Winter - The Halfway Mark

I read that today is the halfway point of winter - it's been winter for 45 days and there are 45 days until the first day of spring.

I'm currently sitting in my home office freezing. The furnace is set to 71. There is a foot of snow outside. And I'm sitting inside wearing a scarf and fuzzy socks. (This is in addition to my normal "work clothes - yoga pants and a shirt. I didn't want anyone to think I was just sitting here in a scarf and socks - because quite frankly that would be dumb. And horrible.)

I may have mentioned before that I hate winter?
Yeah.
I still do.

Winter Storm Linus visited us on Sunday. (Thank you to The Weather Channel for their increasingly stupid list of winter storm names). When it was all said and done we had about a foot of snow on the ground.

Yesterday the city was under a Level 3 snow emergency until noon - which means NO ONE could drive unless it was an emergency. The kids had yet another snow day. Today they had a 2-hour delay.

Tonight we're going to get MORE SNOW.
I'm anticipating at least a delay again tomorrow.

It should be noted that since the kids went back to school on January 5, they haven't had one full week of school. Not one.

And to add insult to injury, that stupid rodent in Pennsylvania predicted six more weeks of winter. Not that he's reliable AT ALL but it would have been nice to hear that an early spring was at least possible. Even if that news was delivered via a nasty rodent.

On the upside there are just 121 days until I'm once again in my second favorite place in the entire world - the OBX. In 121 days I'll be sipping frozen tropical drinks poolside while soaking up a crap ton of sun.

So...45 more days until the first 'official' day of spring?
I can do this. 

An Ode to January, Chapter 2: Seriously?

And here we are...January 21..and it's yet another snow day for the kids.

This is what it looks like outside today:

Scary stuff, right?
Yeah it's blowing and snowing and drifting and ....

No. It's not.
In fact I can still see the grass in my yard under ALL THE SNOW that isn't there.

We have maybe (MAYBE) 3/4 of an inch of new snow on the ground.

And they CANCELED SCHOOL.

Some people are saying it's a bit slick outside on the roads thanks to "freezing drizzle" -- which I should mention isn't even showing up on the local radar. So I'm thinking the weather guy (who goes by the moniker "Blizzard Bill" ...no joke) is making it up.

Either way...less than an inch of new snow and temps forecast to be nearly above freezing today and once again the kids are at home, instead of at school. Last time I checked we still lived IN OHIO where snow isn't a shock in January. When I was a kid (and we walked three miles to school uphill both ways) school wasn't canceled unless there was at least a foot of snow and blizzard conditions.

But today? We cancel school for a dusting of snow presumably because the superintendents of the closed districts are attempting to maneuver snowy roads in a Yugo circa 1985.

As it is, I'm watching all the cars drive through my neighborhood with no trouble at all. And I'm also watching the passive aggressive comments appear on Facebook like "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm going to enjoy the day with my kids" as if to imply that I'm not going to enjoy the day with my own kids.

Guess what? I will enjoy having the kids home today but I would MUCH RATHER see them at school, learning. Especially since Olivia has a very important Common Core BS statewide test coming up. And as of right now they are at least FIVE DAYS behind with school work thanks to all these snow days.

The point of my rambling is this (yes Virginia, there is a point): A two-hour delay would have been sufficient. The local weather guys have been over-hyping winter since December. Less than an inch of snow should not = school closed. And we live in Ohio...so if they are calling for snow the city snow plow crews should get out there and pre-treat the roads and then plow the roads so that our kids can go to school.

Also, January...suck it.

Why I Rant About the Snow and Cold

Why do I rant about the snow and cold when I live in Ohio?

Because I can.
That's why.

Because I'm sick and freaking tired of all the snow. And the below zero temperatures. And the fact that since December 20 my kids have had 13 days of school (or something like that).

I have actually LOST COUNT of the number of "snow days" their district has called since the first full week of January.

Oh, and we've also had 62.8 INCHES OF SNOW since that first snowfall back in December. That would make the 2013-14 winter the FIFTH SNOWIEST WINTER ON RECORD for northwest Ohio.

In like all of history.

So yeah.

I'm going to complain about the snow.
And the cold.
And the never-ending snow days.

And no, I'm not going to move to Florida anytime soon because (1) we own a house here in Ohio, (2) my husband's job is in Ohio, (3) my kids' school is in Ohio, (4) my family lives in Ohio.

So for all you who might be sick and tired of hearing your friends up north "complain" about snow and ice and cold temperatures, I have one thing to say: Too damn bad.

After the winter we've been dealing with we have earned the right to bitch and moan about how miserable we feel. If you haven't lived in an area where it snows all the time or the wind chills have regularly been below zero or the kids have had more snow days than school days, then you really have no idea what it's like.

At this point, our kids are going to be in school until mid-June or later, the snow isn't going to melt until about April, and the extended forecasts are calling for more snow and more "polar vortex" like temperatures.

Oh, and in case you're wondering...NO this is NOT a normal winter for Ohio. Ask anyone who lives here and they'll say they've never seen anything like this. School administrators have said they've never dealt with this in their entire school careers.

So we aren't just bitching about a "normal" winter. We're miserable. And we're cold. And we would give anything to have a "normal" winter. 

If you're sick and tired of hearing the northerners complain about winter you should probably just mute all of us on Facebook and Twitter because we still have at least six more weeks of this crap (according to the rodent from Pennsylvania). And I'm sure we'll be bitching about it until the grass turns green and the flowers bloom.

Do You Want to Build a Snowman? (Too bad because it's too cold to step outside without instantly freezing in place)

Oh winter....I get it. You're in a foul mood and now you've gone all polar vortex on the northern half of the country for the last few weeks.

But honestly, enough is enough don't you think? I mean, even Elsa was able to get her freezing mood swings under control. And she was The Ice Queen.

So far this month the kids have been OUT of school more than they've been IN school. They had an extra week of "Christmas Break" at the beginning of the month thanks to two back-to-back snow storms and the first "polar vortex."

Now, they didn't have school last Friday because it was deemed "too cold" to get on the bus. [OK, yeah it was cold. Like 10 below zero wind chill...but seriously, they DO have heat in school so let's just say that last Friday was a stupid snow day and move on].

They also didn't have school today because of (1) a Level 2 snow emergency, (2) "road conditions", and (3) the fact that the wind chill was like -15 all freaking day. And tomorrow? No school again. This time the wind chill is going to be something totally ridiculous like -25. Or colder.

At this rate they will be in school past the last day of "scheduled" school (June 4 for our district). We had five allowed "calamity" days this year. We used those the first week of January. Now, we're three days over the allowed number of "calamity" days and there's no end in sight.

We're under a wind chill WARNING until NOON on Wednesday. Which means no school tomorrow. Probably no school on Wednesday. Maybe they'll have school on Thursday when we're supposed to have a "warm up" to 27 degrees ABOVE zero. That's damn near balmy for these parts.

Everyone is sick of winter. I think winter is sick of winter. Everyone except the local weather forecasters. They are damn near giddy about the weekly daily POLARVORTEX-ARCTICBLAST-ALBERTACLIPPER-NAMEDSTORMOFTHEWEEK.

Me? I'm sick and tired of these words: Alberta Clipper, arctic blast, polar vortex, wind chill, snow, and cold. I know every year I bitch about how cold it is and how much I hate winter...but this year I really, really mean it.

I am sick and tired of the cold. And the snow. And the school cancellations. And snow emergencies. I would just like winter to go back to "normal" with temperatures in the 30s and a few snow flakes here and there.

I understand now why some animal hibernate until spring. It's so they don't go totally insane during January.

As it is, if you need me I'll be hibernating on the couch under several fleece blankets. Drinking wine. Lots and lots of wine.

Snowmageddon. Again. Or maybe not.

This past weekend we had a snowstorm. It dropped about 8 inches of the white stuff on our lovely city. The local weather guys were going CRAZY about the storm a full week before it hit. There were social media posts all week long about how much snow, when it would start, blah blah blah.

And then on Saturday morning as the snow was falling our local ABC station actually had a full morning of programming (preempting Good Morning America) because, you know, a snowstorm of this magnitude is SO FREAKING RARE in northwest Ohio that it requires HOURS of "oh my God it's snowing and the roads are slippery and be careful out there folks!" programming.

It's pretty simple really: if it's snowing a lot and the roads look bad, just stay home. When the county issues a Level 2 snow emergency, don't drive anywhere. No need to freak out.

But that's what our local weather guys do best - freak out.

Today (which is MONDAY for those of you playing along at home) a local weather guy (again from the ABC affiliate) posts on Facebook that there is another "storm to watch" for this weekend and we MIGHT get snow from it, or it MIGHT track a different way giving us a "heavy cold rain" or an ice storm. He made it very clear that they have NO IDEA what is going on with this storm but he wanted to give us the information he had because we MIGHT get hit with something.

Yes, and a huge asteroid MIGHT hit the planet tomorrow and Ben Affleck and Bruce Willis won't be able to save us in time. 

There's still  no need to put a "maybe" kind of forecast on Facebook. It doesn't do anything but give people a not-so-valid reason to post weather rumors on their Facebook page about a 20 inch snowfall forecast. Seriously people, when was the last time Toledo got 20 inches of snow in one storm? Geesh.

Of course, then you have a colleague of the Monday morning forecaster posting on his the station's Facebook page that we should all "ignore weather forecast rumors, please" because once they "get a handle on the snow makers" they'll let us know what is going on.

Gee thanks, we feel so much better already knowing that this weather brain trust is "on it."

Here's the thing people of northwest Ohio - it's winter and we LIVE IN OHIO which means we are going to get snow. I dislike snow just as much as the next person who wishes they lived in Florida. But really, let's not panic just yet. How about if we just get through this week and avoid the weather rumors, OK?

(However, if by Thursday they're saying we're in for a major ice storm I might just panic a bit because I really, really, really don't like ice storms.)

Kalahari Resorts Summer Splash Celebration Giveaway!

With several weeks of summer left, there's a lot of fun to fit in before the kids head back to school.

To help in the endeavor, Kalahari Resorts in Sandusky, Ohio is celebrating with a Summer Splash Celebration. This African-themed celebration is happening through Labor Day. The resort is celebrating African music, food, and art with special events and daily on-site activities including bracelet making, animal safari sand art, and more.

If you haven't visited the Kalahari Resort in Sandusky, let me tell you about it! The resort is home to America's largest indoor water park with authentic African-themed decor, giving guests a "world away" experience. The Kalahari Resort features indoor and outdoor water park attractions along with the Safari Outdoor Adventure Park with animal exhibits, rides, and challenging activities for the whole family.

A few weeks ago Kalahari Resorts sent me an amazing Summer Splash Celebration goody box with two Kalahari T-shirts, two pairs of sunglasses, magnets, baseball hats, a music video DVD, a Kalahari mask for craft time, and a voucher for a one-night stay in a Hut or Desert room including water park passes and passes for the Safari Outdoor Adventure Park.

Sounds nice, right?

Well guess what? One of my LUCKY READERS is going to win the VERY SAME PRIZE PACK!  Yep. You read that right. One of you is going to win the Summer Splash Celebration Goody Box that includes: two Kalahari T-shirts, two pairs of sunglasses, two baseball caps, two Kalahari magnets, a music video DVD, a mask, AND a voucher for a ONE NIGHT STAY in a Hut or Desert room (for a group of four people), with water park passes and passes for the Safari Outdoor Adventure Park. [As an added bonus the voucher is good until August 2014, so it would be perfect for a fall or winter visit!]

You heard what I said, right?

The goody box includes a VOUCHER FOR A ONE NIGHT STAY AT THE KALAHARI  RESORT IN SANDUSKY, OHIO! 

Seriously. That's like a mini vacation people. You KNOW you WANT this.

In order to be entered in the contest you MUST use the Rafflecopter form (below). This contest requires a mandatory blog comment - tell me what you want to do at Kalahari, whether taking a ride on the Swahili Swirl or learning to body surf on the FlowRider, or maybe just relaxing at the Spa! 

The contest is open until Saturday, August 3!
Good luck and happy summer!

(Disclaimer: I received a Summer Splash Celebration Goody Box from Kalahari Resorts. No other compensation was provided. All opinions are mine.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway