Any Midwestners got snow yet? pics?

[westingman123]

and now an update

the driving winds have made it to St. Louis. Nary a flake; just wet. I'm moving north!

 

[swestoyz]

In too Deep

The great dig-out begins.... (it felt like I was shoveling approx. 11 inches of total accumulation)

 

[tomturbomatic]

Rain and wind here

Places in the DC area received between one and three inches of rain overnight. The rain has mostly moved east. Now it will start getting colder with lows in the 20s and highs in the 30s for the weekend and maybe a chance of snow Saturday night into Sunday. Good latke-frying weather.

I have flashlights and an emergency floodlight that comes on if the power goes out and a Coleman double mantle propane lantern. The glass room has gravity hot water baseboard heat fired by a gas water heater with pilot so if worse comes to worst, I can put a sleeping bag by the baseboard and sleep warm. I have a couple of the 1960s Ronson butane table ranges I can use inside and a gas stove outside under the deck if I have to go into survival mode.

 

[Unimatic1140]

9°F still snowing and blowing very hard winds NNW at 24mph w

Everything looks so gorgeous out this morning!

My usual commute is 9 minutes, it took me about 20 minutes to get into work today. Freeways in the city are moving but only at 25 to 30mph. The snow is blowing across the freeways a great clips. The snowfall should clear out by noon with temps suppose to drop down to between -5°F to -10°F tonight and wind chills down to -35. Wood logs will definitely be burning in the fireplace tonight!

 

[frigilux]

Holy cow!! Our corner of the state (SW) was finally upgraded to a Blizzard Warning last night around 9:00, and the ensuing storm is definitely living up to the hype.

Although the wind is still howling at 40 mph (gusts going over 50) and there's a -29 wind chill, I just blew out the driveway. My house is built into a hill with a retaining wall running east-to-west along the length of the driveway. When I looked out my dining room window (upstairs), I couldn't even see the wall!

I have a full-size snowblower, and the drifts in my driveway were easily 12-16 inches taller than the machine. Fortunately, as Robert has been reporting, it's a very dry, powdery snow, so I was able to break down the drifts and the Snapper chewed 'em up and spit 'em out.

I was only outside for about 30 minutes, but my face and fingertips are frozen---and I was wearing huge snowmobiler-type gloves! I'm going to warm up for awhile and blow out my two neighbors' driveways; not that anyone is going anywhere, but the drifts will be completely unmanageable, even with a snowblower by the time the winds subside later today.

Everything here is closed---all businesses, schools (obviously), etc. I may have to go on a baking spree and post a dishwasher BobLoad® later. I love to watch a blizzard raging while I work in the kitchen and listen to music. A perfect winter day!

 

[danemodsandy]

To My Midwestern Friends:

O-kay.

I know you thought a little snow would make me feel welcome.

I know you knew a white Christmas would be the most wonderful thing an Atlanta transplant could ever hope for.

I know you're all dear, kind, thoughtful people who want me to have the full Midwestern winter experience right away, with no waiting.

But did you have to arrange for DOUBLE the previous record for snow on this date in December?

Just kidding! It's beautiful, and I love it, and I'm going to like it here.

Thanks, guys!

 

[tomturbomatic]

Weather Channel reported 5 degrees in Omaha with wind chill of 17 below.

 

[xraytech]

I just wish for a nice big snow like that here real soon, I am off for like 6 weeks and the park Avenue has a new pair of Firestone Winter Force tires and I am just dying to have a big snow to go out driving in

 

[frigilux]

Sandy---You're welcome, LOL! Those of us who have lived here all our lives knew we would have to pay for that beautiful, balmy November at some point. Mother Nature has her own---usually mischievous---way of balancing things out.

 

[hooverwheelaway]

Snow!

Here's a picture of Robert revving up the snow-blower over his lunch break.

 

[hooverwheelaway]

I did not miss this...

I didn't miss having to clean off my car while living in NC...

Brrrrrrrrrr!

 

[toggleswitch2]

ooooh how rugged and manly!

 

[petek]

And a Mazda 3 just like me.

I was just watching the weather channel and it doesn't look like we're gonna get much snow at all over the next few days. Maybe an inch or less if that.. It'll all probably blow over Lake Huron and east missing us. Still they could be wrong like that never happens

 

[autowasherfreak]

Brrrrrr

It's a chilly 18 degrees with wind chill -0 degrees, and snowing.

 

[washboy2005]

England is being it's usual boring self! Low blinding sunlight and drizzle rain!

I want snow!

Not sure if the link is of much interest to anyone, but I shall include nevertheless

Dan - Miserably wet North East England!

 

[jamiel]

Bit of a yawn in Detroit, although the winds are really kicking up. Light snow cover (lawns and streets) yesterday at 11 pm,..just slush in the street this morning going to work, and now with the wind the streets are dry.

Interesting...I work in the Renaissance Center and was in the elevator with one of the elevator maintenance guys who confirmed our suspicion that they slow down the elevators when the wind is blowing.

 

[swestoyz]

Normally I drive to work, log into my PC, grab a diet Coke, and start working.

Instead I drove to work through dozens of drifts, was handed a pink child-sized shovel, and started digging out a Kia (notice that, even though I've lived me entire life in Iowa, I'm not as prepared for winter weather as Robert is).

Again, Life is Good.

 

[toggleswitch2]

I work in the Renaissance Center and was in the elevator with one of the elevator maintenance guys who confirmed our suspicion that they slow down the elevators when the wind is blowing.

*LOL* I woked near the top of the Empre State Buidlng the onein NYC nto the one in OMAHA, NE. LOL (near the 80th floor).

The building is purposely made to bend and sway in the wind. Let me tell you how fun it is ti have things roll off your desk. Even a bigger blast if you had been out drinking the night before and think your hangover is haunting you!

I worked in a different skyscraper with sealed windows, which is the norm. On really windy days they boost the air-pressure so the building has a net a positive air pressure(easy to do as air exhausts and air intakes are separate blowers, one just varies the speeds). You can actually see the plate-glass windows bow out and the doors to the building stay open an bit with the outrush of air. This is to ensure that windows explode OUT rather than in, should the wind get out of hand.

Hoep you all are having fun in the snow. Our deluge today was rain. Are there any states/cities/towns that DON'T require homeowners to shovel sidewalks?

My house was a corner property with sidewalks. NEVER AGAIN!

 

[a440]

Awesome Pictures!

You all look like you are having so much fun!
Robert you look like a kid in a candy store with your snow blower! Like you just could not wait!
I hope we get snow here in Atlanta this year! It has been long over due. SNOW not ICE!
Thanks for the pictures everyone!
Brent

 

[polkanut]

Brent,

If you think it's so much fun to shovel, and blow snow at 10 degrees Fahrenheit, then be my guest. Just kidding, I'll take your weather anyday.

Steve: Our city ordinance requires all property owners to have their sidewalks cleared within 48hrs after it stops snowing.

 

[joelippard]

Beautiful Pictures

It's nice to see how pretty the snow is -- but I don't want to see any of it around here in NC.

 

[petek]

Here only businesses are required to clear the snow from the sidewalks in front with 24 hrs, homeowners no. Back in Calgary homeowners also had 24hrs or possible fine or city doing it and charging.
Our street we don't have sidewalks, I snowblow a few of my neighbors driveways and make a path between each of our front doors across the lawn for the mailman and the papergirl if the snow is deep. Moms street has sidewalks so I do hers but usually her neighbor has already gone along her whole block doing the sidewalk. Guys with snowblowers just like to use em, it's true.

 

[frigilux]

"Guys with snowblowers just like to use 'em..."

Part of it is the guilt factor, for me, anyway. Several of my neighbors are older than me, and have either very small 1-stage snowblowers, or none at all. I can't watch some 70+ year old man/woman out trying to shovel through huge drifts when the wind chill is -25.

One of my neighbors has a son with a tractor/plow, so I don't do their driveway; a young couple across the street has a plow on the front of their 4-wheeler, so I don't do theirs, either. This means I clear out my driveway and two or three others, depending on the amount of snow.

 

[toggleswitch2]

I'm all for snow melting systems. I'd guess electric is more trouble-free than hydronic.

Never saw one in home use, but did see one at my dad's place of business in areas where salt or plowing and / or shoveling were nnot options.

I REALLY HATE SHOVELING SNOW!

Apparently the cost to operate these per hour is rather high.

http://www.snowmeltingsystems.com/SnowMelting/snowmelting.asp

 

[countryguy]

A record was broken here yesterday for a 1 day snowfall - 26 cm (about 10.5 inches). My snowblower got its first workout for this season. Even with the blower I still have to do some shovelling by hand where the blower can't go. I like to keep the back deck cleared so that I have a place to put out the food for the deer. In theory, snow melting systems sound great but I think would be awfully expensive to operate, especially electric. And they won't work if you have a gravel/stone driveway.

Gary

 

[~sudsshane]

Terrible Weather here!

Bring on the snow baby! =)

 

[tomturbomatic]

Ben, whose KIA did you have to shovel out with that toy shovel?

 

[swestoyz]

Ben, whose KIA did you have to shovel out with that toy shov

Hey Tom - that was a co-worker's car. Thankfully the Tahoe was able to make it to work without landing in a ditch or grassy median.

We relocated to a new building this spring. Originally the land we relocated on was a cornfield and with this being the first real storm we've had in this location, we weren't aware of what the road in front of the building would get like.

As the day went on the drifts kept piling and piling, until finally 'we' closed it off. Thankfully the road perpendicular to Fisher was kept clean by a kind family member of a co-worker.

I noticed the drifts on Fisher were about 6 feet high this morning. Nevertheless, the City truck was having a difficult time trying to clean it

 

[mickeyd]

We are getiing creamed here in Buffalo

Well, meringued is more like it. Instead of intermittent agitation, we've got intermittent blizzards and white-outs. Schools are closed, US 5 is like a road in a ghost town, and it's as wild as winter can be. A four minute walk to and from the mailbox across Rt. 5, and my face was beet red, my whiskers, brows and lashes frozen, and the garments pure and total white.

Utter Winter Madness! Get ready Eastern friends; it's comin' your way.

Pete, that non-photo of you made me laugh. That's so you, funny and original.

 

[petek]

Well we got nothing here but a very light dusting of less than 1/4". It all streamed across Lake Huron hitting the eastern side and over to you there in Buffalo etc. Dave in Stratford about 90 min east of here got pummelled as well and said the place is just about shut down. Doesn't look now like we're gonna see anything at all but little flurries here and there over the next couple of days