michelyn8
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Post by michelyn8 on Jan 7, 2014 10:40:16 GMT -5
I'm in Central VA and the cold temps have hit us today. I woke up to 14 degree temps and it had dropped to 8 by the time I got to work. Last I checked, it had gone back up to 16. Other than the cold, weather is clear and sunny and the wind is nothing like it was last night. We had rain yesterday morning but enough sun the rest of the day to dry 95% of it up so the roads are not covered in snow or ice.
Numerous localities either opened late or closed completely and I'm completely annoyed by this. The news this morning was saying it was because of possible issues with buses - no starts which can occur when its in the 30's and 40's too because it depends on "health of the battery" - and/or to give parents more time to get the kids bundled up. Really? It seems like the population and public officials of VA get more ridiculous each year. My children often stood outside waiting for bus in less than ideal weather (1990's and early 2000's) and they were none the worse for wear. Schools never closed just for cold unless there was a problem with the heat or frozen pipes and I honestly don't remember that ever happening in our county so what's the big deal now. I get late openings/closings for bad road conditions due to snow ice but we have none of that here today.
So I'm curious. For those of you who deal with these temps on a more regular basis how do your localities handle it?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2014 10:52:47 GMT -5
Our schools are closed in central PA. Its -22 wind chill.
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steph08
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Post by steph08 on Jan 7, 2014 10:54:55 GMT -5
All the schools are closed here in SW PA. -11 without wind chill, -29 with wind chill.
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reader79
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Post by reader79 on Jan 7, 2014 11:01:40 GMT -5
It's around 6 degrees in Manhattan now, feels like -12. Schools are still open. I usually have problems with the A train, because when it gets out to Queens the tracks are aboveground, and subject to icing. Lots of switching problems. My sister is stuck out west right now due to JetBlue shutting down last night. She will probably get home Thursday now. But I do live near JFK, and I have to say that visibility was non-existent, and they did have a plane slide off the runway into a snowbank, so I understand.
I am just wearing a couple of extra layers, and my knee high winter Timberland boots. I had a scarf wrapped around my face, and my hood pulled down low. And I parked my car by the train station so that I could drive the 1/4 mile home instead of walking tonight.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2014 11:02:16 GMT -5
West of Baltimore. School opened on time. It was cold waiting for the bus, about 5 degrees (not accounting for wind chill), but not as bad as they are making it out to be. It didn't feel much different than waiting for the bus in 30 degrees. It was cold. No point in opening up late here, as it isn't supposed to get much warmer.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2014 11:04:43 GMT -5
I'm in Southern MN. Schools in the entire state were closed yesterday and today it's about 50/50 with a bunch doing two hour late starts, ours was closed. But we we're dealing with deadly wind chills of 60 below, real temp -22. It's unusual to close for cold here.
I suppose if you're somewhere not accustomed to cold even 0 can be a problem because the diesel school busses won't start if they aren't all plugged in or indoors like ours are.
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muttleynfelix
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Post by muttleynfelix on Jan 7, 2014 11:10:07 GMT -5
Our schools are closed in SW Missouri, but our roads are horrible. Not even the interstate and freeways are clear. They probably would have been closed yesterday anyway because of the wind chill, but open today if the roads were ok. It was above 0 when I left the house this morning.
What kills me is the rural districts, especially those out east of here. Granted it is really hilly and the roads are often narrow and steep. But they shut down a lot of times until the roads are completely clear. Then often out east they have to shut down because of flooding when the snow melts. It is crazy. The school district we are in doesn't have the flood problems, but they do close school until the roads are mostly clear. That means in early December they were out a week. I'm realizing even when my kids start school, DH probably won't be able to get have a job because then we will have issues with childcare during snow days then summer vacation. I'm not sure it is worth it. But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Since the baby just turned 1 yesterday and DS will be 4 in 2 weeks we've got some time before we have to figure that out.
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Chocolate Lover
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Post by Chocolate Lover on Jan 7, 2014 11:11:34 GMT -5
I'm on the Northern Gulf coast and our schools are closed. Mostly because NO ONE down here has the clothing for the kids to be waiting on the bus in this weather. Ok, maybe the hunters do, but they are still a small number for the kids. IDK what they're doing about tomorrow yet.
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michelyn8
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Post by michelyn8 on Jan 7, 2014 11:12:34 GMT -5
I'm in Southern MN. Schools in the entire state were closed yesterday and today it's about 50/50 with a bunch doing two hour late starts, ours was closed. But we we're dealing with deadly wind chills of 60 below, real temp -22. It's unusual to close for cold here. I suppose if you're somewhere not accustomed to cold even 0 can be a problem because the diesel school busses won't start if they aren't all plugged in or indoors like ours are. This seems to be theme in the comments on FB for the news story explaining why schools opened late/closed. The folks who are pointing to this are obviously not long time residents of VA though. I can remember just 10 years ago sitting at my desk watching the temp on the bank sign change at every cycle because it was to cold to get a decent reading. And these were days my children still went to school. Many have pointed out the mild weather we normally have which is just not the case. VA weather can be very moody. You can get 2-3 years of mild winter temps and no snow and then then 4th year get snow on a weekly basis with temps that barely go above freezing for a month. Same thing in summer - 2-3 years of temps that rarely hit mid-90's and then a year where you go for a half of July with the daytime temps staying around 98. I wish these folks would just back to where they came from..............LOL Of course, these are usually the ones that panic when the forecast calls for snow and make the mad dash to the grocery store since God forbid they not be able to get out for a day or two while the rest of us manage to drive 20 miles to work (and get there on time).
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muttleynfelix
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Post by muttleynfelix on Jan 7, 2014 11:13:36 GMT -5
West of Baltimore. School opened on time. It was cold waiting for the bus, about 5 degrees (not accounting for wind chill), but not as bad as they are making it out to be. It didn't feel much different than waiting for the bus in 30 degrees. It was cold. No point in opening up late here, as it isn't supposed to get much warmer. Really? You can't tell the difference between 30 degrees and 5 degrees? 30 degrees it is pretty easy to stay warm (even waiting for the bus). If you are doing something, you may even sweat. 5 degrees it is hard to stay warm. The difference in when frostbite starts is huge between 30 degrees and 5 degrees.
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muttleynfelix
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Post by muttleynfelix on Jan 7, 2014 11:15:32 GMT -5
I'm on the Northern Gulf coast and our schools are closed. Mostly because NO ONE down here has the clothing for the kids to be waiting on the bus in this weather. Ok, maybe the hunters do, but they are still a small number for the kids. IDK what they're doing about tomorrow yet. My friend was visiting from Birmingham and they were looking for a jacket for their 5 month old before they left Birmingham to come to the Midwest and they could not find one.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2014 11:18:29 GMT -5
Northern California here, schools are open, and we are willing to trade our warm days and sun for some of that snow that everyone is complaining about. We have had our first forest fire and our wells are going dry.
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Waffle
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Post by Waffle on Jan 7, 2014 11:21:02 GMT -5
I'm in Southern Indiana - the local schools closed yesterday and today due to extreme cold. A radio announcer mentioned today than in addition to safety concerns regarding kids outside - there was also concern about how difficult and/or expensive it would be to try to keep the school buildings warm. I don't know if that was a real factor, or just something he made up.
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ners
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Post by ners on Jan 7, 2014 11:22:22 GMT -5
Northeast Ohio schools are closed. Off from work due to weather.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2014 11:22:53 GMT -5
West of Baltimore. School opened on time. It was cold waiting for the bus, about 5 degrees (not accounting for wind chill), but not as bad as they are making it out to be. It didn't feel much different than waiting for the bus in 30 degrees. It was cold. No point in opening up late here, as it isn't supposed to get much warmer. Really? You can't tell the difference between 30 degrees and 5 degrees? 30 degrees it is pretty easy to stay warm (even waiting for the bus). If you are doing something, you may even sweat. 5 degrees it is hard to stay warm. The difference in when frostbite starts is huge between 30 degrees and 5 degrees. Not really. I had my hat, thick coat, and gloves like every morning. It felt pretty much the same as most mornings. It was cold. I am sure that physiologically it was different, but it just felt cold. I can understand closing if the roads are bad. We had ice on Sunday, but luckily it all melted overnight and dried Monday, so our roads are clear.
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Chocolate Lover
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Post by Chocolate Lover on Jan 7, 2014 11:23:08 GMT -5
I'm on the Northern Gulf coast and our schools are closed. Mostly because NO ONE down here has the clothing for the kids to be waiting on the bus in this weather. Ok, maybe the hunters do, but they are still a small number for the kids. IDK what they're doing about tomorrow yet. My friend was visiting from Birmingham and they were looking for a jacket for their 5 month old before they left Birmingham to come to the Midwest and they could not find one. I haven't even checked a store for anything warm. Stuff like tights and long underwear flies off the shelves at 39, I don't even want to know how bare they all are at 19. I may brave the crazy and see if I can find some kind of plastic somewhere this afternoon, I have crappy single pane windows in my house and that would help a lot more than curtains.
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Waffle
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Post by Waffle on Jan 7, 2014 11:30:02 GMT -5
If you can't find the plastic that's designed for windows - you might be able to find clear plastic dropcloths.
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Chocolate Lover
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Post by Chocolate Lover on Jan 7, 2014 11:41:13 GMT -5
If you can't find the plastic that's designed for windows - you might be able to find clear plastic dropcloths. I was going for whatever was cheapest/available. I did have a big roll of plastic sheeting once upon a time (forget what I bought it for, something to do with DS's scouting years ago) found out he gave it to his dad. Long after he gave it to him of course. I love that the kid is willing to share what he has, but he didn't pay for it.
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grits
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Post by grits on Jan 7, 2014 11:43:46 GMT -5
25, beautifully sunny, damp as bleep, and all the precious darlings who need an exorcist are in school.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2014 11:44:47 GMT -5
My kid gets on the bus at 6:30 in the morning. It's in the country, pitch dark, and the bus has to go two miles out of its way to get him. Anything up to about -10 we're ok with as long as it's not windy...bad roads and white out conditions are worse...but man yesterday sucked. You would think -10, -20, not much of a difference, but it is. Stuff just doesn't work right when it gets that bad. It's supposed to be in the 30's by Saturday and I'll bet you anything the college kids are jogging the lake in shorts. I kid you not!
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michelyn8
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Post by michelyn8 on Jan 7, 2014 11:45:13 GMT -5
My friend was visiting from Birmingham and they were looking for a jacket for their 5 month old before they left Birmingham to come to the Midwest and they could not find one. I haven't even checked a store for anything warm. Stuff like tights and long underwear flies off the shelves at 39, I don't even want to know how bare they all are at 19. I may brave the crazy and see if I can find some kind of plastic somewhere this afternoon, I have crappy single pane windows in my house and that would help a lot more than curtains. I tossed my long underwear when I cleaned out my dresser a few months ago and haven't gotten around to replacing them yet. Around the same time, I bought some cheap cotton leggings from Walmart to sleep and bum around the house in. I'm wearing a pair under my jeans today and they are working just as well as traditional thermal underwear. Just a thought. For your windows, you may want to consider some light blocking curtains. I also bought these at Walmart (Eclipse is the brand I think). They are designed to block heat, light, and cold. I got them for the light a few years ago because my bedroom got so much sun in the mornings and having them made it easier to sleep past 7 on my days off (normally up at 4:30). They've helped a lot with keeping my bedroom cooler in the summer and blocking drafts in the winter in addition to keeping the room dark when I needed. Again, just a thought for you.
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Jan 7, 2014 11:45:22 GMT -5
South Central Minnesota here. We were closed on Monday thanks to the Gov. and today our school chose to be closed again. Most of the schools around us closed for today as well.
It's not that bad out today- much much better than yesterday. Currently -2 with a real feel of -8 which isn't that bad all things considered. Yesterday freaking sucked. My poor dog is not amused by the cold. She gets distracted and starts sniffing and wandering and then realizes she is cold and we've had to rescue her a couple of times. Her paws will get so cold that she'll just stop and start whimpering so we have to run out and carry her in. She's a lab so that's not fun since she's pretty solid weight wise. Then an hour later she'll have forgotten how cold it is and ask to go back outside. She's only out for literally one or two minutes at a time.
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constanz22
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Post by constanz22 on Jan 7, 2014 11:48:34 GMT -5
Northeast PA, on NY border (live in PA, work in NY). All of the schools closed as of last night. It was a record low of -8 at the airport. It was -2 at my house around 9 am. Thermometer in my car showed 0 most of my drive in to work. It is brutal...wind chills are supposed to be -25 to -35.
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Chocolate Lover
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Post by Chocolate Lover on Jan 7, 2014 11:48:41 GMT -5
I haven't even checked a store for anything warm. Stuff like tights and long underwear flies off the shelves at 39, I don't even want to know how bare they all are at 19. I may brave the crazy and see if I can find some kind of plastic somewhere this afternoon, I have crappy single pane windows in my house and that would help a lot more than curtains. I tossed my long underwear when I cleaned out my dresser a few months ago and haven't gotten around to replacing them yet. Around the same time, I bought some cheap cotton leggings from Walmart to sleep and bum around the house in. I'm wearing a pair under my jeans today and they are working just as well as traditional thermal underwear. Just a thought. For your windows, you may want to consider some light blocking curtains. I also bought these at Walmart (Eclipse is the brand I think). They are designed to block heat, light, and cold. I got them for the light a few years ago because my bedroom got so much sun in the mornings and having them made it easier to sleep past 7 on my days off (normally up at 4:30). They've helped a lot with keeping my bedroom cooler in the summer and blocking drafts in the winter in addition to keeping the room dark when I needed. Again, just a thought for you. Thanks for the suggestions and leggings will be in short supply right now too. We're big wusses down here. I've wanted to get some to sleep in because I'm tired of regular pajama pants riding up my legs at night. I have been working at replacing what curtains aren't thermal/light blocking slowly because of the other temperature extremes. It took me a million years to get DH to even hang some rods, you'd have thought I had time to gather the curtains. But noooo....... lol
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violagirl
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Post by violagirl on Jan 7, 2014 11:49:50 GMT -5
I think they only cancel school here if it is minus 40C. Our temperatures changed 30 degrees in one day. Went from freezing to raining and then a flash freeze last night. There was a car dealership who had cars sliding out of their lot. A friend woke up to find their truck had slid into the street.
i would rather have a snowstorm than all the ice.
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luckyme
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Post by luckyme on Jan 7, 2014 11:50:43 GMT -5
NE PA and we are also off today. The schools are soooo old the heating systems can't handle the really cold temps. One year, all the kids sat in class wearing their winter coats and gloves. Also, very limited bussing, so some kids have really long walks to school, and often aren't dressed properly for the weather. Suppose to have 40's this weekend. Positively balmy.
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GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl
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Post by GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl on Jan 7, 2014 12:06:48 GMT -5
Boston area. My kids are tough. They went to school yesterday when it was 50 and pouring. They went to school today when it was 6 with a wind chill of -13. Of course, I am a tough mother. I made them take the bus both mornings. I used to walk 1.5 miles to school in ALL kinds of weather. And no one ever told us it was too hot or too cold to play outside. And we certainly didn't have the ready access to weather forecasts and current temps and Goretex, down, and fur-lined Sorrel boots. And, somehow, we all still survived. Somedays I fear we are becoming a species of wimps. JMHO. YMMV.
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luckyme
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Post by luckyme on Jan 7, 2014 12:21:03 GMT -5
Last night, the transformer up the street went, and fried a lot of the wires.
The whole block was smoking and sparks were flying everywhere. Crazy!
The fire dept came and checked for downed wires, and waited for the electric company.
The one truck came around midnight, probably 3 degree weather at that point. They soon left, probably realizing just how much work they were going to have to do.
Got up around 4 am and they were still out there. Yikes! They deserved every penny they made last night!
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NoNamePerson
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Post by NoNamePerson on Jan 7, 2014 12:24:43 GMT -5
I'm just friggin cold!!! School took in couple hours later here. I'm like CL, I have to dig around for something heavy to put on. I have a blue jean jacket and a few sweat shirts. I do have some thermal underwear that I bought when headed to the Dakotas years ago so that helps some. I have a renewed admiration in you folks that deal with this on a day to day basis for months. I would just move to Hawaii instead Big frickin' woosie here...
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Jan 7, 2014 12:27:01 GMT -5
West side of Michigan. Schools closed yesterday and today because of the wind chill factor. But the roads are good so everyone is out eating lunch and shopping! The library isn't gong to open until one, delayed opening, so I'm going to pick up something that came in and then pick up books that are in. Then back home until tonight. My religion class is cancelled tonight. I think that guy just hates teaching, period.
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