Snow

We are having a storm in North Carolina. Not just a little storm, but a full blown snow storm, complete with wind, hail, freezing rain, snow and bitter temperatures. For many people this is a normal January occurence, but for North Carolinians this is a BIG event. We are used to winter temps in the 40's and 50's. If we do have snow, it is normally a flurry, melting within hours. If you blink you miss it. Our last big storm was ten years ago, almost to the date! That one dumped about 18-24 inches on us, depending where you lived. I remember it like it was yesterday. This one didn't dump as much snow, but the wind chill is 14 at the moment. The bird feeders are very busy. I can hear the freezing rain hitting the windows. Time to bake something........

I hate it when people criticize North Carolinians for panicking when it snows. We are not a state that is equipped for many inches of the white stuff. The hazard that we face is the fact that normally it warms up during the day and then it freezes at night. You can't really manipulate ice. If it were just snow we were dealing with it would be better. I grew up in New Jersey, where nothing closed during a snowstorm. When it normally took 20 minutes to drive home could sometimes take 2 hours. We took it in stride. Saying a prayer of thanks when we finally turned into out driveways. I have lived here for 20 years and yes, I am out of practice when it comes to driving in the snow. By choice, I avoid it. With access to our "virtual" offices online it is easier to work from home. Luckily we don't have that many instances of bad weather, so most of the time it is a non-issue.

It is beautiful. The picture posted is my little not yet discarded Christmas tree taken last night. It is a winter wonderland and I am thankful that it is Saturday. My daughter had to work today and I will not relax until I know that she and her fiancee are home safe when she hopefully gets off of work at 4:00.

So to my friends in NC--enjoy the day!! Take lots of pictures, make a snowman, inhale the sweet cold scent of frozen air, and look forward to the 70 degree weather we will probably be enjoying......next weekend.



I Love NC