It could have been worse. It could have been one of those telegenic ice storms with two inches of ice on everything, trees all bent over, power lines snapped and a general sense of Fimbulwinter come to call.
Instead, we have a scant dusting of icy stuff. But the TV reports over 350 school closings or delays and the pattern is clear: delayed in the city and larger towns, cancelled in the countryside. The storm has laid down a near-perfect layer of black ice and if your street hasn't had sand, ice or a steady stream of traffic on it, it's liable to be a skating rink.
And there's the least freezing mist steadily renewing the ice, something between sleet and pogonip. Out at the airport, that's the problem; departing flights are cancelled, not because of ice on the runways, where they started with the weather and kept well ahead, but ice on the planes: by the time they get a loaded jet deiced and taxied out to the runway, it's icing up again, at a rate that will have it in a very bad way before it has climbed through the weather. So, no flights until the ice mist ends.
So, how about that weather, hey? Sheesh!
ETA: Worse than it looks from indoors and the mist has picked up to a steady drizzle. My G5RV ham antenna, a 120' long chunk of wire (a kind of center-fed doublet), is weighed down by accumulated ice and walking a full trash bag out for collection is very difficult. 3/8" ice on windshields and sidewalks, maybe a little more.
STAY WARM IMPROVISE BIPOLE ANTENNA IN THE ATTIC YOU CAN DO CW AND VOICE THAT WAY IT WORKED FOR MARCONI
ReplyDeleteDid it work for Marconi?:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.antiquewireless.org/otb/marconi1901.htm
Meanwhile 60 miles from Broad Ripple past Martinsville we've got drizzle and all of last-night's snow is just icky slush. But that could just be the later hour.
We got a foot of the stuff here in wonderful Warrenton, Missouri. I opened the front door to check out a noise. My normally indoor cat shot between my legs, out the door and promptly submerged. The look of feline indignation was priceless.
ReplyDeleteJerry, that look of feline indignation is the only reason I keep cats.
ReplyDeleteWe got maybe a foot here in drought stricken flyover country in two days. More on the schedule for Sunday and Monday. I hate snow and ice, but I'll take it!
ReplyDelete