Well, it's happening again. Here in northern Georgia we're getting blasted with severe winter weather. This time, however, everyone was ready and expecting it. So nobody's been stuck on the roads for 20 hours trying to get home (no, that's not an exaggeration...happened two weeks ago). But this time it's actually worse. A few weeks ago it was 2-3 inches of snow. Now it's snow plus extreme amounts of ice.
For those not used to ice storms, this is very bad. Even 1/4 inch of ice can cause branches to fall and powerlines to come down. But some parts of metro Atlanta are expecting a full inch of ice! In my particular part of the region we had about an inch of snow, then some rain/sleet mix which froze in the evening, and now we're going to get about 3 inches of snow on top of that. Even if the snow melts tomorrow afternoon it will still leave pure ice underneath. Nobody can safely drive on that. Thankfully things have been closing around here and even major interstates have no cars at all. Much better than two weeks ago.
Want to see how crazy this is? Here's a picture a friend posted on Facebook.
How weird is that? And here are some pictures that I just took from my front and back porches.
So I had another snow day home from work, and at best we won't open the clinic until noon tomorrow. I've been facing a major frustration in that one of the high-level practice managers (if you don't remember, we are a clinic with multiple locations and I manage just one of them) is from New Jersey and I don't think she really understands how even this small amount of snow and ice can affect us Southerners. I've been fighting to keep us closed when she wants us to try getting in "just in case someone needs to come in". Really? When the governor has declared a state of emergency and the sheriff's department in our county has told everyone to stay off the roads? It doesn't help that she's in Florida this week attending a meeting. But I'm not willing to risk the safety of myself or any of my staff.
What's a bit interesting is that this time last week I was on a cruise in the Caribbean, enjoying weather like this.....
So we'll see what happens tomorrow. At least we are warm, have power, plenty of food, and everyone's safe.
UPDATE:
Here are some pictures that I took this morning. We got a total of around 6 inches of snow, which is perfect for me. Honestly, I love winter and snow, so this is perfect weather for me. I'd rather be in a cabin on a snowy mountaintop than on a lounge chair on a Caribbean beach. But the area is going to quickly return to normal. We're expecting a high around 41F (5C) today with plenty of sunshine. Already my street is pretty much clear of snow and ice and I can see the snow melting. The next few days are going to be warmer so within 48 hours it's going to be completely gone.
Yes, that's my tauntaun plush. It was a Christmas present and it does make tauntaun noises. Hey, I'm a geek! And I though it was particularly appropriate today.
UPDATE:
Here are some pictures that I took this morning. We got a total of around 6 inches of snow, which is perfect for me. Honestly, I love winter and snow, so this is perfect weather for me. I'd rather be in a cabin on a snowy mountaintop than on a lounge chair on a Caribbean beach. But the area is going to quickly return to normal. We're expecting a high around 41F (5C) today with plenty of sunshine. Already my street is pretty much clear of snow and ice and I can see the snow melting. The next few days are going to be warmer so within 48 hours it's going to be completely gone.
Yes, that's my tauntaun plush. It was a Christmas present and it does make tauntaun noises. Hey, I'm a geek! And I though it was particularly appropriate today.
