Weather: Winter arrives!
November 17th, 2005,As I write this on November 16, I’m looking out the window at a snow-covered yard. We’ve had our first snow of the season, and the temperature is about 22 degrees Fahrenheit, with a nasty wind making it feel much colder. The high will remain in the 20’s today, and tonight it’s supposed to get down to 6 degrees. It’s even cold inside. I’ve got the space heater blowing warm air on my legs, because cold air is leaking through our old windows, which I haven’t yet covered with plastic film.
Winter is here! I therefore shout, “Hooray!” And I promise you there is no irony.
Many Upper Midwesterners are already grumbling about the snow and ice and bad driving conditions. Most children and a few of us oldsters feel differently. Our 20-month-old daughter was fascinated by the snow this morning, and I find it brings back pleasant memories of winters past.
The arrival of winter follows a warmer-than-average fall in the Upper Midwest, which gave us sunny weather with highs in the 60’s until only a few days ago—well into November, that is. We also had a record run of frost-free weather. From March 26 to November 10—229 days—the Twin Cities did not have a “killer frost?? of 28 degrees or lower. The average number of frost-free days is 185.
Most of the plants in our small garden had already perished before November 10 because of occasional temperatures around freezing. However, one group of purple-flowered plants, which I was told are false hollyhocks, were still thriving. The carrots were still looking healthy as well, and the clematis was hanging on. Now even those plants will be done in by the weather.
For those of you who want advice on how to keep warm this winter, see two of my columns from last year, “Dressing for Winter,” Part 1 and Part 2. Also, stock up your vehicle with winter safety gear. In his book Restless Skies, Paul Douglas, my weather guru, recommends the following in your car:
• shovel
• first aid kit
• nonperishable food with can opener, if necessary
• flashlight with extra batteries
• candles and matches
• extra clothing, boots, sleeping bags, and/or blankets
• tire chains
• battery-operated radio with batteries
• empty coffee can to burn the candles or melt snow for water
• booster cables
• charged cell phone
If that’s not enough, another source recommends including road flares, a tow cable, sand, salt mix, a knife, and paper towels. AAA and other vendors sell winter travel kits. I’ve never carried anywhere near that much in my car, but I’ll try to be better prepared this year.
Finally, to remind us to respect Old Man Winter, here’s a tidbit from Mr. Douglas: extreme cold presents a greater danger, on average, than do lighting or extreme heat. The odds of being killed by extreme cold are 1 in 6,165, whereas the odds of being killed by extreme heat are 1 in 12,310 and 1 in 30,000 for lightning (Star Tribune, September 11, 2005). (The odds of dying from cold weather must be a lot higher in the Upper Midwest.) About 700 Americans die of hypothermia, or extreme cold, each year.
But I don’t mean to scare you away from winter. Really. See you out on the ski trails and sledding hills.