This weather is awful!! 2008-2021

[OAG]

At least the termites and various other bugs will be taken care of up north.

 

[CuppaJoe]

...
A lady I'm friends with told me that in the 60's they said another ice age was coming....
Jim

Then along came the "Summer of Love."

 

[waltwill8]

Ya gotta ask yourself: What's so bad about global warming?

-9 degrees, sunny, and no wind. Now, where are my yaktrax.

 

[bssc]

Still -5F at my sisters. Supposed to jump up to the 20s. Still not impressed.

 

[Ed_The_Gypsy]

Not quite snowed-in here in Bellingham (WA). All the visitors made it home. The laundry room makes a great refridgerator and the back porch is a great freezer. The tequila bottles froze to the deck. We had a lot of company and not enough room in the 'fridge.

Last week in Calgary I started my car right up at -35C (-25F). (Good thing, too. I don't get paid if I don't show up.) Parked it underground for the next 2 weeks.

Geez, surprisingly, there are a lot of people in Calgary who don't know how to drive in snow and ice. And the hills are even wimpy, too (compared to Seattle, for example). Life is so easy in Cowtown that Darwin has not weeded out all of the dummies yet.

The way things are going, I am expecting a difficult trip to the airport two weeks hence.

Gypsy

 

[bow-tie]

This cold weather and blowing snow is for the birds. Good thing we didn't have to go anywhere yesterday considering we were drifted in. Alas, the maintainer went by today and opened us up to the North and South.

 

[Brat]

For those who don't know the micro-climates in the Pacific NW, the temperature is usually milder around Puget Sound than in Portland. The Sound moderates temperatures and Portland is 100 miles inland (not to mention a portion is at the west end of the Columbia River Gorge - a funnel for anything out of Alberta, CN under the right pressure gradient). Portland, for example, was 21 degrees when we had 30.

I am praying for a dry transition to milder temps.

 

[calmloki]

Dang - a lot of you are dealing with cruchy-cold temps and major snow - we're back to 34 degrees today - was making me a bit nervous last night listening to the ice dropping. Before it did the trees did a bit more shedding - here's the neighbor's oak:

and a house a block & 1/2 away i was taking pics of yesterday - it took a good hit from an oak branch:

Then an old maple, also within a block & 1/2:

Not the norm for this area at all!

 

[ziggy29]

Yikes. For the last day and a half, we've been basically inside a refrigerator. Dry (as usual out here; we're having a terrible drought right now) with near-constant temps in the low to mid 30s. We could have kept milk outside for the last 36 hours or so and it would have been just fine.

We should be looking at a warming trend tomorrow, getting back up into the 60s and low 70s for the next few days. But with the air so dry (the dewpoint is currently 5º), we'll still be getting some refrigerated nights.

 

[bbbamI]

Ouch Calmloki! I almost looked at my gas bill the way I looked at your trees...$195 and I live in TX. Hate to think what others will pay....

 

[Khan]

Ouch Calmloki! I almost looked at my gas bill the way I looked at your trees...$195 and I live in TX. Hate to think what others will pay....

I guess the only thing worse than hearing the heat being on most of the day would be NOT hearing the heat being on.

 

[bssc]

Just saw the forecase. It is going up to 24 and we will get 12 inches of snow.

 

[haha]

Just saw the forecase. It is going up to 24 and we will get 12 inches of snow.

I went out earlier to hike down to my pet feeding house and the heel popped off my boot. Luckily Angel the shoe repair guy said he could have them repaired by 3, and he did. So soon I'm off on a cold hike.

Ha

 

[REWahoo]

Luckily Angel the shoe repair guy said he could have them repaired by 3, and he did.

I didn't know there were any shoe cobblers left in the world.

 

[bssc]

I didn't know there were any shoe cobblers left in the world.

There aren't, ha said it was an angel.

 

[Goonie]

I didn't know there were any shoe cobblers left in the world.

We have one here in town. He started working there for the former owner while he was still in HS, almost 40 years ago. When the old owner was ready to retire many years ago, he called him over and told him the shop and contents were now his, for being such a loyal employee!

Oh, and we had a major heat wave here today!! It got all the way up to 13°.....and it was sunny all day....and...NO wind!!!

S'posed to start snowing again by morning though....2"-5". But that's OK.....the snow & ice we have now is starting to look a bit dirty, so it needs some refreshing!!!

 

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

We have one here in town. He started working there for the former owner while he was still in HS, almost 40 years ago. When the old owner was ready to retire many years ago, he called him over and told him the shop and contents were now his, for being such a loyal employee!

We have one, too -- an older Vietnamese man who bought the shop from an ancient cobbler shortly after immigrating. He is very good and charges too little. I always end up throwing an extra few bucks in when I use his services.

I'll miss him when I FIRE because the only shoes I ever bring to him are my work shoes which occasionally need heels or soles. Every other non-work shoes get worn to the quick and then trashed.

 

[REWahoo]

A once noble profession now almost extinct.

My dad was a shoe cobbler who learned the business from my grandfather. Dad opened his own shop in the 1930's and the family almost starved to death - but everyone had well maintained footwear.

He finally figured out he needed to diversify to survive and after WWII expanded his shop to sell work boots, then added work clothing and finally western (AKA 'cowboy') boots. He maintained his cobbler shop in the rear of the business until he retired in 1968 at age 62.

I have an immediate flashback to my childhood whenever I smell leather.

Which reminds me... Martha, where is that good looking avatar of yours?

 

[freebird5825]

though my bro & family are on their way to buffalo ny for skiiing so for them i hope they get snow.

not to worry...NY never disappoints in that department, especially in Buffalo.

 

[Goonie]

He finally figured out he needed to diversify to survive and after WWII expanded his shop to sell work boots....

Tino, our local cobbler did the same thing. The local trades people around here had a preference for Red Wing work boots, so Tino started caring them. He sold them at dealer cost, so he didn't make any profit on their sale.....but he guaranteed himself a steady stream of return customers coming in for new soles & heels! And most of the guys bought another pair each time they came in for resoles, so they'd always have at least 2 pairs available.

The shoe dealer across the street finally figured out what was going on, and complained to the manufacturer, who in turn contacted Tino and told him he had to charge retail prices because it wasn't fair to his competition. He told them that instead of that, his competition should lower his prices. They didn't agree. He lost his dealership rights over the matter, so he raised his repair prices......but only to the competitor! The competitor complained to him, but was told that if he didn't like the prices, to take his business elsewhere. Competitor said "but there is no one else who does shoe repair". Tino told him it looked like he was between a rock & a hard place.....either pay the fare, or do without....He paid!

Tino let all of his normal customers know where to go to get the best deal on new work boots......NOT across the street!

 

[haha]

I didn't know there were any shoe cobblers left in the world.

Angel is only 2 blocks away, and there are 2 others within a mile or so. Angle is a super guy. He re-glued my heel and the front part of the Vibram soles, and also nailed them for $8. Alway some people haging out in his shop just passing the time of day. He lives a few doors from his shop.

I think this may be a good area for cobblers because Punks wear expensive boots, and get them repaired.

ha

 

[Moemg]

Well the weather here is mid 70's but I miss snow especially around Christmas . I do not miss dirty snow or slush or ice but a nice snow makes everything look so Christmasy .

 

[73ss454]

Nothing worse than yellow snow as I remember.

 

[Goonie]

Nothing worse than yellow snow as I remember.

Only if ya eat it!

 

[aaronc879]

Well the weather here is mid 70's but I miss snow especially around Christmas . I do not miss dirty snow or slush or ice but a nice snow makes everything look so Christmasy .

I see you're in Sarasota. That is the area i'm thinking that I would go if I was going to leave winter behind. Right now, being near my family is what's keeping me in Wisconsin. Are there any downfalls to Sarasota. Muggy summers don't bother me a bit. Hurricanes don't worry me. Housing seems very reasonable. How are RE taxes. I know HO ins. is a little high but i'd be looking for a place well under $100,000 so it can't be that bad.