Extreme Cold

Just wondering how many others here are experiencing the Deep Freeze that we are here in the Northeast. OMG!! It's so cold!! And windy!! We're experiencing wind chill factors of -10 to -20. The water dispenser in my fridge actually froze solid because the pipe runs through my garage. And there doesn't seem to be any end in sight. Just cold, cold and more cold.

If there are any members from warmer climates, please send us some of your sunshine. It would be most appreciated!!

Sorry we don't get any sun in UK..Cold here too

It sucks here around Detroit. It was like -20 with the wind chill and today its -3 right now with a wind chill of -18.

It's outrageous. Yesterday when I left for work it was 12 degrees, with winds blowing around 20 mph it felt about -3. This morning it's about 9 degrees, and wind chill around 0. I have gloves on and my fingers are still frozen. Waiting out in the cold for 2 buses, then walking from the bus to work is a challenge. Thank goodness for space heaters. I also didn't like it when I got my gas and electric bill yesterday.

It's about 10º here right now...with a wind chill factor of around -5º. I'm not going out except for when it's absolutely necessary. I suggest everyone else do the same. It's dangerously cold outside.

It's been -20 with the wind chills in Ohio, but not as bad as what the news reported in Chicago. Minus 20 degrees with wind chillds -44 degrees below zero.

Oh, quit your complaining. I didn't hear any of you when it was 70 degrees a few weeks ago in the middle of winter!

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.Man it's f**king cold out there. This sucks!



Don Cardi

Ok, not to boast or anything but yesterday we were unseasonably warm here in CA with close to 90 temp. and I'm guessing the Coastal area was at least in the high 70's. Today it's going to be a tad cooler reaching only about 80. :)Normal temps this time of year are probably around 60/65 high temp.

I really can relate to all you little "snow bunnies" out there. I hated freezing. I have packaged some sunshine and sending it your way to each of you. I had to send it COD though.

TIS

It's 6 degrees here this morning, but as I drove through the elevations, it dropped to -1. I don't know the wind chill, but it's colder than a witch's brass monkey.

Believe it or not though, I still haven't had to shovel snow yet this winter. Although I've driven through a couple of blizzards north of my home, I've only gotten a dusting on Friday at my home.

Tell me about Goombah, they closed the school for the past 2 days. Right here in Salem it is -2. We are going to have a heatwave tomorrow our high is supposed to go up to '20.

I hope that groundhog is right and we will have a early Spring.

Something F3/&% up is really going on in the world. Here in Denmark, its turning in to spring. We have only gotten under degree. 2 or 3 days, where we usally have heavy snow an 10 minus degrees about now, the flowers and trees are beginning too blom.. it´s pretty scary!!

It has already snowed thrice this winter here. come on, it is Dallas, not North Pole The temperature is around 28 many nights. Nothing like what you guys are experiencing though.

My buddy lives in Mesa, AZ and they had snow a few weeks ago. I don't mean a dusting - at least 8 inches. I'm not a weather historian, but I have never heard of snow in Arizona.

When I was in college, I had this wacky professor who talked about the changing climate. By his prediction, Ohio will regularly have the warm weather the south is used by approximately 2030.

Why would they close the schools? Did you guys get snow or something?


Don Cardi

Whats the ocean temperature off your coast? Thats important because after the next "big one" thats where your town will be.

We watched The Day After Tomorrow last night.

Its pretty warm here in Morgantown compared to other places I guess.. 8 degrees, with a windchill of -4. High schools have been cancelled for a few days, and I know a lot of college kids just aren't going to class. I'm just glad I got a couple days off from work, so I don't have to leave my house for any reason. I have to walk to work tomorrow though

I don't know if its a law or something, but if its too cold, they have to cancel school (at least in WV). I'm pretty sure its for the kids who have to stand around at the busstop. No snow necessary.

All the schools are closed in Northeast Ohio, too. Very little snow, but the raw cold. I think it's too dangerous for kids to be outside walking to school, waiting for the bus, or playing at recess.

All we need is for a few kids to get frostbitten and some overzealous parent will sue the school district for keeping school open while little Johnny or Susie refused to wear a hat or gloves.

Interesting. I never new that. Here in New York, it takes something short of a disaster for them to close the schools. There have been times that we've had 3 or 4 inches of snow and they kept the schools open.

It's -12 degrees here with the wind chill factor, and they didn't close the schools.

My kids will want to move to Ohio or WV if I tell them about this!



Don Cardi

Baltimore closes some schools early yesterday. Here it's because alot of the old, delapidated schools either don't have heat or the boilers are broken or some dumb shi*. Why did they have heat when I went to school?

I too have never heard of schools closing because of the cold, except of course if the heat didn't work or the pipes froze.

By the way, does anyone remember back in grade school, kids licking the metal playground poles on days like these, and getting frozen to the pole?

*cue a Christmas Story reference*

Because when YOU went to school the earth was still cooling (around the time of the dinosaurs).

So I guess I'm a cool chick then.

I hate to see what my natural gas bill will be next month. My heater is running just about non stop. Right now it is 5 above
-8 with the wind chill.

The last two days of school have been cancelled for me because of the cold weather.

My gas and electric bill for last month was $628 and that was BEFORE the cold snap. I can't even imagine WTF it's going to be next month.

Now I have to go get the blowdryer and defrost the pipe going to the refrigerator water thingy.

DC: If my kids know about the schools closing elsewhere, we'll be moving next-door to you.

Yikes!! And I bitched because mine is $225.00 this month.
So much for me moving to New York.

The saddest thing is that the electric was only about $150 of that bill. Granted, I have all gas appliances as well as heat, but Geez Louise!! I can't believe how much this weather sucks.

EDIT: It's so cold that they had to suspend local ferry service to the train station. The Hudson is too frozen.

Damn... and I'm gonna have to go out and check my parent's house. Guess I'll leave the water dripping so the pipes don't freeze. If they're not already frozen... (lucky them, they're in Florida for the winter)

...And pick up some socks and undies cuz it's too cold to go to the laundromat, and SB hasn't volunteered to do my laundry yet...

It's in the high 60s/low 70s here in sunny central texas. Trust me, I'd rather be freezing my butt off. I went to New York for the Christmas holidays and it was the mildest winter EVER for me up there. It was in the 50s the entire time (hence no snow) and the day before I left to come back, it was in the 60s. I was wearing shorts in JANUARY! F'n global warming

It's supposed to be below freezing, with wind chills at or below 0, for the next 8-10 days here. I don't believe in global warming any more.

I am tired of wearing thermals plus layers. I think I need to pay my dad a visit in Florida for the rest of the Winter.

Like I said before that groundhog better be right or I will fry him up for supper.

Yeah. Al Gore. This is fucking global warming.

No wonders they've had to push that bullshit so hard on TV...everyone is freezing their wedding tackle off and they keep telling us the world is warming.

Actually, the wild swings in temperature, from the 70's a month ago, to below 0 now, ARE an indication of global warming.

Geoff, baby, anytime you want, I'm happy to add your laundry to the endless piles I have here. I'm on my 3rd load today, so one more won't even make me blink.

While I think there is a problem with greenhouse gases, I don't buy all the paranoia that is being sold.

Especially when we're fucking freezing everywhere.

As much as owning a home is a pain in the ass, the simple pleasure of just being able to go down to my basement to do my laundry is a blessing. If I had to deal with the hassle of laundromats again I think I'd become a streaker.

Remember a few months ago I was pretty much out of *all* my laundry -- and then some? Guess what... it's more than 1 extra load.

Tell me about it.

It's one thing when my parents are in town (May-Sep, Nov, Dec) I just take it there to do 1 load at a time once or twice a week and it's fine. But when I go a few weeks (or longer), I end up building up like 6-8 loads which would take an ENTIRE day with one machine, but just 1.5 hours at the laundromat. It's just getting there, and carrying all that at once, that's the problem...

And I miss having a dishwasher and garbage disposal, too!

Well, my hands are my dishwasher and my cat's my garbage disposal. I haven't completely hit the 21st century yet.

Oh, boy is it cold here in the Bronx. On top of everything, my dad moved in with me after my mom passed away. He's in his 70's and in great shape, thank God. The thing is, he's a cross between
Frank Costanza (Seinfeld) Frank Barone (E.L. Raymond) and Arthur Spooner (King Of Queens).
He's got a 2006 Cadillac in the driveway, yet he hasn't slept since the arctic cold crept in, for fear that it's gonna freeze up. If I have to hear one more time that they don't make cars like they used to........
As far as laundry, the Portuguese lady at my local laundromat only charges 75 cents a pound. I'll never go back to doing it myself, it's worth every penny.

For those who are curious as to the origin of the phrase "Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey," here is the surprising story:

A couple of hundred years ago, warships carried lots of cannon on their decks. Iron cannonballs were stacked, pyramid-like, next to each of them. To keep the cannonballs from rolling around on deck, they were placed on a large triangular brass plate called a "monkey". The plate had depressions in it so the balls would rest securely. However, in extreme cold weather, metal contracts. Brass shrinks a bit faster than iron, so after a while the indentations in the brass plate would become too small to hold the cannonballs and they would dislodge.

Hence the old sailors' expression.

I read this a couple of years ago on the website of singer/songwriter Amanda McBroom at http://www.amcbroom.com. She wrote Bette Midler's "The Rose" and her father was the late actor David Bruce (remembered for a few 1940s horror films). There are lots of fascinating bits of information on her site (look under "Gossip"), but unfortunately the "Brass Monkey" story is no longer there.

Signor V.

I never heard that expression, but I have heard "colder than a witch's..." body part before.

Geoff, since I usually do anywhere from 8-10 loads in an average week, believe me, I'm not phased. However, it is pretty bad when you have to resort to buying new underwear. My kids have it so freaking good. I even iron my daughter's jeans.

Sometimes a 3 pack of Fruit Of The Looms is cheaper than washing a load of clothes

Pfft, who washes clothes anyway? I just use the river, since I live in a van down by the river (!).

Even Warner Bros. managed to sneak the joke into an old cartoon (I wish I could remember the name of it):

There was a nightclub at the North Pole, and we see a shot of the building's exterior. The neon sign says "Brass Monkey Club".

As far as the other expression, well, here's a story:

This is true, and not a joke - the late Signora V. was a student of Wicca for many years. Not a Priestess, but she did study it for quite a while. (One of my nicknames for her was Witchiepoo.) Sometimes during the winter, just to tease her, I'd go over to her and place a hand on "righty" (or "lefty" - whichever one was closer), look out the window and say, "My God, it is cold out there!" Her eyes would narrow and she would glare at me.

The next few days were a bit hazy, but I have it on good authority that I was snapping at flies with my tongue. But, as they said in Monty Python, "I got better!"

Signor V.

My suggestion to all married men on the boards is "Do not try this at home."

:)---Well, I will be the ODD one and say i like the winter--Sorry guy's i am not a summer person...
In NJ--we just started getting the cold weather...Each year it seems to be getting later & later!

Thank goodness for 'Global Warming'!

Otherwise, it would've felt like 3 degrees this morning instead of 6!!



Look...in the winter it gets cold, in the summer it gets hot. Six months from now we'll be in the middle of another 110 degree heat wave, and the same people who are harping about the cold will be harping about the heat. Happens every year.

It's called nature. Live with it.

Apple

The only thing predictable about the weather is that it's unpredictable.

While I think that some have exaggerated the present perils of global warming, the greenhouse effect and the depletion of the ozone, I think we've been dilatory in taking steps to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.

What made my ears stick up after the recent international summit on the greenhouse effect, a Washington think tank in conjunction with Exxon is offering $10,000.00 to a scientist to write an opposing report. Noww there's a credible report.

But for $20,000, I'll write whatever they want.

Heck, I'll do it for $15,000!!

As for heatwaves, bring em on!! I love summer and sunshine.

We had it up to around 80 on the coast yesterday, actually. Everyone was out and about today, everywhere I looked someone was jogging or walking their dog or something. More than usual, I mean. I guess they figured they'd better take advantage of the warm weather. It's definitely not going to last long... we'll be back in the 60's in no time. Which I have absolutely no problems with, of course. Especially reading some of the crazy numbers you guys are having in the east!! I'm sending warm thoughts your way, can you feel it?



Thanks, SC.

Don't mention it, zia. I get nasty when I'm frozen.

My mother literally has not left the house in days. With her heart condition, the cold can be dangerous, but I'm getting REALLY sick of having her around the house, especially since she's usually out and about all the time.

We got about 1 1/2 inches of snow over night. It's the light fluffy kind, so it's not so bad. If it's gonna snow at least make it about 10 inches so I can get off of work. But it's enough for the schools to be closed. Wimps.

It's supposed to get up to a high of 28 degrees today. Woo hoo! Heat wave.

We got about 1/2 inch overnight and the high is suppose to get up to '18. Right now it is '4 degrees and my son has to go back to school today. I was hoping for at least a 2 hr. delay. Now I have to get all bundled up and take him to school

Pssst... Beth needs 10" to get off. Pass it on.

Look at SC looking out for my well being. I'm gonna have to start calling him my Pimp Daddy.

Just call me SC Tattaglia.

Makes you wonder where his mind is no?

Speaking of snowy/blizzardy weather, I often wonder how I would handle driving in those conditions anymore. I use to do it all the time, but I'd be scared to now.

I don't know if I could take the slip/sliding thing.


TIS

Got a half inch of powdery snow, still not enough to shovel. I think I got used to single digits. The highway was okay, but there were delays because they were cleaning up after a few pre-dawn accidents.

They're calling for 30 degrees on Friday. I think I'll open the pool.

I want my pool!!! It's so depressing to see it out there, under the safety cover, which is coated with ice and a dusting of snow. I want it to be 90 outside, and I could lounge poolside with a large tropical drink, lean over, press the button on the remote, and start up the fountains.

SB SB SB that is your Cabana Boy Geoff's job. Is it not??

He just needs to make sure that I have plenty of fluffy towels and tropical drinks. And to fish any insects out of the pool, because I hate that job. I can handle the remote.

For the winter, he works over in my place making sure that the Hot Tub stays at 104 degrees, that I have a warm robe, and that the Hot Cafe Mochas keep coming.


Don Cardi

Poor Geoffy, you guys are working him to death.

Well, it's about time he did an honest day's work. Just kidding, Geoff!! (Can't tease the Cabana Boy too much. He might pee in the pool).

I wouldn't do that to you twice...



Yeah... we gotta talk about that fur thong, though...

Peeing in the pool. Fur thongs.

I don't feel cold anymore.

Hey!! I thought you only wore a thong for me!! And after I had your new one monogrammed, too!! Where am I going to find another Cabana Boy with the initials JGM???

I didn't say *I* was wearing the fur thong...

BTW - the monogrammed one is nice, but the one with my entire name spelled out in big block letters was nice, too.

Geoff, that reminds me of the joke about the guy who told his new girlfriend that he had a special tatoo on his private parts. She was VERY curious and the first time they are intimate, she feels compelled to look for it. She tells him that she's rather disappointed that it's only the word "IT". He winks and says, Wait until I get excited. It's actually "Ticonderoga".

That actually reminded me of the joke about 2 buddies crossing a bridge at 2am after a night of drinking. Halfway across the bridge, they had to urinate and decided to relieve themselves over the bridge. The first friend thoght he would impress his buddy by his size and said, "The river's a bit cold tonight."

His buddy replied, "And deep."