyway. enjoy.

Supe

[How Brown]

That slice o' life sounds like a common story found in the 1994 Ice Storm we had here, Supe.
I could not walk across the street. I repeat...I could not walk across the street to gain access to my car.

[RJM]

Is that all you're getting, How.

When I was a little boy, 24 inches of snow is what we used to call that summer!

[How Brown]

Bob:

I know man,I know. Canada leads the league in snow. You've gotta be a man to deal with kupla four five feet of snow all the time up there.

It makes me wonder about London and what they did when they got snow back in the late 1880's. Other than putting women to good use and having them shovel, it must have been a problem for a city of a kupla four five million,I'd think.

Do you or anyone else know how they dealt with snow ?

[Mike Covell]

I heard about this on the news last night, they called it "Snow-Maggeddon." This is what heppens when you let Katie Price (Jordan) the British equivelant of the Snow Queen!

Hope you all stay safe and warm, and if you need to burn any ripper books to keep warm, I can name a few.:smow:

[String]

Is that all you're getting, How.

When I was a little boy, 24 inches of snow is what we used to call that summer!

http://www.phespirit.info/montypython/four_yorkshiremen.htm

[How Brown]

Mike,String,all

Its still coming down and around 15 inches around a few parked cars on the street. Some guy was walking his dog and the snow came up halfway on the spaniel's torso.

Shovelers welcome. Nina looks so cute out there right now...oops, she fell...there she goes...brush yer weeself off,toots..thattagirl...and should have a path cleared with a little extra effort in an hour and a half.

[JTRSickert]

I'm stuck in my house with my roommate and his girlfriend.

We have to shovel later on.

This is not my day

[How Brown]

Yessirree...this storm exceeded what I thought it would.

The second largest snowfall in recorded ( Philadelphia ) history at 28 1/2 inches... JT will remember the number one storm back in '96 where we got over 30 inches.

Plus !

There's another storm heading this way.:thumb:...in just a few days.

[Mags]

It missed us completely but I feel your pain, guys. Biggest snow in recent memory for me was 27 inches back in 93. Man, I love talking like a coot-ette.

We may be in for some on Wed. but probably only a few inches. It's been very cold , but I never complain about all that lovely high pressure.

[How Brown]

Actually, Magmoiselle...its not that bad. The city had 15000 tons of salt at the ready ( probably half of it was nicked and sold by the city employees like they used to do when the assumed snow accumulation wasn't what they had planned on).

I'm worried about the next one coming this week. With all the sh..er, snow that we have on the side streets...we won't be able to move.

Send shovels and more side streets.

[Mags]

Just hope you don't have any ice, that will really put the--well, you know what on the cake.

[How Brown]

Mags:

Black ice, as well as leaking oil from crank cases, is a bitch.
Some of the streets around here are pretty narrow and we actually have the problem of traffic jams occurring on those side streets.

[Mags]

I hear you about the narrow streets. What the hell were people thinking 300 years ago? They had a whole bloody continent to spread out in and they huddled together like it was Belgium or something.


We have snow emergency alternate parking-- everybody off the even side during the first 24 hours then off the odd. And you WILL be towed. City makes a lot of money every year from students who don't believe that.

[How Brown]

Mags:

It got to the point on my street where someone took a crowbar...I don't know who...and ripped down a sign that said "no parking beyond this point", because of the daily ticketing that this one policewoman did at that spot. I've been nailed 4 times in 7 years at that spot...and no, it wasn't me that did it....but they ought to give that dude a medal for it. Parking a nose length beyond the sign cost me 164 bucks for the four offenses. You can't "fight the ticket" because it cost more just to make a damned point than the actual ticket sets you back. The cop was just doing her job, but she seemed to revel in it. I hope she gobbles a bad doughnut.:evil:

You have to live in Philly to understand how the situation is when it snows. People put out trash cans to save spots, which is illegal...others come by after driving around the block 10 times to no avail....move the cans...and a fight ensues. Some have been shot, a few killed, as a result of the situation.

[How Brown]

I don't know about JT Sickert up yonder in NE Philly, but this wasn't a bad pile to shovel out of this year. I took care of mine in under 20 minutes. Some guy came by and plowed the entire center of the street free and made sure he didn't plow any snow into the area where all the parked cars are located. He kicked ass with that plow too ,boy...

But the shovelin' kicked my ass. I hadda hit the couch for a kupla two three hours. Even my sapient conclusions are killin' me.

Of course, Tuesday is expected to bring another storm and pile o' snow.

[How Brown]

Round two is here...its snowing lightly right now.

We've had over 50 inches this year and with this one predicted at near 20 inches, we're talking 6 feet of snow since early January.

And we still have 6 more weeks of winter.:rain:

[JTRSickert]

I don't know about JT Sickert up yonder in NE Philly, but this wasn't a bad pile to shovel out of this year. I took care of mine in under 20 minutes. Some guy came by and plowed the entire center of the street free and made sure he didn't plow any snow into the area where all the parked cars are located. He kicked ass with that plow too ,boy...

But the shovelin' kicked my ass. I hadda hit the couch for a kupla two three hours. Even my sapient conclusions are killin' me.

Of course, Tuesday is expected to bring another storm and pile o' snow.

I hear ya Howard. What sucks is I was originally supposed to go on a frigging date last Saturday and tomorrow and both get cancelled because of this weather. I'm gonna call my work tomorrow morning to see if we are open. If we are, I will show up for work...just to beat up my HR supervisor for keeping us open. I don't work in the city so Nutter's rule doesn't apply to me.

[JTRSickert]

Round two is here...its snowing lightly right now.

We've had over 50 inches this year and with this one predicted at near 20 inches, we're talking 6 feet of snow since early January.

And we still have 6 more weeks of winter.:rain:

What are we, cursed?

[How Brown]

JT:

The head honcho ( not the owner...) at our plant is staying overnight at a hotel ( the one over in Conshy on the twin bridges) so he can make it in tomorrow, so we can claim to be officially open. That means that workers will either have to work Saturday at straight rate to make their 40 hours (overtime for those who sacrifice a Saturday which was my suggestion as an incentive but which was naturally discarded ) or use a vacation day to make up their 40 if they don't show up. Its a shame, but its gonna backfire on the guy with his stupid plan, because only one of us 5 supervisors is even thinking about getting up on a Saturday to work and without us, they're up shit creek. Besides, I have Saturday Search to do and that's far more important.;)

Enjoy tomorrow buddy. Who knows ? We may hit 90-100 inches by April.

[Stephen Thomas]

Well Frankly

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQzlJRjXSGY

[Mike Covell]

I hear ya Howard. What sucks is I was originally supposed to go on a frigging date last Saturday and tomorrow and both get cancelled because of this weather.

Great excuse.:pop2:

We have a light covering of snow this morning, but it's passable, and quite nice to see the street looking clean for a change!

[SirRobertAnderson]

But the shovelin' kicked my ass. I hadda hit the couch for a kupla two three hours. Even my sapient conclusions are killin' me.

Of course, Tuesday is expected to bring another storm and pile o' snow.

It's Hell here as well, How. The maintenance staff AND the doormen have been salting and shoveling all morning. We've gotten a solid inch and a half. The humanity..........To make matters worse, my expresso machine has finally given up the ghost after 12 years, and Zabars is EIGHT blocks away.

It's gonna be the Donner Party here if it doesn't let up.

[How Brown]

Bob:

It might be hell there buddy....but you guys didn't get 28 inches 4 days ago and now this on top of that !

Its really bad outside right now. Once more, some young guys were shoveling their cars out....and all have quit. I looked out at 6:30 AM and thought it wasn't going to be that bad...but its 1 PM now and man...is it coming down. I mean, its coming down...the wind's like 30-40 mph or higher and you can't see the tops of cars.

I think we'll get close to what we had on Saturday...but this is much worse because all the places where snow was originally dumped is so high that new spots to put it will have to be made....not an easy feat. This snowfall is worse than the 28 incher.

Boy, does Nina have some shoveling to do....

[How Brown]

Bob:

One more thing....you won't see any declarations of states of emergency for Philly or Noo Yawk since these are manly cities...unlike Texas or California where they have emergencies for fruit flies and a little bit of wind. Nina, who is only a chick, is out there right now, God bless 'er...up to the cleavage in snow, but battlin' mightily with the elements. I'm watching the phone for telemarketers.

Its a man's world and this is a man's country....the Great Northeast.

[How Brown]

Bobby:

This shit isn't supposed to stop here until 7 PM. Man...it is coming down.:smow::smow::smow::smow::smow:

[SirRobertAnderson]

Conditions here are getting desperate.....we're down to a half gallon of milk and now there's an inch and a half of snow on the sidewalk....

[How Brown]

Inch and a half ? Jesus Christ Bobby...I'm looking at 15-20 on the frigging street !

There's at least 15 on the pavements. At least. No plows today like on Sunday. If not, I'll be home tomorrow.

Glad I demanded Nina walk to the Shop Rite for coffee,coffeemate,a can of sterno, loaf of bread and some liquid plumber. I feel like getting a buzz after watching her shovel.

[SirRobertAnderson]

Inch and a half ? Jesus Christ Bobby...I'm looking at 15-20 on the frigging street !

There's at least 15 on the pavements.

I can tell you if the supply of chocolate croissants is interrupted it will be Helter Skelter time on the Upper West Side.

[How Brown]

Bob:

You are a prick,pal.:sad:

Nina saw you mentioning chocolate croissants.

Guess who has a baseball bat in her snowy hands demanding I make the move to the local bakery.

Paybacks a bitch, Mr. A.

[How Brown]

Bob:

They've closed down all the major roads here...and its still coming down hard, harder than ever before.

I also lost internet access for a kupla two three minutes. Nina changed a cable on her computer and unplugged the damned set up.

Guess who's gonna go back and shovel her arse off for that ?

Come in JTSickert....whats it like up in the NE Philly region ?

[How Brown]

Its funny....I can't get on any site now but this one. I can't even get back to AOL.

Where you at JT ?

[SirRobertAnderson]

Its funny....I can't get on any site now but this one.

They say that's what it's like when you freeze to death....just lay down and rest in the delicious sense of warmth that spreads all over your body.

In the meantime, we're up to 3 inches. I feel like I am trapped on K2.

[How Brown]

Ha ha !!! Three inches !

Listen, Sir Edmund Hillary....I'll bet anything there's at least 15 inches in the street now. Plows aren't even trying to move this shit.

[SirRobertAnderson]

It's up to 4 inches now.....searching Craig's List for sherpas....oxygen bottles low....place starting to look like something out of The Shining....

[How Brown]

I, like J.D. Rockefeller and John Jacob Astor, could live on breast milk if it came to that, Bob.

I never saw it like this before. It really is worse than Saturday's 28 incher.

Nina was getting antsy and said I gave her cabin fever. So I told her to go check the mail and locked her out of the house.:)

[How Brown]

Just came back in from shoveling a space to get out for work tomorrow...20 minutes of heavy breathin' manaction... home to a shot of cognac.

But the main roads are all still unplowed.

Its not an election year.

[Chris G.]

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4055/4346334148_edfa3767d1_o.jpg

Paws for Thought

So I'm down in the Hopkins Deli buying
the last kitty litter and half gallon milk
and the boss behind the counter says:

"This weather's good for me. I pray
to the God of Snow. We Hindus have
it best--we have a god for everything.

"And all you have is Jesus, he's over-
worked. Too much for one man to do."

Christopher T. George

[How Brown]

So..its a Hindu that wished this stuff on us eh?

Thats it for me going to any 7-11 in Philly.

Jesus don't do my talkin' anyway...its a guy with horned helmet and a hammer.

[SirRobertAnderson]

Storm continues to rage ....all communications with the outside world (except for Verizon Fios) cut off....is anyone out there? We're buried under 4 1/2 inches of white death. I think I hear the wolves in Central Park.

We're drawing lots for a foraging expedition for firewood in case oil deliveries cannot make it through.

[How Brown]

4 and 1/2 inches of snow....and you're kvetching ?:kev:
Firewood,schmirewood....we've broken up all our furniture for fuel. The hole in the center of the living room floor from the first floor neighbors burning their furniture lets in a lotta nice heat though. Its a mitzvah that they're quick thinkers.

Seriously Bob...nothing is moving outside right now. Well...except for the timber wolves of Fairmount Park. I think they must be gnawing on a local who got caught in the blizzard. I'll keep you posted.

[How Brown]

Thankfully, the snow is over until Monday. We're supposed to get around 15 inches or so. Then,later on next week, we'll get yet another double digit snowfall. I predict 100 inches this year.

This last blast was from what I've been told....22 inches...gives this area a total of at least 72 inches of snow since Winter began.

Yesterday made the third time in a month we had 20 plus inches of snow. This last one, yesterday, was surreal. The trees bent down so far that it was thought they were going to break at any minute. The shimmer on the branches seemed as if the trees were electrified...very beautiful...but scary because those trees hang over the street and very close to powerlines. Three times in the last 7 years here, we've had trees fall on vehicles and some are over 80 feet high.

Bob....how did you guys make out ?

[Chris G.]

I trekked to Eddies supermarket in Charles Village, a couple of miles from here, almost lost my boot in a snowdrift, bought milk, bananas, and kitty litter, plus a reuben sandwich and a potato knish. Luckily our road which has been impassable for most vehicles for almost a week has now been cleared. Below is how it looked yesterday morning.

Chris

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4017/4345600999_0f4fbc87b6_o.jpg

[How Brown]

Hmmm..

Where's that Reuben sandwich at ?
Why aren't you out there shoveling and hurting your back and shoulder like this dummy did?
You actually walked two miles ? Are they having Olympic games out there?
Where's that Reuben sandwich at ? ( in case I forget to ask...)
How many inches of snow are represented in that photo ?

Thanks.

[Mags]

My deepest sympathies to Nina.

Send that Reuben right out to her when you get it.

We were braced for 6 inches but got a dusting. the loca lweathermen are pissed and jealous that you guys got all the drama.

[admin tim]

On the other hand, it ain't all bad news being snowed in for a week. Congratulations to Howard!

[Chris G.]

Hmmm..

Where's that Reuben sandwich at ?
Why aren't you out there shoveling and hurting your back and shoulder like this dummy did?
You actually walked two miles ? Are they having Olympic games out there?
Where's that Reuben sandwich at ? ( in case I forget to ask...)
How many inches of snow are represented in that photo ?

Thanks.

Hi How

I actually walked about four miles yesterday, being around the distance to the doctor's and back. We got some thirty plus inches in total I think. I actually did a stupid thing yest morning, was on the train almost to D.C. when Donna called me to say she thought I had her car keys. Indeed I did! So I had to get off at New Carrollton to come back to Baltimore. I did though have a brainwave in terms of me being able to switch a doctor's appointment scheduled for today to yesterday at 11:45 am, then had my hair cut and beard trim, so it turned out a productive day, plus being able to see Champions League play in the afternoon, Manchester United beating AC Milan 3-2 at the San Siro Stadium in Italy. :wave:

Below is another photographic and poetic impression that might ring a chime with you.

All the best

Chris


http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4061/4365257891_470711751a_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2558/4365257885_84d1039e26_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2224/4366001282_b919280d6c_o.jpg

Baltimore, Valentine's Day, 2010! :(

Wake Me Up When Winter's Over

"I was born on a storm-swept rock and hate the soft growth
of sunbaked lands where there is no frost in men’s bones."
.................................................. ...................Liam O'Flaherty

Tired of slip-sliding! Walking like a Chinese emperor's wife!
Let me nestle down deep under my warm feather comforter, let
winter do its worst outside! No more snow! Freezing drizzle!
Ice, icicles, black ice, filthy or yellow snow, no icebergs!
No ice-driven fender benders, wheels screaming to be set free!

Christopher T. George

[How Brown]

The good news....Manchester United beating AC Milan 3-2 at the San Siro Stadium in Italy
The bad news.....No answer to the fate of the Reuben.

C.G....Philadelphia's snow "record" was eclipsed within 5 weeks from the first flake to the last blizzard....72+ inches in that short span of time. We had one inch yesterday and people laughed. We're getting more tomorrow or Friday.

The side streets look like someone steppd on landmines ( some big holes,for some reason, have popped up on the streets....and its pretty touch and go still. Its not an election year, so the Mayor doesn't have to try and impress anyone.).

[Chris G.]

The good news....Manchester United beating AC Milan 3-2 at the San Siro Stadium in Italy
The bad news.....No answer to the fate of the Reuben.

C.G....Philadelphia's snow "record" was eclipsed within 5 weeks from the first flake to the last blizzard....72+ inches in that short span of time. We had one inch yesterday and people laughed. We're getting more tomorrow or Friday.

The side streets look like someone steppd on landmines ( some big holes,for some reason, have popped up on the streets....and its pretty touch and go still. Its not an election year, so the Mayor doesn't have to try and impress anyone.).

Hi Howie

The reuben I ate all up. Bon appetit! :roll:

I heard the local weatherman say that we had received some 65 inches for the season.

Catching a cab from Union Station and riding round the circle in front of the Columbus statue we encountered some horrendous potholes. At the best of times, the road there is like a rollercoaster so perhaps the snowplows dislodged some of the ridged asphalt. :(

C

[Chris G.]

More pics.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4055/4365257869_a66e0301bb_o.jpg

Icicles at my Mom's nursing home. We have some big ones round Baltimore.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2677/4351347804_bcb814ed58_o.jpg

Baltimore Winter Olympics. Statue of a discus thrower outside the gymnasium at the Johns Hopkins University across the street from where we live. . . . I was coming home with my reuben when I took this photograph. :evil:

C

[How Brown]

Chris:

Nina and I left the house at 6:15 AM. It immediately began snowing.
Its 3:40 now and has been coming down heavy all day...except that its not sticking to the street. If it had, I'll bet we would have set another record.

We're getting 6-12 tonight. How about you guys ?

[JTRSickert]

The winds are blowing pretty heavy out there but it isn't settling that much.

[Chris G.]

Hi How, Nina and Bob

Blowing a gale here and windblown snow on the streets but little or no accumulation. Still the conditions are wild here in the Washington-Baltimore area. Good luck with the snow up there.

C

[How Brown]

CG:

This time New York got something to whine about for once. I hear it was around 30 inches in some places.

Check this out...and JT will back me up on it....it began snowing yesterday at 6:15 AM and did not stop until after 11 AM today. Thats close to 29 straight hours of snow....and yet !

There is less snow on the ground than when it began. If all that snow had accumulated, we'd be talking 48 inches or so.