tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post7589569704643079983..comments2023-05-25T11:56:49.416-04:00Comments on Running In the Yard: Cold and SnowUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-28864857745000698022009-08-25T12:12:54.929-04:002009-08-25T12:12:54.929-04:00Now see, THAT'S what I'm talking about. Co...Now see, THAT'S what I'm talking about. Colder than cold, having to walk to the bus stop, having to stand on the road because we lived in a rural area that had no sidewalks, freezing our butts off, and STILL going to school, that's a real winter story. <br /><br />I also remember the times when if it got too cold, my father would park the truck at the end of the driveway and have us sit in it while waiting for the bus.<br /><br />We also had a rule: If the bus didn't show up in 30 minutes, we could head home and miss classes.Michelle H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/10117937124348728578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-10984593075165063712009-01-23T15:16:00.000-05:002009-01-23T15:16:00.000-05:00FTN - Yeah, snowmobiles!In the 42-inch, 5.5-snow-d...<B>FTN</B> - Yeah, snowmobiles!<BR/><BR/>In the 42-inch, 5.5-snow-day blizzard I describe here, there were several days in which cars essentially couldn't go anywhere, and folks got around town on snowmobiles. It was really cool, seeing snowmobiles driving up and downlike cars, on the city streets. . .<BR/><BR/>And a few years ago, 3M, 4M and I went on a father-son retreat in January in the Upper Peninsula. During the winter, there were no open roads to the retreat center, so we had to drive to the nearest town, and take snowmobiles 10 miles or so to the retreat center. That was also very cool. . .Desmond Joneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07829959101276150279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-46362002118335418152009-01-23T14:29:00.000-05:002009-01-23T14:29:00.000-05:00When I say "remember," I mean that my Mom has a to...When I say "remember," I mean that my Mom has a ton of pictures of us out playing in the snow forts. For me, childhood memories = lots of pictures of the occasion. I actually *remember* very little of my childhood.<BR/><BR/>Big difference besides the snowpants and snowsuits, also, is snowmobiles. I grew up around them, riding them, driving them (when I was old enough), and using them in emergencies. I don't think I've ever seen a snowmobile where I live now. I doubt anyone around here even sells them.FTNhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00863217400079842687noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-66868034670428594392009-01-16T11:02:00.000-05:002009-01-16T11:02:00.000-05:00Sailor - So you understand, then. . . And I'm imp...<B>Sailor</B> - So you understand, then. . . And I'm impressed that a city the size of St Paul would budget for enough plows to clear the streets in 15 hours. . .<BR/><BR/><B>faDKoG</B> - Yeah, see today's update. . . That pushing-it-to-the-end-of-June thing should always be kept in mind when you're tempted to call 'cold days', eh?<BR/><BR/><B>FTN</B> - Gosh, I'm impressed that you remember the Blizzard of '78; 'cuz youd've been like, less than two years old, right?<BR/><BR/>And Autumn doesn't know what 'snow pants' are? Seriously? Man, there's a whole segment of winter humor (the whole taking-twenty-minutes-to-get-bundled-up-and-now-I've-gotta-pee thing) that she wouldn't even get. . .<BR/><BR/><B>Xavier</B> - Yeah, I figured it'd be something like that. Thing is, the school our kids attend, there are maybe six kids who walk to school, and half of 'em are ours. . .<BR/><BR/><B>Lime</B> - At my university, there was one dorm that was almost exclusively populated by foreign grad students, and it was always fun to go by there during the first snowfall, to see all the Southern Hemisphere guys out on the lawn, taking pictures of each other. . .<BR/><BR/>And your kids want you to drive 'em 100ft <I>in the rain?</I> I tell you, kids these days. . . My mom used to say to us, "If you were made of sugar, you might dissolve, but you ain't that sweet. . ."<BR/><BR/><B>Phyllis</B> - Yeah, I see what you mean. . . But I was working out of more of a Dantean model, you see. . .<BR/><BR/><B>Cocotte</B> - Yeah, I eventually figured out that it was a kids-who-walk-to-school thing.<BR/><BR/>And I probably shouldn't be the one to point out that remembering the Blizzard of '78 sorta betrays your age (unless you're the Numb One, who can apparently remember things from before he was even conceived. . .)<BR/><BR/><B>Bunny</B> - OK, now you're making me feel like a schmuck. That it's not even so much a kids-walking-to-school thing, as much as a kids-walking-to-school-who-don't-have-proper-cold-weather-clothes thing. I don't want to find little Billy's frozen carcass huddled under somebody's shrubs, either. <I>(*sigh*)</I> Thanks for providing the necessary perspective. . .<BR/><BR/><B>Flutter</B> - Nicely done on the Celsius-to-Fahrenheit conversion! And hey, -1C! That's working-on-your-tan weather in Canada, right?<BR/><BR/>And listen - we already knew you were hard-core. . . ;)Desmond Joneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07829959101276150279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-63611410588802786162009-01-15T21:52:00.000-05:002009-01-15T21:52:00.000-05:00Today, with the wind chill, it was -47 degrees Cel...Today, with the wind chill, it was -47 degrees Celcius, which is something like -52F??? I did drive my kids out to the bus stop and let them sit in the car instead of waiting as there was a Windchill Warning in effect and exposed flesh would freeze in 5 minutes. <BR/><BR/>It's warmed up a lot throughout the day... forecast is for a high of -1C tomorrow, which I'll believe when I see.<BR/><BR/>I don't think I've ever, ever seen an actual "Snow Day". There's been days when the buses wouldn't run out to rural areas (But you better believe that my Dad would drive me. grrrr.) but I can't recall the whole school ever being closed. We're hard core up here. :)flutterbyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17460436620025386593noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-83610582277514067522009-01-15T15:49:00.000-05:002009-01-15T15:49:00.000-05:00Oh yeah - Back when we had those ridiculous late 7...Oh yeah - <BR/><BR/>Back when we had those ridiculous late 70s blizzards, we regularly used up all our snow days and had to tack them on at the end of the year. One year we actually went until the last week in June to make up all the snow days. <I>That</I> sucks, especially in un-air-conditioned school.Bunnyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12955817346800123054noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-16653372503927759712009-01-15T15:47:00.000-05:002009-01-15T15:47:00.000-05:00As a former Michiganian from an area subject to "l...As a former Michiganian from an area subject to "lake effect" snow, I can attest to the lowered standards for closing schools these days. We went to school in "snowmobile suits," but by God, we went to school when it was bitter freakin' cold. We did get off for that blizzard in '78 (and the one in '77 and the one in '79), but cold was nuthin'. <BR/><BR/>I was very involved with the schools in the large city I lived in before fleeing south. I asked the superintendent about a couple of "cold" days when school was canceled. He said that the determination to close for cold weather was to protect children who did not have sufficient cold weather clothing to withstand waiting at the bus stop or walking to school in the cold. This includes the high schoolers, who were not provided district transportation and had to walk or ride public transportation. More than half the kids in the district (that's more than 10,000 kids) got free lunch, so with that many poor kids it's a pretty good bet that many didn't have sufficient cold weather clothing. <BR/><BR/>Guess nobody cared about the poor kids back in the 70s!Bunnyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12955817346800123054noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-47396233930594740542009-01-15T15:36:00.000-05:002009-01-15T15:36:00.000-05:00I was going to say what Xavier said about the scho...I was going to say what Xavier said about the school's fearing lawsuits. There are kids in our district who walk to school, so if there's a chance of frostbite, it's going to get canceled. My kids are really hoping that happens here tomorrow.<BR/><BR/>Blizzard of '78 was one of the few snow days my school district ever got. We had a superintendent who NEVER canceled school. Even my mom would complain about it. Every school in our state would be canceled and we'd still have school. I think I only got 4 snow days in 13 years. My kids usually get 4 each year.Bijouxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11577723506036164914noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-8227724201504155852009-01-15T14:12:00.000-05:002009-01-15T14:12:00.000-05:00Um, I just want to say, Desmond, that describing s...Um, I just want to say, Desmond, that describing sub zero temps as "colder than hell," doesn't quite make sense. C'mon. 115°F is colder than hell.<BR/><BR/>I'm just saying. :)Phyllis Renéehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07091511889201839807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-61148901334694081782009-01-15T12:43:00.000-05:002009-01-15T12:43:00.000-05:00uh yeah, this is where i have to agree with you. ...uh yeah, this is where i have to agree with you. we've had that occur on rare occasions and i don't get it either. the college memories are pretty great though...yours and the ones you sparked for me. we had a massive blizzard my freshman year and classes were canceled. it was an absolute hoot to take a bunch of foreign students from tropical countries into the big snow for the first time in their lives.<BR/><BR/>the other thing that elicits the "back in my day" speech real fast is when my darling children ask me to drive them to the bus stop because it is raining. please understand the bus stop is maybe 100 feet away from the front door. are you out of your mind? here's a raincoat and an umbrella. go! move you in the car for 100 ft because you don't want a few drops of rain to hit you...gimme a break. you're not the wicked witch of the west you won't melt (and actually if we're going to get technical, she dissolved, she didn't melt, but that's a separate rant.) i walked 8 blocks to school and i used an umbrella, raincoat and my mother made me wear the most horrifyingly embarrassing red rubbers on my feet. drive you to the bus stop....limehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17259558876349307173noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-75290503717031934892009-01-15T12:33:00.000-05:002009-01-15T12:33:00.000-05:00Lawyers ..... least-wise that's why they do it her...Lawyers ..... least-wise that's why they do it here. Some parents sued a school 'cause their kid got frostbite walking to school on a cold day a decade or two ago so they instituted a minimum allowable wind-chill rule.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-81145416542638757532009-01-15T11:57:00.000-05:002009-01-15T11:57:00.000-05:00The schools here don't let my kids outdoors for re...The schools here don't let my kids outdoors for recess if it's below 32F. So when it gets into single digits here where I live, that's REALLY cold. <BR/><BR/>And I've seen them cancel school or issue 2-hour delays here for no discernible reason. Just the CHANCE of a bit of ice or snow can do it.<BR/><BR/>All this is making it sound like I live in some tropical location where it's always 80 degrees. Not the case.<BR/><BR/>I did grow up further north, though, and I remember the blizzard of '78. We took a ton of pictures of us kids playing in snow tunnels we had built. And my Dad and brother jumping off the roof into the feet of snow. I was almost 2 at the time. :-)<BR/><BR/>Also, we had snow pants and snowsuits growing up that we'd wear to school with our boots and hats and gloves and scarves and huge coats. No one where I live now, including my wife, even knows what that is. "Snow pants? What are snow pants?"FTNhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00863217400079842687noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-44674806427037896102009-01-15T11:35:00.001-05:002009-01-15T11:35:00.001-05:00My kids, who attend schools in a district where I'...My kids, who attend schools in a district where I've rarely seen a child walking to or from school (seriously, the parent pick up line is not for the weak of heart), are not in classes today because of the cold temps. Several districts made the decision to close due to the temperatures. Granted, it was -18F when I came downstairs at 8 a.m., but there's been very little class this week (they were already scheduled for no school tomorrow due to inservice day), and I can't wait to spring on them the fact that school will now inch into June, so who's cold now, suckas!for a different kind of girlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04431273646365489225noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3654204667900390232.post-54535070753441832042009-01-15T11:35:00.000-05:002009-01-15T11:35:00.000-05:00Growing up in Minnesota, I hear you on the cold th...Growing up in Minnesota, I hear you on the cold thing. We didn't have snow days, or very few, because I grew up in St. Paul, and there were so many snow plows to put on the streets, they cleared 30" in less than 15 hours. <BR/><BR/>I laughed my head off though, the one time when our "imported" governor (Came from some eastern wimpy state) decided to close the state- because it was cold!?! Shheeeessh. What's that about- it was -40 in the Twin cities, a heat wave!Sailorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01439394316761968708noreply@blogger.com