Inclement Weather

It would seem that the icy temps have left the unsuspecting southern states and headed back north, where they belong. I must say, that I don’t really miss the snow like I once had when I first moved to Texas. Images of people digging their cars out of snow banks and long harrowing treks against gale force winds just doesn’t have the same appeal to me as it once did. Of course, when you’re a kid, the nerve endings in your extremities lie dormant – which explains my childhood love of fire-walking.

Is it just the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex or does the drama run high across the country when the wind picks up?

I was watching the 5 o’clock news a few months back – the woman reporting was placing huge emphasis on the manifesting snow flurries that were now visible on the railing she was leaning against. “If you look closely….and I mean closely…you can see that the snow is coming down in big “chunks.” Wow. Chunks. Rarely does Texas get snow, but snow chunks?? The camera pans left then zooms right in on one isolated flake sitting on the guard rail. In the realm of snow flakes, I suppose it was sizable, but it was hardly worth the apocalyptic attention channel 5 was offering.

In Texas, if you take away “HOT AS HELL” – there isn’t a whole lot of interesting weather to report. I’ve watched news reporters with squinted eyes, shouting into their microphone, “The winds are really picking up out here! People have been calling in from all over the metroplex – many folks have had newspapers blown away and hundreds of others have lost quite a bit of landscaping mulch to these windy conditions!” Meanwhile, the camera operator tries to focus in on some leaves that have floated gingerly to the ground but realizing that doesn’t truly demonstrate the ominous power of wind; turns his attention to a styrofoam cup skipping violently across a parking lot. Better seek shelter. I’m just saying.

Of course, as I write this, the forecast for tomorrow is snow. Not just snow, but snow that will “accumulate.” At first we will admire the snow for its beauty – but eventually the snow will melt and become ice. “Good evening, I’m Becky Bradly – right now traffic appears to be moving smoothly, but as the temperatures drop… this seemingly benign puddle of water COULD become an icy cancerous tumor on the roadways that could send unaware drivers careening out of control and straight into an early grave. Back to you Kevin.”