Enough with the snow already

[HillSlugger]

Our neighbor's kids just lucked out big time.
They finally got out to shovel out their van and driveway. Hadn't touched it since the storm (they were one of the families to evacuate).
So, the two boys are out there, shoveling and picking away at the big berm in front of the driveway. A bucket loader has been working up and down the street, clearing out the intersections (surprised as HECK to see that! ). The driver must've taken pity on the two, as he dropped the bucket right at their driveway and cleared away the snow pack for them! He saved them about 2 hours of back-breaking labor. Lucky kids. Phew!

I lucked out with a front end loader like that on Sunday.

[Zen]

Hazardous Weather Outlook

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE MD/WASHINGTON DC
331 PM EST TUE FEB 9 2010

MDZ003>005-009-010-501-502-VAZ021-025>031-036>040-042-050-051-501-
502-WVZ050>055-501>504-101000-
WASHINGTON-FREDERICK MD-CARROLL-MONTGOMERY-HOWARD-
EXTREME WESTERN ALLEGANY-CENTRAL AND EASTERN ALLEGANY-HIGHLAND-
AUGUSTA-ROCKINGHAM-SHENANDOAH-FREDERICK VA-PAGE-WARREN-CLARKE-
NELSON-ALBEMARLE-GREENE-MADISON-RAPPAHANNOCK-LOUDOUN-ORANGE-
CULPEPER-NORTHERN FAUQUIER-SOUTHERN FAUQUIER-HAMPSHIRE-MORGAN-
BERKELEY-JEFFERSON-PENDLETON-HARDY-WESTERN GRANT-EASTERN GRANT-
WESTERN MINERAL-EASTERN MINERAL-
331 PM EST TUE FEB 9 2010

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EASTERN WEST VIRGINIA...
NORTHERN AND CENTRAL VIRGINIA...AND CENTRAL AND WESTERN MARYLAND
WITH THE EXCEPTION OF GARRETT COUNTY.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT

A WINTER STORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR THE ENTIRE AREA. PLEASE
SEE THE LATEST WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE FOR DETAILS...INCLUDING
ACCUMULATIONS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY

A WINTER STORM WARNING CONTINUES THROUGH WEDNESDAY.

WINDS WILL INCREASE FOR WEDNESDAY INTO WEDNESDAY NIGHT. NEAR
BLIZZARD CONDITIONS WILL BE POSSIBLE IN THE WASHINGTON DC METRO
AREA NORTHEASTWARD WEDNESDAY MORNING. A WIND ADVISORY MAY BE
WARRANTED FOR WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH. THIS WILL LEAD TO BLOWING
AND DRIFTING SNOW AS WELL AS LOW WIND CHILL VALUES.

PROLONGED UPSLOPE SNOW SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE TO AFFECT THE
WESTERN SLOPES OF THE APPALACHIANS INTO THURSDAY. ADDITIONAL
ACCUMULATIONS CAN BE EXPECTED.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED THROUGH TONIGHT. SNOWFALL
TOTALS WILL BE APPRECIATED LATE TONIGHT AND WEDNESDAY.

[ny biker]

BLIZZARD CONDITIONS WILL BE POSSIBLE IN THE WASHINGTON DC METRO
AREA NORTHEASTWARD WEDNESDAY MORNING. A WIND ADVISORY MAY BE
WARRANTED FOR WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH. THIS WILL LEAD TO BLOWING
AND DRIFTING SNOW AS WELL AS LOW WIND CHILL VALUES.

I think the National Weather Service should incorporate the use of into its warnings and advisories.

Also sometimes and would be appropriate.

[ny biker]

BTW I just noticed that the fire hydrant across from my building looks pretty near inacessible right now. I was planning to not do any shoveling today but I think I will take a closer look and maybe try to clear the snow around it.

The first flakes of Snoverkill just started to fall...

[7rider]

Haz

.
BLIZZARD CONDITIONS WILL BE POSSIBLE IN THE WASHINGTON DC METRO
AREA NORTHEASTWARD WEDNESDAY MORNING. A WIND ADVISORY MAY BE
WARRANTED FOR WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH. THIS WILL LEAD TO BLOWING
AND DRIFTING SNOW AS WELL AS LOW WIND CHILL VALUES.

Great.
Tom and I just took a prolonged cruise through our neighborhood (but not before giving the name of the tree service who delivered our firewood to a desperate neighbor. Good luck getting a delivery now! ).
Spoke to one neighbor (an avid cyclist we know). He's pushing back as much snow as he can from the end of his driveway - topping the piles - to make room for the next onslaught. Smart man.
Asked another neighbor "Do you have power yet?" Nope. Not down that side street.
Saw another woman, walking down the street. She flagged us down. "We just got power, minutes ago!" She was thrilled and could barely contain herself. From the sound of this advisory, she may not have it for long!
Crazy. The main drag outside our neighborhood was a parking lot. Tons of cars. The post office (where we were headed, ultimately) was a zoo.

[owlice]

"Snoverkill"

Oh, that's great!!

The name, I mean... not the need for it.

It's snowing here, too. Little flakes, fast flakes. Just measured the snow on the patio table so I can figure out how much more snow today and tomorrow bring. (Current measurement is 21.5".)

I was out for a bit this afternoon; took the lull between the flakes to visit my mother (in a nursing home), look for D cells (none anywhere), get onions (SuperFresh comes through! I hate that store, but do admire their ability to be so well-stocked), yell at someone parked in a firelane (as if there's enough room in the snow-mounded parking lot for that yutz to be there), and get Q-Tips. You know, the essentials.

(I got chocolate yesterday....)

Before that, I dug out a path to my shed to get the camping lantern (which requires D cells), a flashlight (which requires one of those big, honkin' rectangular batteries which aren't sold anywhere, apparently), a platform bird feeder, and another shovel, as the handle broke on one I was using yesterday -- snapped right in half. Also dug out my side door, so I can use that until it's snowed in again, and thought about bringing in one of the sleeping bags but didn't.

[HillSlugger]

My 24" of snow has reduced itself to 17"; I'm all ready to figure out the new accumulation.