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.

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.)

Snow day!

As I type this, the sun is shining and our road is cleared of most snow...yet the entire county remains under a "level 3 snow emergency" - so essentially everything is shut down.

My office is closed.
Kevin's office is closed -or at least no one is there because no one is allowed to drive in a "level 3" unless you want a ticket.
School is closed.
Daycare is closed.

We're having a snow day!

I was going to work this afternoon...but well, I checked my work e-mail and there was nothing of importance to deal with so, I'm going to blog and then nap. In that order.

The storm was bad...but around these parts I wouldn't necessarily call it 'historic' or any of the other words the forecasters were throwing around earlier this week. We probably got about 8 inches of snow. And some sleet.

The worst part was the wind.

(I tweeted last night: Dear Mother Nature: we're sorry for whatever we did. we get your point. can the blizzard please stop now?)

I will admit - the wind scared me last night. It was loud. And it blew our chimney cap right off the chimney (and it landed in our front yard).

But really...it just seemed like a bad winter storm.
Not 'snowmageddon' or 'the storm of the decade' ....maybe in other parts of the country it was THAT bad. Here, it was winter in Ohio with some extra wind thrown in.

But today we (meaning my husband) cleared the driveway and we (meaning us) took the girls outside for some good old fashion fun (which means they played in the snow and I took photos).


All in all, I think every now and then we all need a 'snow day.'
I hope you're enjoying it.
Keep warm, stay safe and drink some hot chocolate!
And, on the bright side - that pesky rodent said we're in for an early spring.