We have had some fairly cold and wet weather these past couple of weeks. You would think that since we’ve lived in New England for the past umpteen years that the cold and wet weather wouldn’t bother me. And honestly, the weather here is SO MUCH MILDER than in New England, I really don’t like to complain about the cool, wet weather here. In fact, I prefer the cool months of fall, winter, spring, to the heat and humidity of the summers here.
When I was living in New England, I would talk to my sister down here and she would complain about how cold she was down here. I would ask her “well, just HOW COLD is it?” and she would complain “It’s only 50 degrees.” I would laugh at her and tell her “It’s 20 below zero here, don’t EVEN TALK TO ME about how COLD YOU ARE!” LOLOL!
Up in New England, when it is 50 degrees, the teenage girls put on their bikinis and sit on their house’s rooftops to get a tan! I’m NOT KIDDING! It is quite a sight to see, driving down the road, seeing groups of teenagers sitting on the roofs in their bathing suits, tanning themselves! And when it is 50 degrees out, when I’m driving my car, I am running my air conditioner! So, I really get a chuckle out of people complaining how cold they are when it is 50 degrees out! Granted, I DO HEAT my house to a balmy and tropical 72 degrees! (Gasp!) I would be cold inside at 50 degrees. But if it is 50 degrees outside, you will NOT HEAR me complain (unless I happen to be in Florida or Hawaii at the time!)
When I go out in the winter-time here, I wear what I consider my “spring and fall coat” from New England and I am perfectly comfortable. I’ve only worn my “winter coat” four or five times (and that was when I knew I was going to be driving a bus that would not warm up for 2 hours or more and it was below 30 out.) I have to struggle hard to not laugh in people’s faces when they complain about how cold they are when it is above freezing! I mean, honestly people, if you’d layer your clothes, wear thermal underwear, put on a hat or scarf and some gloves, you’d be warm!
It aggravates me in the cooler mornings to see so many elementary school children waiting on the side of the road for the bus without any kind of jacket. Some are not even wearing sweaters or sweatshirts, only T-shirts, and it is only 30 degrees out! Makes me want to shake some sense into their parents!
The snow that we have here does not seem to be the same as the snow up north. The snow up north is often light and dry, because the colder temperatures and lower humidity lend themselves to light and dry snow. That can cause problems with blowing snow during windy days, reducing driving visablity, and drifing snow banks. I have not seen any of that of down here. Down here I see mostly the wet snow that makes for great sledding, snowforts and snowballs, and snowmen. Sure, it makes for slippery road conditions, but it makes great snowmen!
The drivers here are not used to driving in any kind of slippery road conditions, and the Department of Transportation does not do a good job of preparing the roads for slippery conditions, so it makes for a lot more dangerous conditions out there. A couple of days ago we had a freezing rain storm that created havoc in a nearby area. Seems the DOT did not realize that bridges and exit ramps freeze before the road freezes, and so they did not sand the bridges and exit ramps to a very dangerous area of interstate highway. This resulted in a lot of accidents and a huge traffic jam that lasted over 8 hours. Commuters on their way home for work were simply stuck for 8 hours! Can you imagine that????
I drive an AWD Subaru, that I LOVE. I loved it MORE in New England in the winter time when I had studded snow tires on it. There is nothing more comforting to be driving than that when it is freezing rain, sleeting, or snowing out!
Down here, driving on questionable road conditions, I am always amazed at how many people drive SUVs with just plain “all season tires” (which I think are NOT good on snow or ice at all) and think that just because they have four-wheel drive that they are perfectly safe to maintain the speed limit (or exceed it) no matter how poor the visability is, or how slick the roads are. They just pass me by and speed away. I always wonder if I’m going to come across them a little farther up the road, sitting in a ditch – or worse. And, sometimes I DO see them, slid off the road, sometimes upside down. You would not believe how many times I use my cell phone to call for emergency help for those poor fools who did not have the sense to drive SLOWER than the speed limit when the road conditions are poor.
If you are driving in bad weather, please use some common sense and slow down. It is better to arrive at your destination a few minutes late than to be in a wreck.