The Crippling Blizzard of '16

[Blueberry]

We got very lucky (see the Thankful thread). Just to the east of us got heavy freezing rain, with lots and lots of power outages. We have lots of icy crud on the ground, but not much more coming and little to no ice accumulation on trees and power lines. Heavy winds this afternoon, and after that (knocking on wood), we'll be in the clear. Thinking of all those east and north of us who are getting it much worse!

[ny biker]

Well I was going to ride the indoor trainer last night but one of my friends who lives a block away invited me over to share the casserole she had made. I brought 2 small bottles of sparkling wine (the favor from my cousin's wedding last April).

They said the worst would be from 1 am to noon so I stayed up late and slept till 11:30 -- no point in getting up early. Unfortunately there is nothing good to waych on TV. Since I got up I've been frittering away time with social media and family texts. My nephew the Maryland firefighter worked yesterday, is still at it today and will probably pull a third shift tomorrow. They're very busy. His father is up on Long Island driving a snow plow as he does during every storm. And then there's the brother in California who took a break from watching his son play baseball to send me this:

http://www.biketheslopes.ca/

Other family members are currently converging on Denver to watch football (go Broncos).

I'm about to hit the indoor trainer and watch the NYC episode of Sonic Highways. I decided to wear my new socks, part of the spoils from TE's moving sale.



Best wishes to everyone in the path of the storm. Still about 7 hours of snow expected here -- it's surreal.

[Crankin]

I hope everyone is safe and no long power outages. We are up in the White MTs. In NH. Very cold, gray skies this morning, but the sun did come out. Best thing was, no wind. It looks like we had an inch or two at home.
Although I don't want the dangerous parts of the storm, I'd have liked a nice 6 inches or so!

[ny biker]

After 28 hours of snowfall (and counting).

[Pax]

So, how are all the blizzard impacted folks doing??

[ny biker]

I shoveled for hours today. Our condo association is supposed to plow the parking lots and shovel the walks, and we have to shovel around our cars. But they've really dropped the ball -- no walks have been touched, some lots are still unplowed and ours just had a once-over the width of one car. Some residents were out today trying to shovel the lot but it's still a mess -- I watched an SUV try and fail to get out to the street -- and the plow left a giant pile behind one car so they're completely blocked now. A few of us tried to clear sidewalks too but others dumped snow from their cars onto the walks so the snow there is now chest high or higher. So if the hired shovelers ever show up, they'll probably just leave without trying to clear the huge piles. Our side of the lot gets no sun so we won't have sidewalks again until March.

Now my arms and back ache. I will work from home tomorrow. My car is not totally clear yet so I will have to go back out again with the shovel and snow brush in the afternooon.

I'm feeling very cranky. Mostly because I pay good money for condo fees that are supposed to cover snow removal but I and a few neighbors are having to do it all ourselves.

[lauraelmore1033]

I've been thinking about you and your positive attitude about the storm as we experience what I consider to be an unreasonably wet winter, and it's made me reduce my whining by at least 75%. Hope your ordeal resolves itself soon!

[Helene2013]

Ouf. What a storm some of you were hit with. Do not forget the snow on roofs either.and stay safe. No job is worth your life or serious injuries.

[Crankin]

I empathize with you, NY. Stay safe and baby your back. My shoulders and arms hurt every time I shovel, no matter what I am doing at the gym. I don't shovel often, as we have a giant snowblower and a plow guy who does our access driveway. But, last Monday we had about 4 inches of fluffy snow, DH was away, so I shoveled almost the whole driveway. I counted it as 2 hours of exercise.
I've seen the pictures of DC and it looks like it's getting dangerous.

[emily_in_nc]

What a disaster, NY! I am glad your condo association finally explained the reasons behind their seeming non-action. The trash thing sucks! I hope it will warm up soon and take care of a lot of the snow and ice the natural way. Thinking of you!

[Helene2013]

Wow NY, you guys have trashed picked-up 6 days a week?

In almost every city in Montreal area that I know, it is weekly in the summer months and then every 2 weeks. Lots of places (buildings) have no dumpsters. I never paid attention to huge buildings as I supposed they have their own systems but not sure.

Recycling is picked up every 2 weeks too. Compost (will be new to us as a city) to be picked up every 2 weeks too.

And I don't see any stuff (bins, bags or furniture, etc) at curbs until the night prior to pick up.

I did noticed though when their is a big storm here, those in Montreal (the crowded area), still dumped their mini bags (like grocery ones) in the pile of snow and the poor snowing crew are stuck with those and most of the time do not see them in the snow banks and it makes a mess. Even if they are warned not to put them out during the storm, they still do.

[ny biker]

In this area the management companies for apartment buildings and condo associations contract for trash and recycling services -- the county/city services are only for single family houses. Our whole neighborhood consists of townhouses and garden-style apartments -- 2-3 story apartment buildings with 4-6 units per building -- arranged around courtyards. Half the neighborhood is one condo association (where I live) and the other half is split into smaller condo associations. Unlike bigger apartment buildings, we have no trash chutes or other centralized place to put trash. And we can't store it in large covered trash cans in our yards (like you do in a single family house) because we don't have yards. So we contract for trash pickup 6 days per week. And yes, that is not enough for some people. I went out for a walk last night and was amazed at the lack of garbage -- this seems to be a rare occasion where folks are following the rules. Today we do have trash pickup and also they're picking up the recycling on schedule. So that's one thing that's back to normal. They've also managed to rent additional Bobcats so they are making more progress clearing out the parking lots. Of course the sun and above-freezing temperatures are also helping. The giant pile where I put the snow that was on and around my car is noticeably smaller.

So, a couple of years ago I rented a storage unit and filled it with things that I wanted to get out of the house while I was having various contractors come in to do work. All the framed pictures that go on the walls, my stereo, my books, old record albums from my younger days, framed photos that were on display on my bookshelves -- it's all in the storage unit. All my summer shoes and sandals are there too, along with some extra bike tires and some things I'm forgetting.

Last night just as I was going to bed I received an email from the storage company. The roof of the building has collapsed under the weight of the snow. Right now they are waiting to find out when the building will be safe enough for us to go to see what has been damaged by the collapse and the water from the melting snow.

If a roof is going to collapse, I would prefer that it be the storage building and not my house. So there's that. And most of the things in the storage unit are replaceable. I will be upset if the framed photos are ruined, and a few of the large framed pictures. And the albums can't be replaced -- I could probably buy many of them again, but that's not the same.

I am working from home again today -- traffic is a mess, worse than usual even though most schools are still closed and the federal government opened late -- so I will try to drive over there later to see how bad things look from the street. And I guess I might as well call my insurance company now to talk about how to proceed if my things are damaged. I've heard horror stories about people being dropped by their homeowners insurance companies after filing a claim -- I hope I don't run into problems.

On the positive side, things are okay with my parents. The guy who usually shovels snow for them has had some health problems, but he referred his customers to someone else who came and shoveled them and their car out. Though it did take a few days for them to find out what was going on and contact the new guy. But now they're already focusing on other things like planning summer trips.

[Pax]

Wow, NY, you're having such a challenging week! Hope you can catch a break soon.