This week has been a harsh reminder of why I would never live north of the Mason-Dixon Line, and probably no further from the Gulf Coast than Saraland, unless one (or both) of the following took place:
1. I was offered a job guaranteeing me at least $500,000 a year until I retire, or
2. I was handed a stone tablet by God himself saying "GO NORTH".
I've never been one to spend a lot of time at the beach. Like most residents of this part of the country, I gripe about the heat and humidity sometimes. And yes, we do occasionally have tropical weather to contend with... but not bitter cold, and certainly not snow. The last recorded measurable snowfall at Mobile Regional Airport was in December of 1996! I remember it well... I lived in Chickasaw at the time, and Fedex didn't deliver my new computer because the viaduct was too slick with ice. I was OK with that, because we got to play in the snow!
That's what snow should be: an event, not something you dread having to shovel from your sidewalks!
Winter of 2009-10 has been one to remember. We've already seen some snow in the area (a little over a month ago), but that was in the northernmost sections of KSJ Country. Houston (TX) had some pretty significant snowfall that go-around, and this time it looks like we might be the recipients of at least a little of the white stuff.
Does anyone else remember the winter of 1976-77, when we actually had measurable snowfall twice in one month?
Conditions have to be just right for snow to fall this far South. Usually, it's not cold enough... or when it does get cold enough then all of the precipitation has ended. Thursday's forecast now calls for rain in Mobile, but then some snow mixing in by the afternoon. That should continue into the evening hours. And as of right now, it's better than a slight chance.
After all of that ends, we'll get another blast of cold air. And not the usual one or two days we're used to... we're talking about 4 nights in a row of temps in the teens and twenties. I know: if you're from the north, this ain't nothin'. But to us lifelong Southerners, it's a shock. And now, I'm looking forward to spring!
How rare is snow in Mobile? I tried doing an online image search, and pretty much all I could find were snowmobiles... oh, and this:
1. I was offered a job guaranteeing me at least $500,000 a year until I retire, or
2. I was handed a stone tablet by God himself saying "GO NORTH".
I've never been one to spend a lot of time at the beach. Like most residents of this part of the country, I gripe about the heat and humidity sometimes. And yes, we do occasionally have tropical weather to contend with... but not bitter cold, and certainly not snow. The last recorded measurable snowfall at Mobile Regional Airport was in December of 1996! I remember it well... I lived in Chickasaw at the time, and Fedex didn't deliver my new computer because the viaduct was too slick with ice. I was OK with that, because we got to play in the snow!
That's what snow should be: an event, not something you dread having to shovel from your sidewalks!
Winter of 2009-10 has been one to remember. We've already seen some snow in the area (a little over a month ago), but that was in the northernmost sections of KSJ Country. Houston (TX) had some pretty significant snowfall that go-around, and this time it looks like we might be the recipients of at least a little of the white stuff.
Does anyone else remember the winter of 1976-77, when we actually had measurable snowfall twice in one month?
Conditions have to be just right for snow to fall this far South. Usually, it's not cold enough... or when it does get cold enough then all of the precipitation has ended. Thursday's forecast now calls for rain in Mobile, but then some snow mixing in by the afternoon. That should continue into the evening hours. And as of right now, it's better than a slight chance.
After all of that ends, we'll get another blast of cold air. And not the usual one or two days we're used to... we're talking about 4 nights in a row of temps in the teens and twenties. I know: if you're from the north, this ain't nothin'. But to us lifelong Southerners, it's a shock. And now, I'm looking forward to spring!
How rare is snow in Mobile? I tried doing an online image search, and pretty much all I could find were snowmobiles... oh, and this:
