Who is getting ready for the Nor'easter/Winter Storm Kenan?

[YaelAldrich]

In Boston and been watching the news about this nor'easter/winter hurricane/blizzard forecasted for Saturday! The amount of snow went down and had come back up nicely. Might get 1-2 feet of snow -some forecasts have up to 30 inches in store. My parents in western NC might even get the beginnings of it tomorrow night.

Haven't had one of these since we moved back to Boston. When we were in graduate school we had a blizzard that dropped 2+ ft of snow. A fire truck sideswiped our car parked on the street trying to get around the corner. Good times!

Edited January 28, 2022 by YaelAldrich

[Faith-manor]

Oh yikes! Y'all be safe out there!

[hippymamato3]

We are...and desperately need to grocery shop tomorrow (when absolutely everyone else will be too!) 

[YaelAldrich]

2 minutes ago, hippymamato3 said:

We are...and desperately need to grocery shop tomorrow (when absolutely everyone else will be too!) 

Good luck! I went to Market Basket on Wednesday - normal. I went to Costco and TJs today - madness and insanity! Combined supply shortages and pre-blizzard shopping equals empty shelves all over the place.

[BakersDozen]

I am preparing by telling dd (currently in Boston at school) to be safe and make sure she at least has food basics. A certain Hive member also had the same thoughts about dd. 🙂 ♥

[Starr]

I hope they are wrong about the high end of the snow forecast! Stay warm.

[itsheresomewhere]

I can’t wait.  Shovels, snow blower, generator, gas and battery packs for the jackets are ready.  I went out and did a snow storm junk run so we are ready.  

[Eos]

Very excited for it.  Between covid caution, blizzard, and ds22 home for the weekend, I bought a ridiculous amount of groceries yesterday including some wine to mull with fruit and spices. We have wood heat and a propane stove so heat and cooking are fine but if the power goes out so does our well pump.  We'll fill up the bathtub tonight to flush with.

I love everything about snow.  Sometimes after a big storm we put tea candles in glass jars and put them around the yard at night, sort of tucked into the snow. We spend a fair amount of time playing in it and following animal tracks. 

Edited January 28, 2022 by Eos

[lulubelle]

Dd15 made sure I got cookie making supplies we will make tonight in case we lose power on Saturday. At least it will be cold enough for food not to go bad in fridge. I finally bought de-icer for driveway. We are very close to the 30 inch pocket areas. Looks like we will get at least a foot. We will see.

[mlktwins]

The big snow is just missing us in No. VA.  What we are getting is starting tonight.  I used to love a big snow storm, but now have extra worries about dad’s caregiver shifts and their safety.  We have had a lot of snow this month and I am over it 🤪😁!  
 

Everyone in the path - BE SAFE 🤗!!!

[Pawz4me]

7 hours ago, YaelAldrich said:

My parents in western NC might even get the beginnings of it tomorrow night.

 

And if we get some it will be the third weekend in a row we've had some winter precipitation. Which is pretty unusual. The TV news person just told me it will be the first time since 2000 that our area has had three or more consecutive snow events in January. We've still got drifts against our house from the stuff that fell on 1/16, which is hugely unusual. Usually anything we get melts within a few days.

 

1 hour ago, Eos said:

We spend a fair amount of time playing in it and following animal tracks. 

Since we've had stuff on the ground for awhile DH and I have been analyzing various animal tracks while we're out walking the dogs. I think we'd make poor hunters. 😉 

I hope all of you in the NE stay safe and warm!

[HomeAgain]

The weatherman on one channel says 24+ inches here, but as I told dh, I am cynical.  Our weatherwoman on our normal channel says it's going to measure about 18inches and she is often more accurate when it comes to measuring.

Either way, we are going to be at home.  Dh is essential personnel and lives close to his work, so we may be the family up at 4am on Sunday to continue shoveling the drive and get him to work.  It'll give oldest ds a chance to nap after before he (also essential personnel) has to be at work Sunday afternoon.

I don't know if we'll lose power.  I need to finish my school work today even though due dates are Saturday/Sunday evenings so that it can all be turned in on time.  We do have the gas heating stove on in the living room so we may be camping out on the main level instead of our bedrooms.  Today is spent finishing storm prep: bringing up games, charging the power banks, etc. and filling extra water jugs.  We have 9 in the garage and 7 new, but no power means no water here.

[Faith-manor]

This discussion reminds me of one of my roommates in college. She came from the D.C. area, and grew up without a significant snowstorm event in her childhood. So the first epic snow we received at college was a nice six inch dump at night. She was enthralled, and the next day skipped all of classes and did nothing but run around campus making snow angels and snowmen as well as throwing snowballs at her friends and classmates. There were very few of us who had not grown up with big snow so we thought it was pretty hilarious! Eventually we saw a photographer stalking her and asked "What's up, man?" (It seemed kind of creepy at the time.) It turned out someone from the admissions office asked if they could get some formal photos of her playing to put on school  advertisements.

It can be fun! But we have so many extreme snow and ice events now in places that used to have these things once in a decade, once in a lifetime, that it just reminds me how fast life is having to alter from climate change.

I hope everyone can get their supplies and hunker down.

[MEmama]

The prediction here keep changing (as is usual on the coast), right now they are calling for 12-16 inches with blizzard conditions.

By force of habit I keep feeling like I should hit up the grocery store, but in truth we have a stocked kitchen so I think I’m just going to avoid the crazy mess it’s bound to be. In truth my neighbourhood market is rarely too busy, but I don’t want to be around anyone right now and I can’t think of anything we actually need.

We'll set up our ad hoc generator “station” today. We have plenty of pellets and a gas stove, so we'll be fine. 
 

Yesterday was a busy busy day at the bird feeder, I expect they are preparing! The (indoor!) kitties are keeping entertained. 🙂 

 

 

[HomeAgain]

22 minutes ago, Faith-manor said:

 

It can be fun! But we have so many extreme snow and ice events now in places that used to have these things once in a decade, once in a lifetime, that it just reminds me how fast life is having to alter from climate change.

I hope everyone can get their supplies and hunker down.

I will say that where we live, we don't often get things like this.  It's the first time in 7 years where the snow is going to be more than a few inches.  The last time they call Snowmageddon, because the snow didn't stop.  Every time they plowed it piled up again.  A blizzard is unusual for us, but often recorded in history here, so it's just something that people know will happen eventually.

The most frustrating thing about this year is the lack of weather appropriate clothing in stores.  It has been very hard for families to find things like snow boots/pants since the beginning of December, and there wasn't much before that.  I think our Target got in about 100 pairs of weather appropriate shoes total and no pants at all. Snow boots are currently the most asked for item on the Buy Nothing page because there just aren't any.  The relief on one parent's face last night when another mom approached her about asking if her son wanted a pair her kid had just outgrown was palpable. My own kid is wearing a pair that were given to us 6 years ago, by a family who had last used them 4-5 years before that.  I found them in the back of the closet. So his boots are 10 years old, but they fit and are in decent shape, so that's what he gets for the year.  Usually we would have gone out in November and bought him a pair at L.L. Bean or the like, but we didn't find anything in his size when we looked at any of the stores.

Edited January 28, 2022 by HomeAgain

[whitestavern]

We are on the line between 6-12 and 12-18. I love a huge snowstorm so I’m hoping for the higher amounts!

[MEmama]

9 minutes ago, Faith-manor said:

This discussion reminds me of one of my roommates in college. She came from the D.C. area, and grew up without a significant snowstorm event in her childhood. So the first epic snow we received at college was a nice six inch dump at night. She was enthralled, and the next day skipped all of classes and did nothing but run around campus making snow angels and snowmen as well as throwing snowballs at her friends and classmates. There were very few of us who had not grown up with big snow so we thought it was pretty hilarious! Eventually we saw a photographer stalking her and asked "What's up, man?" (It seemed kind of creepy at the time.) It turned out someone from the admissions office asked if they could get some formal photos of her playing to put on school  advertisements.

It can be fun! But we have so many extreme snow and ice events now in places that used to have these things once in a decade, once in a lifetime, that it just reminds me how fast life is having to alter from climate change.

I hope everyone can get their supplies and hunker down.

How fun for your friend! I lived in Ohio when I experienced my first snowfall. My BFF (who had moved out to Ohio after me) and I went to the neighbourhood park in the middle of the night to enjoy the snow and found that the park was FULL of people playing, sledding, throwing snowballs— it was a blast! We lived in an arts district, I wouldn’t have expected so many people to be out acting like children in the snow, but as it turned out it was an annual event every time it snowed much. Such good memories. 🙂 

Our campus where we live now fills up with snowmen after a good snow. Sometimes the students get really creative. There’s an ice rink on the quad, too, that both students and neighbourhood families use. 

[Faith-manor]

13 minutes ago, HomeAgain said:

I will say that where we live, we don't often get things like this.  It's the first time in 7 years where the snow is going to be more than a few inches.  The last time they call Snowmageddon, because the snow didn't stop.  Every time they plowed it piled up again.  A blizzard is unusual for us, but often recorded in history here, so it's just something that people know will happen eventually.

The most frustrating thing about this year is the lack of weather appropriate clothing in stores.  It has been very hard for families to find things like snow boots/pants since the beginning of December, and there wasn't much before that.  I think our Target got in about 100 pairs of weather appropriate shoes total and no pants at all. Snow boots are currently the most asked for item on the Buy Nothing page because there just aren't any.  The relief on one parent's face last night when another mom approached her about asking if her son wanted a pair her kid had just outgrown was palpable. 

This is what really concerns me. We have mostly only Wal-Mart, Meijer, and TSC in the tri-county area for cold weather clothing otherwise online only, and delivery is slow. Amazon Prime is 3-4 days. An order from LLBean, Columbia, or REI can take up to 3 weeks to get here, and 75% of the population cannot afford high end gear anyway. Stock has been VERY low from the very beginning of the cold weather shopping season at the local stores. Very low, and what they have had at Meijer and Wal-Mart has been so crappy that it really shouldn't be used below a feels like temp of 15°F. The Car hart stuff a TSC is good, but in low supply and the vast majority of families cannot afford the price tag these days. We have had two straight weeks of minus temps, double digit minus windchills. The schools are reporting that large numbers of kids (this area is very much low income) are in danger of hypothermia and frostbite. But they also won't cancel school. I worry about the young ones in particular so much. It is quite abnormal for us to have such low temps for so many days in a row. Climate change! Sigh.

The clothing pantries are advertising total desperate need for cold weather clothing. I sifted through a box I found of the boys clothing, stuff that I really honestly thought had already been donated. I found three Columbia boys ski coats, 10-12, and two 14-16, and some youth size ski gloves rated for -10. I called the elementary school and asked if they want them or if I should take them to the clothing pantry. The secretary begged me to let her have them to give away so I have an appointment to drop them off. I told her someone has to come to the car to get them because there is no mask mandate in the school, no testing, no contract tracing, and no quarantine requirements. That building is nothing but a bio hazzard, and I refuse to enter. But she is more than happy to come out if I text her when I get there. These coats though, are a drop in sea of need. I am glad I found them. However, I am so worried about the lack of planning at the community, county, state, and federal level for the effects of climate change. Nothing is being done for our most at risk families, heating systems have not been upgraded in decades, cooling systems or insulating methods have not been added despite the fact that more weird, summer extreme temps are happening, no new filtration despite covid, no moves towards reducing dependency on fossil fuels, just nothing but heads in the sand, ostrich style. This will keep getting worse.

[plaidpants]

I'm only in the mid Atlantic but we checked our pantry, found the tarp, got some windshield washer fluid that might not freeze (I didn't know that could happen!), Planning not to go out tomorrow.

 

Stay safe everyone!

[Noreen Claire]

I'm in a pocket on the MA/NH border that is expected to get 24"-30"+. 😱 I did a grocery pickup yesterday, on the way home with the kids. I'm not expecting to lose power, because the snow is supposed to be very fluffy, due to the very cold temperatures. 

I am concerned that DS26 will attempt to drive his GF to/from work tomorrow. (She works for a doggie daycare place.) 

[Faith-manor]

14 minutes ago, Noreen Claire said:

I'm in a pocket on the MA/NH border that is expected to get 24"-30"+. 😱 I did a grocery pickup yesterday, on the way home with the kids. I'm not expecting to lose power, because the snow is supposed to be very fluffy, due to the very cold temperatures. 

I am concerned that DS26 will attempt to drive his GF to/from work tomorrow. (She works for a doggie daycare place.) 

I hope ds and girlfriend just stay put!

[lmrich]

Stay safe everybody. 

[2ndGenHomeschooler]

Depending on who you watch, we’re in a 12-18” or 24”+ band. DH is setting up the generator, we have plenty of pellets and propane, filled the oil tank yesterday, filled car gas tank today. I need to find out where all the snow shovels ended up after the last storm and be sure they’re in the garage in case it’s hard to open shed doors. We’re going to be spending a TON of time shoveling. Our driveway is 350’ and we shovel it by hand. 😬 DH and SIL (who rents our downstairs apartment) are both essential workers who will need to be able to get out to work afternoon shifts during the worst of the storm and then get back in after midnight. So kids and I and my brother will be shoveling every few hours if we can manage it with the wind. 

Edited January 28, 2022 by 2ndGenHomeschooler

[Faith-manor]

2 minutes ago, 2ndGenHomeschooler said:

Depending on who you watch, we’re in a 12-18” or 24”+ band. DH is setting up the generator, we have plenty of pellets and propane, filled the oil tank yesterday, filled car gas tank today. I need to find out where all the snow shovels ended up after the last storm and be sure they’re in the garage in case it’s hard to open shed doors. We’re going to be spending a TON of time shoveling. Our driveway is 350’ and we shovel it by hand. 😬 DH and SIL (who rents our downstairs apartment) are both essential workers who will need to be able to get out to work afternoon shifts during the worst of the storm and then get back in after midnight. So kids and I and my brother will be shoveling every few hours if we can manage it with the wind. 

Good luck with all that shoveling! Stay safe

[BeachGal]

I’m in Illinois and just got done shoveling about a foot of snow. We were supposed to get 2” so the Northeast is either going to get less because it fell here or you will get 6 times as much! ☃️

[Wheres Toto]

We were originally in a 1-3 inch band, now we're up to 6 to 12 inches.   We are ready for it, have lots of food and a generator in case we lose power.   We also have two 4wd/awd vehicles if we have to get out for some reason.

[freesia]

7 minutes ago, Wheres Toto said:

We were originally in a 1-3 inch band, now we're up to 6 to 12 inches.   We are ready for it, have lots of food and a generator in case we lose power.   We also have two 4wd/awd vehicles if we have to get out for some reason.

Same here.  We don't have a generator, though, just an inverter.  I'm trying to get the vacuuming done tonight, though in case we lose power.  I don't mind big storms, but I do mind being cold!

[freesia]

1 hour ago, BeachGal said:

I’m in Illinois and just got done shoveling about a foot of snow. We were supposed to get 2” so the Northeast is either going to get less because it fell here or you will get 6 times as much! ☃️

Apparently we are getting 6 times as much. lol

[freesia]

8 hours ago, Noreen Claire said:

I'm in a pocket on the MA/NH border that is expected to get 24"-30"+. 😱 I did a grocery pickup yesterday, on the way home with the kids. I'm not expecting to lose power, because the snow is supposed to be very fluffy, due to the very cold temperatures. 

I am concerned that DS26 will attempt to drive his GF to/from work tomorrow. (She works for a doggie daycare place.) 

EEK!

[Faith-manor]

Has it started dumping yet? Just wondering if everyone is hunkering down now.

Meanwhile, we are supposed to have -9 temp in the morning. But it is going to be 55 at the Bama house on Sunday. I am sucking my thumb, metaphorically speaking, about winter at the moment.

Just watch warm movies, ones that take place in luxurious tropical places. Maybe the answer is to drink Bahama Mamas, Pina Coladas, and Mai Tais while starting down shrimp and things made with mango. 😁

Best wishes to all of you!

Edited January 28, 2022 by Faith-manor

[HomeAgain]

1 minute ago, Faith-manor said:

Has it started dumping yet? Just wondering if everyone is hunkering down now.

 

Nothing yet here, but we are ready!  It's supposed to start about 8 o'clock tonight and now all the forecasts are saying 24+ inches.  The house is ready to go, and all computers will be turned off at bedtime because power outages are looking to be a lot more likely.

[mommyoffive]

8 hours ago, Faith-manor said:

This is what really concerns me. We have mostly only Wal-Mart, Meijer, and TSC in the tri-county area for cold weather clothing otherwise online only, and delivery is slow. Amazon Prime is 3-4 days. An order from LLBean, Columbia, or REI can take up to 3 weeks to get here, and 75% of the population cannot afford high end gear anyway. Stock has been VERY low from the very beginning of the cold weather shopping season at the local stores. Very low, and what they have had at Meijer and Wal-Mart has been so crappy that it really shouldn't be used below a feels like temp of 15°F. The Car hart stuff a TSC is good, but in low supply and the vast majority of families cannot afford the price tag these days. We have had two straight weeks of minus temps, double digit minus windchills. The schools are reporting that large numbers of kids (this area is very much low income) are in danger of hypothermia and frostbite. But they also won't cancel school. I worry about the young ones in particular so much. It is quite abnormal for us to have such low temps for so many days in a row. Climate change! Sigh.

The clothing pantries are advertising total desperate need for cold weather clothing. I sifted through a box I found of the boys clothing, stuff that I really honestly thought had already been donated. I found three Columbia boys ski coats, 10-12, and two 14-16, and some youth size ski gloves rated for -10. I called the elementary school and asked if they want them or if I should take them to the clothing pantry. The secretary begged me to let her have them to give away so I have an appointment to drop them off. I told her someone has to come to the car to get them because there is no mask mandate in the school, no testing, no contract tracing, and no quarantine requirements. That building is nothing but a bio hazzard, and I refuse to enter. But she is more than happy to come out if I text her when I get there. These coats though, are a drop in sea of need. I am glad I found them. However, I am so worried about the lack of planning at the community, county, state, and federal level for the effects of climate change. Nothing is being done for our most at risk families, heating systems have not been upgraded in decades, cooling systems or insulating methods have not been added despite the fact that more weird, summer extreme temps are happening, no new filtration despite covid, no moves towards reducing dependency on fossil fuels, just nothing but heads in the sand, ostrich style. This will keep getting worse.

I have no clue as to what the need is around me, but you made me get up and go through the coats.  I did it a year or so ago and got rid of a lot of adult winter coats.  Now I have 5 bags of kids coats ready to go.  That is just an easy go through of the closets upstairs.  Need to go through the mudroom and basement.  Living in the midwest we have a million coats.   And are always getting new ones for Christmas.  

[kbutton]

We had no snow forecasted except a relatively low likelihood of overnight flurries. We've had big fluffy flakes on and off all day, our grass is covered, and now we're getting flurries of tiny flakes. 🙂 

[BeachGal]

4 hours ago, freesia said:

Apparently we are getting 6 times as much. lol

Hope you have some wine!

[freesia]

26 minutes ago, BeachGal said:

Hope you have some wine!

Sadly, no 😞coffee it will have to be. 

[BeachGal]

10 minutes ago, freesia said:

Sadly, no 😞coffee it will have to be. 

That means you can only shovel in the morning.

Argh. I think I shoveled about six hours today. I live in a complex that takes up a city block, plus we have an offsite outdoor parking area. Unfortunately, all three of our complex's snow blowers went to snow blower heaven this year, so our two building engineers were outside hand shoveling all by themselves. One of them is young and has had heart operations so, not wanting him to keel over, a bunch of us found our shovels and helped out. But we had wine waiting for us at the end and that makes all the difference.

Chocolate might be good, too.

[Guest]

I feel cheated, lol! We have snow but it’s very minor still. It has been snowing periodically all day but the grass is not even covered and my son went to work as planned, 4-9:30. 
 

My location in the state typically means we get snow while the eastern shore or southern portion get less or none, but this is our second reversed pattern this winter. I want the snow we’re due, dammit! Lol

[Carrie12345]

I’m in an area of the thinner, less dangerous bands that were shown, but still had at least 3 different predictions for what we would actually get, and those kept changing anyway.
And now it’s still dark outside and I’m refusing to go look.  I’m just going to pretend for a little longer that it’s no big deal out there!

[Eos]

On 1/28/2022 at 4:35 AM, MEmama said:

The prediction here keep changing (as is usual on the coast), right now they are calling for 12-16 inches with blizzard conditions.

By force of habit I keep feeling like I should hit up the grocery store, but in truth we have a stocked kitchen so I think I’m just going to avoid the crazy mess it’s bound to be. In truth my neighbourhood market is rarely too busy, but I don’t want to be around anyone right now and I can’t think of anything we actually need.

We'll set up our ad hoc generator “station” today. We have plenty of pellets and a gas stove, so we'll be fine. 
 

Yesterday was a busy busy day at the bird feeder, I expect they are preparing! The (indoor!) kitties are keeping entertained. 🙂 

 

 

 

Edited February 6, 2023 by Eos

[MEmama]

7 minutes ago, Eos said:

Downeast we're looking at 20 inches with winds gusting up to 55.  

They increased our area to 18 inches. Should be an exciting day.

I woke up early listening to wind and have that weird pre-storm sense of unease. 
 

Stay safe and cozy, all! 

[Carrie12345]

It looks like (still kinda darkish, from the window) we didn’t get much more than a few inches, but dd just said her drive to work was terrifying. And the wind chill is -10.

My heart goes out to those of you in the bad parts!!!

[Eos]

11 minutes ago, MEmama said:

They increased our area to 18 inches. Should be an exciting day.

I woke up early listening to wind and have that weird pre-storm sense of unease. 
 

Stay safe and cozy, all! 

Ooh, it's finally starting here, just when predicted.  My kitties are raging around the house, calling to each other - very odd.

[Wheres Toto]

9 hours ago, Quill said:

I feel cheated, lol! We have snow but it’s very minor still. It has been snowing periodically all day but the grass is not even covered and my son went to work as planned, 4-9:30. 
 

My location in the state typically means we get snow while the eastern shore or southern portion get less or none, but this is our second reversed pattern this winter. I want the snow we’re due, dammit! Lol

This has been a weird year.   Usually most snow hits to the west of us, with it gradually going down as you move toward NYC and the shore.    This year has been the opposite with most of it hitting NYC and the shore and very little in our higher elevations to the west.     We are between the two so are still getting something.  

So far we only have a couple inches but there are supposedly stronger bands still to come.

[Starr]

I'm thinking of all of you. I hope your power stays on! We are west of the storm and just getting all the minus temperatures this winter. 

[MEmama]

I'm glad I forgot to bring the bird feeders in because we’ve had a surprising number of birds today. The woodpeckers aren’t as plentiful as usual, but those who are braving the elements are determined and appear joyful at my suet offerings. We’ve had chickadees, which are kinds of hardy little things, bluebirds, some darling and daring goldfinches and something that looks like a goldfinch but isn’t. Such a pleasant surprise! 

[AmandaVT]

My family is on the RI coast and it sounds like it's hitting hard there. Dad just sent me a cool video - said it's hard to tell how much has fallen due to the wind. He's got a generator so they'll be fine if power goes out. They're more worried about the wind.

[mommyoffive]

Just saw this.  I am worried for everyone out there. 

 

Parts of 10 states under blizzard warnings, 100K+ without power in Massachusetts amid powerful winter storm (msn.com)

We again are getting no snow.  I want some because it makes playing outside for the kids fun.

 

[freesia]

We are only ending up with about four inches-the low end of what was forecasted. It’s pretty windy rn. Hopefully we’ll keep power. 

[wintermom]

2 hours ago, MEmama said:

I'm glad I forgot to bring the bird feeders in because we’ve had a surprising number of birds today. The woodpeckers aren’t as plentiful as usual, but those who are braving the elements are determined and appear joyful at my suet offerings. We’ve had chickadees, which are kinds of hardy little things, bluebirds, some darling and daring goldfinches and something that looks like a goldfinch but isn’t. Such a pleasant surprise! 

Wonderful! In our big snow storm 2 weeks ago the birds were busy at the feeder during the heavy snow and wind. They are so tough! 

[AmandaVT]

Picture from my dad's backyard. There was no snow on the ground before this morning. Going to be hard to measure due to the drifting!