0 for 2 on "Storm"

[leechlake]

It's been so long between alleged "Snow Storms" that I can't remember my words but I said I'm keeping track if these Snow events turn into what all the hype suggests.  The first one back in November was a clear whiff.  I believe the excuse that time was that the temps didn't get cold enough and the walls of snow were abated due to rain falling instead.

This event was a tough call due to more snow falling south but I made my unscientific determination based on a few thing.  I am calling this a NON STORM.  0 for 2 for the season.

1.  I took a ruler out when I removed snow and 2.25" of snow was the average in my driveway.  I admit without the ruler I would have said it was easily 3 or 4 inches, years of bias snow reporting on my behalf is hard to shake.  2.25" of snow is a non event/storm.

2.  I watched parts of weather reports on the four locals.  WCCO reported location snowfalls of almost 2 inches more than FOX 9 did.  For example, WCCO said 6 inches in Lakeville and FOX had it to 3.8" in Lakeville.  This was in multiple cities where good old 'CCO embellished.  I realize snow can fall by varying amounts in large cities but not all cities.  Lying is a tip of a non storm.

3.  Two stations had babe reporters driving in vehicles to document driving conditions.  One gal couldn't help but say three times in the two minute segment that "unluckily" it just quit snowing when her report came on.  No news is bad news.

I empathize with the news outlets.  They need these events to draw viewers.  It would be nice if they came up with a different word than "Storm".  It was hard to watch when after stations opened with our Storm they eventually got to the southern US where real "Storms" killed 24 or 50 people with flooding and tornados.  It seems they have no other word than "Storm" to compare 2 inches of snow to a Cat 3/4 tornado.  Something seems wrong about that.

 

[delcecchi]

I call it "weather hysteria ".  Forecasts for us got as high as  9 to 12 before settling back to 6 to 10. We got 7.  

[leechlake]

7 is a nice solid amount of snow and getting in the ball park of some word close to storm.  I will also add that on a fluffy to heart attack rating of snow density with 1 being powder and 10 being heavy/death snow ours is about a 2 or 3.  Very light in my estimation.  

We got the perfect amount of snow to cover all dog barf in our yard but that's another story.   

[nofishfisherman]

I think your first mistake is in watching the news for weather reports.  Their reports are governed by ratings which will always skew the reports and make the storm seem like a much bigger deal than it really is. The only reporting I looked at for this snow fall was the national weather service and the details they put out regarding the Winter Storm Warning that they issued.  All it says is how much snow is predicted and when its predicted to fall, that's all i need to know and it gives the info without bias and without regard for ratings.

I suppose it also depends on your definition of storm.  Meteorologists look at the overall weather system as a whole and in that sense this was a very large storm system.  It caused heavy snow (in some areas), heavy rain/flooding, and many large tornados. 

If you define a storm solely by how much snow falls at your house then there will be far more misses than hits.  At my house they were calling for a storm total of 4-8 inches.  We had 4" already this morning (verified with ruler) when I went out to clear the sidewalk with another 1-2 inches predicted today.  Not sure if that makes it a "storm" but it says the forecasting was accurate. I know the forecast was for much higher snow totals to the south and east of the metro which seems to be verified by coworkers coming in from those areas.  With you being more to the west and north you really aren't in the area that was forecasted to get the worst of the storm.

If you simply go by Webster Dictionary definition of storm than I think this also classifies as a storm.

Quote

a disturbance of the atmosphere marked by wind and usually by rain, snow, hail, sleet, or thunder and lightning

 

[RebelSS]

Why bother watching the weather morjits?? (Moron + idjit) They're NEVER right here. Last year kept track, and seven storm predics failed to even develop...SEVEN.  Speaking of, Solid 7 1/2" here and still roaring down out there...not one plow has even been by in this MAYO MAYO MAYO/money money money/diversity/diversity/diversity alleged #1 city, since those are the 3 things most important in this place.  My neighbor is stuck in the middle of the street right now.....

 

 

       

Edited December 29, 2015 by RebelSS

[eyeguy 54]

go get some pancakes at perkins 

[leechlake]

I watched the news, which I do about never, to see their coverage.  It's hard to not hear the weather all day if you're listening to any radio station, frankly it's impossible.  If we went by storm defintion then anything with precipitation and any wind is a storm.  Well then we need a storm rating system from 1-10.

I guess my down and dirty point is on par with The Boy that Cried Wolf.  After being hammerred about storms over and over and a real Armistice Day storm hits many people aren't prepared and people get hurt or die.  

Also, I'm having some fun with this and hope you all are too.

[RebelSS]

10 minutes ago, eyeguy 54 said:

go get some pancakes at perkins 

That sounds like a great idea. BUT, the bacon is gonna get cooked along with the EGGS in a bit, and I have some Eggo Waffles.... My driveway is buried,  gotta wait 'til the plows come up the street sometime this week before I take the blower out.

4 minutes ago, leechlake said:

I watched the news, which I do about never, to see their coverage.  It's hard to not hear the weather all day if you're listening to any radio station, frankly it's impossible.  If we went by storm defintion then anything with precipitation and any wind is a storm.  Well then we need a storm rating system from 1-10.

I guess my down and dirty point is on par with The Boy that Cried Wolf.  After being hammerred about storms over and over and a real Armistice Day storm hits many people aren't prepared and people get hurt or die.  

Also, I'm having some fun with this and hope you all are too.

It's called "sensationalism" and just plain "acting hype". I call it just plain "Bulls***. Get back to weather predicting instead of acting.

Edited December 29, 2015 by RebelSS

[nofishfisherman]

27 minutes ago, leechlake said:

  Well then we need a storm rating system from 1-10.

 

I use to rate storms by how big of a snow fort I could build.  

Something like this:

Level 1 - Fort building impossible - vulnerable to all snowball attacks

Level 2 - Low walls with no roof - no roof leaves vulnerable to aerial snowball attacks

Level 3 - Walls and roof possible - provides cover from incoming attacks but no attack capabilities 

Level 4 - Full size command post - secure location with some counter attack capabilities 

Level 5 - Snow fortress complete with command post, ammunition depot, forward scouting outposts, and tunnels linking all structures.  Impenetrable defenses with advanced offensive capabilities.  Rival neighborhood kids cry at the sight of it.

Given this rating system I'd have to say this was barely a level 2 storm.  Low walls could be created with some strategic shoveling but its not a place I'd pin my hopes for neighborhood domination.  

Edited December 29, 2015 by nofishfisherman

[jmd1]

Just so you all know it is snowing this morning right outside of phoenix at 3000 ft altitude.  

[lovebigbluegills]

No snow falling in the Teef River area!

I've given up hope for most of the local forecasters, there's one that is mostly in the ballpark.

What really drives me nuts is the clowns on the weather channel. Full blown sensationalism there.

[delcecchi]

36 minutes ago, RebelSS said:

That sounds like a great idea. BUT, the bacon is gonna get cooked along with the EGGS in a bit, and I have some Eggo Waffles.... My driveway is buried,  gotta wait 'til the plows come up the street sometime this week before I take the blower out.

It's called "sensationalism" and just plain "acting hype". I call it just plain "Bulls***. Get back to weather predicting instead of acting.

Little city plow came up our street aound 8:30, and full job with big plows and sand before 10.   Not as good as when we were in Rochester township but not bad.

[RebelSS]

Not one stupid plow by here YET....and I'm on a main drag to 19th St NW.  Wunnerful city. 

[gunner55]

We were on the low side of the 6-10" forcast but the wind blew ~ 30 most of the day. No tow trucks going out if anyone got stuck

[leechlake]

finally got the family out of the fruit cellar.  We holed up for the night with the tranistor radio tuned to 'CCO.  Didn't know whether to be in the SW corner like tornados or the NW corner since it was snowing.  Most of the candles worked great, we supplemented them with the lights since the power didn't go out.  We brought the dining room chairs down too since we figured we'd need to burn them to stay warm.  Dodged a bullet on that too since we supplemented with the furnace.

I parked my truck outside of garage in case door froze shut and we'd need to run to a hospital.  Another tragedy avoided there and when the wind picked up to 6 mph most of the snow blew off of the truck windshield.  

I want to thank Paul Douglas for saving my family and for all his editorials on Climate Change in his weather reports.  Bud Kraehling and Barry Zevan would be proud of your great work.  Bud could have done a better job from six feet under.

[nofishfisherman]

Glad you and your family are safe Leech.  I took a different approach to the storm.  I put the kid to bed and kicked back in my chair with a whiskey ginger and calmly waited for the apocalypse to start.  I figure you can't outrun fate, if it was my time then I can't hide from it in the cellar. I'm happy to report the man upstairs decided that it wasn't my time. The problem is now I'm out of whiskey so I'm not sure what to do when the next storm hits.

[lovebigbluegills]

34 minutes ago, nofishfisherman said:

Glad you and your family are safe Leech.  I took a different approach to the storm.  I put the kid to bed and kicked back in my chair with a whiskey ginger and calmly waited for the apocalypse to start.  I figure you can't outrun fate, if it was my time then I can't hide from it in the cellar. I'm happy to report the man upstairs decided that it wasn't my time. The problem is now I'm out of whiskey so I'm not sure what to do when the next storm hits.

I reckon you best go to town for supplies!!!

[delcecchi]

I think he is in town.  But supplies is a good idea. 

[leechlake]

LL is back in town.  Had to go to in laws on the 26th so we had to come home.  If I wouldn't have come home the grill would still be on from last Tuesday night!!!

[RebelSS]

20 minutes ago, delcecchi said:

I think he is in town.  But supplies is a good idea. 

Before a storm, everyone runs to the store for milk and eggs.....?????!

 

 

[lovebigbluegills]

21 minutes ago, delcecchi said:

I think he is in town.  But supplies is a good idea. 

It was more of a sarcastic comment. Out of whiskey and not sure what to do before the next storm? Get more!!!

[Mid-Lake Rock]

This latest "snownami" was another joke.  Reports on Sunday/Monday said 6-10" in the metro.  My office had people changing appointments, sending the troops home early, etc.  I woke up this morning to maybe 3" of light, puffy snow.  Didn't plow/shovel my driveway and didn't use 4x4 on the truck this morning.  Probably won't shovel tonight.  Just drive the truck back and forth to pack the dusting of snow.    

Edited December 29, 2015 by Mid-Lake Rock

[leechlake]

I don't know what this would be called in today's world.  100 inches of snow possible?

Edited December 29, 2015 by leechlake

[RebelSS]

They would suffer a total morjit meltdown (hey, patent that phrase!) with that one in todays world of the hotter-the-weather-babe, the hotter the fcast world. 

[nofishfisherman]

2 hours ago, lovebigbluegills said:

I reckon you best go to town for supplies!!!

I'll check the emergency supplies first.  I usually keep a spare bottle of gin, rum, and brandy just in case.  They come in handy for those nightmare emergencies like snow storms, zombie apocalypse, or when the mother in law decides to visit for a few days.