I had dared to hope that Winter Storm Blair would not live up to the forecasts. I had dared to hope, despite seeing the weather maps showing a 1,300-mile long mass of perilous winter weather.
The snow began yesterday morning around 10 a.m. It’s continued ever since, mixed in with some sleet and ice pellets. At the time of this writing, we have about 6 to 8 inches on the ground in the Cincinnati area. The winter precipitation is expected to continue until mid-afternoon. After that, we have high winds and arctic, bone-chilling cold.
The entire Cincinnati area is more or less shut down. There is a handful of traffic on the interstates, matched by an equal number of accidents. All the schools are closed, as are many retail businesses.
This storm is going to disrupt normal life and daily routines for the next 24 to 36 hours. There is simply no getting around that.
I can’t say I’m happy about it. But my electric is on, and I won’t starve. I shall survive.
Here in southern Ohio, we often complain about ordinary winter weather, which is usually on the mild side by national standards. After a few days of this, a high of 36 F with no snow is going to seem pretty sweet.
-ET