Getting aquainted with cold

Living for in the seriously cold weather of Pennsylvania, I have made a few observations on how the climate influences the daily routine of the standard Pennsylvanian.

The first thing I observed with quite a bit of curiosity. My fellow co-workers leave the wiper blades on their cars up while working. Now this led me to seriously wonder what would provoke someone to do this? Well I caught on pretty quick when my wipers were covered with ice and were therefore useless. It is also much easier to clean all of the snow off of your car with these little guys up and out of the way. And I'll tell ya, my little freebie Bank 1 ice scraper didn't last too long. Lucky for my my loving husband bought me a new one. This thing is the real deal. It is heavy duty plastic with a double scraper and the big brush on the other side. I never understood the purpose of the brush until there were a good four inches of fluffy white snow piled on my car, and I thought "ah-ha!" this is why the brush is useful. I have also learned to bring the scraper home with me, so that when I have to clean of my car in the morning I do not have let all that snow fall down into my car as I get it out. I'm prepared!!

According to tfd.com wind chill is "the cooling effect of wind and temperature combined, expressed in terms of the effect produced by a lower, windless temperature, also called wind chill factor. Wind chill is based on the rate of heat loss from exposed skin. Under windless conditions air provides an invisible blanket around the skin. As wind speed increases, this layer of heated air is carried away from the body at an accelerated rate, forcing the body either to work harder to generate more heat or cool down." AKA wind chill = making cold feel even colder!! I have learned to hate the wind and love the snow. Snow is easy. It brushes away off of my car without too much effort and isn't unbearably cold. Wind on the over hand is brutal!! It blows up my sleeves and at my face and through my clothes and makes me mad! The wind chill has brought me my first experience with single digit and negative temperatures. Thank you wind chill!

I have also adjust when I fill up my gas tank. Some people might watch the price and try to get it when it is lowest. Not me. I wait for a warmer day, or at least a sunny day to fill up. And I always, always fill up during lunch. It's the warmest time of the day!

This cold weather has also influenced my working habits. On snowy days I wear my winter boots and then bring my dress shoes in to change into during the day. Then my boots get to try out and are all ready for me when five o'clock rolls around and I change back into their comfort and protection for the journey home. And I am always wearing my shapka, of course! Now some of you might find these habits strange or laugh at my precautions to stay warm and dry, but when you walk out the door and see this waiting for you, you couldn't care less that your winter boots make my feet look HUGE and look silly with my slacks!

This awful weather has also afforded me my first opportunity to work from home. That was a treat! Working in my pajamas with the kitchen nearby and my tunes handy is the ideal productive environment! I didn't have to fight any traffic, and the commuter's a dream!

Another first is being sent home early from work. It had snowed quite a bit, but sleet and freezing rain had started to come down making the roads horridly icy. So the boss came out around 3:30 and told everyone to take off before the streets got worse. As a dutiful employee I wrapped up what I was working on and headed home excited to get there earlier than normal. Boy was I wrong! Turns out that everyone else had the same idea, and the roads were PACKED!!! I didn't really mind all the cars on the road, because it forced the other drivers to go slow and not be idiots driving fast on the slick surface. It also allowed me to take the following photo. This is another example as to why smoking is awful and the world's stupidest habit. Please note that even though it is in the teens and actively snowing, this driver's addiction is so strong that they disregard any self-respect to stay warm and dry by opening up the window. I see this all the time, and it completely disgusts me. I don't understand one, how someone can stick that nasty thing in their mouth and two, that it means more to them than being warm and dry!! Whatever, it is just gross.

Well I made it home sagely and without any problems a whopping hour and and forty-five minutes later, just as if I were coming home from a normal day at a normal time.

I have also learned a new weather term: wintry mix. After hearing the weather forecast on the radio calling for snow and then a "wintry mix." Ok, so I've heard of sleet, hail, and freezing rain but what the heck is "wintry mix?" Personally, I think it's the I-don't-really-know-what-the-heck-is-going-to-happen-but-it'll-be-cold-and-wet excuse. And apparently Wikipedia agrees with me.

And of course with bad weather, the one thing that you can always count on are the accidents. This little guy happened this morning on my street. I got this sweet shot by driving on the wrong side of the road, which I had to do in order to get around the mess. I am such a rebel.