Last night the rumors were already flying that we might see our first snowfall in Virginia today. Kids were running through all of their crazy superstitions (like wearing their pajamas inside out and flushing ice cubes down the toilet) to encourage the winter weather. As always happens when snow is in the forecast, the grocery stores were packed. Heaven forbid someone run out of milk or toilet paper during the day that the snow might last!
My friends who live in areas in the country that get a lot of snow don't understand what an impact a few flakes can have here. Schools go in late or release early. If there is enough snow in the forecast, they cancel altogether. The snow had barely started accumulating on the sidewalks today when the decision was made to release school an hour early. Why does this happen in suburban Virginia when six inches of snow doesn't slow down the school busses in other parts of the country?
One main reason is the heavy volume of vehicles that use the roads here. Not only do we have a lot of cars on the road, many are driven by people who are not accustomed to winter weather. Also, we don't always have the preparation that is common in some northern states. Our school busses aren't equipped with snowtires or chains. Snowplows and other equipment needed to treat the roads is used only on the main thoroughfares because we simply don't get enough winter weather to justify maintaining a whole fleet of such vehicles.
So, while someone in Montana or Idaho or upstate New York may watch the snow fall and simply see wintery weather, here in Virginia it will continue to be a magical day of wintery scenery and time off from school.
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4 comments:
hi trace,
you're just not as tough as us alaskans! hee hee. i loved that about growing up in northern virginia! almost every snowfall was an almost guarantee that i got to either miss school or at least go in late! woo hoot! it totally makes sense for the area and the congestion of a large amount of people in the area.
here's to a snowday to you (with adequate supply of TP of course!) ha.
enjoy,
kathleen :)
ps. if you want a silly laugh, come see my meme tonight. i did a funny meme that somebody had on the "momma meme." made me smile :)
hi there...we had some snow the other day, here in michigan. this time of year...that is normal for us. but...the drivers! you would think that, they have never seen snow before, let alone drive in it. and, when i say, we had snow...it was a mere dusting, barely worth mentioning. so irritating...perhaps these people should have given themselves the day off...a snow day...due to the fact that, they should never have gotten on the roads!
Here in Ohio, everyone is always prepared. Mostly because it's all the meteorologist's talk about for days on end.
I've never heard of the ice cubes down the toilet thing, but hey, if it works, who am I to laugh?
:)
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