Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

[Forrest]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

Most physical laborers start work by 5 AM and quit in early afternoon, before the worst of the heat. I don't know how they do it, either. The toughest men I've ever seen are these short, little Mexican-Indian immigrants that do landscaping around here. They work like gangbusters under the hottest sun. I guess they've adapted to the heat over many generations. I have a tremendous amount of respect for those guys.

I've gotten used to 110 degree days for short periods, like walking from the car to the grocery store (it's much hotter over black asphalt parking lots). Or when I've been in too-cold air conditioning, it feels good to step outside and thaw for a few minutes. It feels like a dry sauna. But 115-120 is harder. Just breathing, the air burns my lungs. One time I got into my car which was parked under a tree and HOT. As I drove away I rolled down the windows to cool it off but it just got hotter. Even with a shade over the windshield, you learn to keep a sock over the stick shift and a drape towel over the steering wheel and seat belt buckle when you park.

An old A/C guy told me that one summer he and his partner were doing a commercial installation, working on the roof and in the attic on what they later discovered to be the hottest day of many years, 122 degrees. They felt tired, went to a restaurant for lunch and both passed out on the table. The waitress woke them after 6 PM.

This past summer my A/C died on Saturday of the hottest weekend of the year, 116-117 degrees outside. Couldn't get it fixed until Monday. It took until Monday night to cool the house down. My house was over 105 degrees for almost 48 hours. I don't know how hot it actually got because the thermostat stops reading at 105. Couldn't cool off in the shower because cold water comes out of the tap scalding hot. Nearly lost my sick dog and 18 year-old cat. They bounced back after a few days (Gracie cat died on Christmas eve) but I had heat exhaustion for the entire week after that ordeal.

Wish I could live somewhere that doesn't require either A/C or a heater to survive, but Hawaii is out of my budget.

I would prefer San Diego if it wasn't so close to the border, and if I had sufficient income to live where the sea breezes, but alas, those of us who have real lives have real weather too...and some part of the year is always extreme.

I am sorry about your cat, though. I remember your extreme A/C battle...and the cats in the attics stories.

[dcarrigg]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

I would prefer San Diego if it wasn't so close to the border, and if I had sufficient income to live where the sea breezes, but alas, those of us who have real lives have real weather too...and some part of the year is always extreme.

I am sorry about your cat, though. I remember your extreme A/C battle...and the cats in the attics stories.

I don't have any answers. But I've been looking up:

[GRG55]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

...But everything's paid for and I have no debt. I like it that way.

Makes you one of iTulip's MOST affluent members!

[dcarrigg]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

Sorry for your cat. It was a good run. Our old guy is 12. People and animals die far more often in the hot than in the cold. But we have gov programs to keep people warm and not vis-a-vera. Seems a bit backwards to me. But power and tradition lies where the snow does. So biases remain. I hope your A/C works this year. I just found out looking at census data that most American houses have central air. It was a completely shocking stat. I live in a 120+ year old house. So do most people I know. Nobody has central air. Few have dishwashers (although more all the time do). In the end, I always need to be sure to remind myself just how different where I live is to the rest of the country, and how increasingly it doesn't represent the common American experience...

[dcarrigg]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

Makes you one of iTulip's MOST affluent members!

Indeed. Just having a net worth of $80k puts one above 60% of Americans...

[shiny!]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

Makes you one of iTulip's MOST affluent members!

Thanks, GRG.

I would prefer San Diego if it wasn't so close to the border, and if I had sufficient income to live where the sea breezes, but alas, those of us who have real lives have real weather too...and some part of the year is always extreme.

I am sorry about your cat, though. I remember your extreme A/C battle...and the cats in the attics stories.

Thank you for the kind thoughts about my cat.

San Diego would be lovely, if only I could afford it. Who knows, though. Maybe someday CA will fall into the ocean or the global warming guys will be right and then I'll be living on the coast.

Sorry for your cat. It was a good run. Our old guy is 12. People and animals die far more often in the hot than in the cold. But we have gov programs to keep people warm and not vis-a-vera. Seems a bit backwards to me. But power and tradition lies where the snow does. So biases remain. I hope your A/C works this year. I just found out looking at census data that most American houses have central air. It was a completely shocking stat. I live in a 120+ year old house. So do most people I know. Nobody has central air. Few have dishwashers (although more all the time do). In the end, I always need to be sure to remind myself just how different where I live is to the rest of the country, and how increasingly it doesn't represent the common American experience...

It is odd that people up north get subsidies to help pay for heating oil, but even though people die in the South every summer from the heat, we don't get electricity subsidies to help pay for our A/C.

I used to live in a 100 year old frame house in San Antonio that didn't have any insulation or air conditioning- not even window units. It was HOT in the summer and cold in the winter. One night about a dozen skunks got into a brawl in the crawlspace under the house; the smell came up through the floorboards. Good times!

None of my cats ever lived past 12 until I stopped giving them vaccinations. Since then, William lived to be 16, George is going strong at 14 and Luciano, although he has triaditis, is doing well at 13.

Gracie made it to 18. My husband rescued her when she was seven months old. I had dragged him to a huge adopt-a-thon that was being held under a big tent. 500 dogs and cats were up for adoption that weekend. He was all grouchy and adamant that we weren't going to get any more pets. Then he saw a family of very loud, violent little boys pointing at a little tortoiseshell cat, screaming "WE WANT THAT ONE!"

The kitty was so traumatized that she was shutting down in shock. My husband walked over and planted himself in front of her cage, looked down at the kids and said, "I'm sorry boys, but this one's taken."

She lived the last year of her life with major kidney failure but I tweaked her diet so she did really well until her last four days. A vet come out to the house on Christmas eve to put her out of her pain. She died in my arms. Buried her in my rose garden under a blanket of roses on Christmas day.

********

So, how's your big bad storm going? Has all this talk about summer heat and oceans helped pass the time?

[BadJuju]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

Screw snow. All it does is disrupt things.

[wayiwalk]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

Pretty disruptive in NJ right now, 12" on the picnic table...to be followed by a wintry mix and wind gusts later today. I REALLY hope this doesn't lead to a power outage. The trees in this region of NJ barely lost the ice/frozen wet snow from last week.

[ST]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

Pretty disruptive in NJ right now, 12" on the picnic table...to be followed by a wintry mix and wind gusts later today. I REALLY hope this doesn't lead to a power outage. The trees in this region of NJ barely lost the ice/frozen wet snow from last week.

That's always my concern here in my part of NJ as well. Perhaps this year will motivate to consider underground lines - federal stimulus one day?

[jk]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

i think hurricanes irene and sandy took down so many trees in my area that we are now less at risk. at least i hope so.

[wayiwalk]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

That's always my concern here in my part of NJ as well. Perhaps this year will motivate to consider underground lines - federal stimulus one day?

Where I grew up on Long Island, we had underground lines in the neighborhood. At the time, it was relatively uncommon. What WAS common was that we always had power outtages. It took decades for LILCO (later to become LIPA) to determine that the transformer/substation for our neighborhood was poorly located and subject to problems resulting in the outages.

Maybe they did it on purpose. Ya neva know!

[jk]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

Where I grew up on Long Island, we had underground lines in the neighborhood. At the time, it was relatively uncommon. What WAS common was that we always had power outtages. It took decades for LILCO (later to become LIPA) to determine that the transformer/substation for our neighborhood was poorly located and subject to problems resulting in the outages.

Maybe they did it on purpose. Ya neva know!

when seeking explanations of behavior, never assume malevolance when stupidity will do.

[Forrest]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

when seeking explanations of behavior, never assume malevolance when stupidity will do.

+1! And humanity is such a bundle of faultiness.

[shiny!]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

+1! And humanity is such a bundle of faultiness.

Agreed. It's a wonder that cats put up with us.

[Forrest]

Re: Major winter storm heading for east coast of USA

It is why cats are not exactly pets. I own my dog. My cats own themselves, and cohabit with me at their pleasure.