How is the weather?

[Kalevala]

The region won, we are not headed into severe drought, as was feared. Here it was a bit underwhelming compared to what was predicted, about 2" (5cm) total mostly Thursday. There was a wind event in Oxnard that damaged mobile homes (possibly a small tornado). The burn area for the Mountain Fire (November) did not report any signifiant slides or debris flows. It seemed like a pretty typical winter rainstorm, complicated by the recent fires.

That's good to hear!  It sounded worse from what I read/heard (I forget where now).

Here:  I'm more worried about freezing rain (last I heard, not much snow in the forecast).  Upcoming shoveling doesn't look like fun though.

K

[JBS]

Meanwhile in Florida we have been benefiting from a high that settled in last week over Georgia and North Florida (if I have the location right) and prevented all cold fronts from getting here. Result is enough days in the 80s that I've needed to turn on the AC for a few hours to get the house into a comfortable feeling. And there has been no rain (not unprecedented: winter rain here is almost always linked to cold fronts moving through).
The high is supposed to be slipping off and we'll be cooling down slightly this weekend/next week, but only by a few degrees.
There have been a couple of warmer Februarys, but none like this year, coming out of an exceptionally cold and rainy January.

[Karl Henning]

Yes, it will. What's particularly difficult lately is, with so much melting and refreezing, lots of black ice has developed on streets, sidewalks, and driveways. New snow on top of it makes things especially dangerous.

The sidewalks by me are useless. Normally if I have an errand in Woburn Centre, it takes me not quite ten minutes to walk there. Under present circs, since there's no knowing if the walks are cleared/safe, I'm taking an Uber.

[Kalevala]

The sidewalks by me are useless. Normally if I have an errand in Woburn Centre, it takes me not quite ten minutes to walk there. Under present circs, since there's no knowing if the walks are cleared/safe, I'm taking an Uber.

Are folks generally good about clearing the sidewalks in your area?  Here, there's a 24-hour deadline (after the storm has ended) for people to clear their sidewalks.  I also sand and salt though am thinking about checking out a different kind of snow melter.

K

[Karl Henning]

Are folks generally good about clearing the sidewalks in your area?  Here, there's a 24-hour deadline (after the storm has ended) for people to clear their sidewalks.  I also sand and salt though am thinking about checking out a different kind of snow melter.

K

None too diligent.

[Kalevala]

None too diligent.

That's not good!

I do feel for a couple of homeowners in the area.  The sidewalk is right next to the street and there's no parking allowed there, so even if they've cleared the sidewalk, the town (when still plowing) can end up dumping the snow/slush from the road back onto it.  It does create for difficult walking conditions there.  A number of people use landscaping services in my area or snowblow/shovel themselves.  The town also has mandatory parking bans (though not everyone either gets the notices or abides by them which obviously makes things harder for the public works people and also for the other people who live there too).

K

[Karl Henning]

That's not good!

I do feel for a couple of homeowners in the area.  The sidewalk is right next to the street and there's no parking allowed there, so even if they've cleared the sidewalk, the town (when still plowing) can end up dumping the snow/slush from the road back onto it.  It does create for difficult walking conditions there.  A number of people use landscaping services in my area or snowblow/shovel themselves.  The town also has mandatory parking bans (though not everyone either gets the notices or abides by them which obviously makes things harder for the public works people and also for the other people who live there too).

K

And similarly, many of my neighbors are no younger than I, and I cannot think ill of them for not being able to clear the snoe themselves.
For tonight, the forecast remains fairly stable at 3-7".

[Kalevala]

And similarly, many of my neighbors are no younger than I, and I cannot think ill of them for not being able to clear the snow themselves.
For tonight, the forecast remains fairly stable at 3-7".

Yes, it's not easy to clear it particularly the older one gets.  That means either hiring someone (or a company) or having a friend/kid/or relative nearby to help.  Landscape services are pretty pricey in my area--particularly with inflation.  I normally do it myself.  Thankful that a friend helped me this last round to finish things off.  I had already cleared off certain areas including the sidewalk before he arrived.

K

[Karl Henning]

I was kind of hoping to go to the MFA on Monday, free for the Holiday, and the snow will not seriously interfere, but it's going to be cold and windy, and so I don't think I'll venture forth.

[Kalevala]

I was kind of hoping to go to the MFA on Monday, free for the Holiday, and the snow will not seriously interfere, but it's going to be cold and windy, and so I don't think I'll venture forth.

Sorry to hear that.

K

[Karl Henning]

Sorry to hear that.

K

There will be Memorial Day, yet.

[Kalevala]

There will be Memorial Day, yet.

Is there a bus or a subway that you could take it to get there?

k

[Karl Henning]

Is there a bus or a subway that you could take it to get there?

k

Transportation is not difficult to arrange. I'm not sure I want to be out in the elements this Monday. Too much wind chill.

[Kalevala]

Transportation is not difficult to arrange. I'm not sure I want to be out in the elements this Monday. Too much wind chill.

You can do it.  Just bundle up well.    Life is short...go for it!

K

[Spotted Horses]

You can do it.  Just bundle up well.    Life is short...go for it!

K

Going out in dangerous weather, life can be even shorter!

[Szykneij]

Going out in dangerous weather, life can be even shorter!

Very true!

The ordinance in my city says sidewalks must be cleared by 8 daylight hours after the end of the storm. Unfortunately, without enforcement, it isn't always followed.

This is what it looked like here a short time ago. About 6 inches of heavy snow on the ground, windy, and sleet coming down.

[DavidW]

Severe weather here. Not snow. Downpour and wind gusts up to 50 mph.

[Szykneij]

Severe weather here. Not snow. Downpour and wind gusts up to 50 mph.

Your winds are headed up here tonight.

[Kalevala]

God, that snow is heavy!  I'm inside for a bit--needed a break.  It's sleeting here now.  Hope that we don't have power outages.

K

[krummholz]

God, that snow is heavy!  I'm inside for a bit--needed a break.  It's sleeting here now.  Hope that we don't have power outages.

K

We had about 20 cm total (about 8"), but now the cold and wind are on their way. There are forecasts of gusts approaching 50 mph (about 45 kts) even down here in the valley. I had to posthole through the backyard in the dark this morning to free up my wind sensor from snow/ice. Almost immediately it registered a 13.8-kt gust, which would likely have been closer to 30 kts at treetop level.

Snowbanks in the village now are several meters high and it really does look like pictures I've seen of Buffalo, NY after a lake-effect storm.