The first great Winter Storm of 2022 is slowly making its way across America. It's supposed to hit us here Sunday afternoon and bring anywhere between 8 to 12 inches of snow. The worst part of this storm is the anticipation of it.
It's slowly moving across the United States and the local weather service has given us advanced warning going back several days. As such, we have weatherproofed some of the windows - at least those that we know our young kitten is not likely to destroy. We have tested the generator, and cleaned our wood burning stove.
We have the staples of milk, bread and toilet paper in stock. I have a huge can of ice melting salt at my disposal, a brand new snow blower ready in the garage. I have my boots, heavy jacket and scarf laid out; I am ready for this storm.
I have never liked winter. Moving south was always part of my plans and I moved south shortly after college to escape the cold. So I find it ironic that I've moved back up north to escape the heat caused by climate change.
Generally speaking, winter in Pennsylvania is not that bad. Historically we have had average lows of 19 F (- 7 C) to highs of 45 F (7.2 C), it's just that our part of Western Pennsylvania seems to be perpetually grey.
According to the locals, last winter was the worst winter we had in some time. I was surprised by how mild it seemed to me. Climate change however is affecting even my home state. Our average temperature has gone up by a whole degree in the last 50 years with a steady increase in rainfall and flooding during the spring and summer months.
We live 1 exit above the so called I-80 border, it is part of the US highway system that cuts the state in an east - west direction. It's also the unofficial snow line that separates the "south" from the "north" of Pennsylvania and historically the worst of the winter weather is to the north of the I-80 separation. When I mean historically I do mean "Historically," as even the glaciers of the ice age only went as far south as nearby Moraine State Park.
The funny thing is that if we can make it through these next two weeks; thanks to the storm and its cold front we expect temperatures to remain below freezing, it starts to warm back up and we can expect a rather warm February.
Thankfully I am continuing to work from home and don't have to worry about a commute. Our house is well stocked with a variety of food and drinks. If I have learned one thing about living in the country it's to be prepared for whatever may come.
Have those tarps ready, have that extra gas can available, have those blankets in the car. When I lived in the city I could rely on public transportation, or on the roads being plowed. Here, we have to be prepared. We have to be a bit more self reliant because those services I once took for granted simply are not available. I am frankly as ready as I can be as I interned to simply hunker down and ride it out.
Be safe everyone.
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