Feb
14
winter weather advisory
Filed under traffic, weather, government at 7:48 am | 2 Comments
Starting last week, the National Weather Service began issuing winter weather advisories for our area, with storms expected to hit yesterday and today. The storms actually came this time, and I’m sufficiently impressed. Depending on the area, there are multiple inches of snow topped off by a thick layer of ice, with freezing rain and sleet still coming down. Having said that, I’m still amazed at the hysteria of many people here:
* A guy in the cube next to me parked his car over a mile away yesterday because there’s a hill on the street leading to our building. Apparently it froze during a storm several years ago and caused a traffic backup. Hearing the weather forecast, he wasn’t going to risk it this time around.
* The schools closed all day yesterday in anticipation of the storms, before it even started snowing or raining. The rain didn’t start until early evening.
* The traffic reports on the radio today are spending more time telling you how to drive than they are giving updates on the accidents. (E.g., “Speed is your enemy.” “Because the roads are covered in ice, you need to allow more time to brake.”)
Well, the status of the Federal Government is apparently the thing to watch around here. They let out early yesterday, and have a 2 hour delay today, except for “essential” employees, I believe. It’s still unclear as to how that impacts my work schedule, so I braved the elements and drove in to work this morning. Knowing the commute would be a bit longer than usual, I figured I’d stop off at Starbuck’s and get something dark, bold, and black to drink to make the trip more enjoyable. I pulled into the parking lot, and the store was completely dark. They were closed. They can close because of weather?! Surely, if anyone is considered “essential,” it should be Starbuck’s employees.