Heavy snow coming tonight

Heavy is the operative word here. A wet, heavy snow. Maybe seven inches or more. This could bring down the power lines out here in the sticks where, curiously, I find myself at this point in my life. If I disappear, you know the drill: remain calm and know that I'll be back as soon as I can.

PS: I just saw a news bulletin go by on the TV screen. It said "Nighttime bathroom trips make you less productive." Personally, peeing in my bed would make me less productive. But maybe that's just me.

See you tomorrow (hopefully).

Lots of snow on the way

If you don't see me here tomorrow, it means I've lost electricity. According to the weather folks, my area is expecting between 9 and 33 inches of snow. I'm hoping for the big-time: 33. We haven't had a real snowfall in years. It's definitely time.

The computer forecast that shows 33 inches is the European model. You may recall that it was the European model that correctly predicted the course of "superstorm" Sandy. So I guess we're in for a huge snowfall.

I think that's great. The Australian Baseball Championship Series is on ESPN this weekend. Three games, starting on Friday. Given satellite TV's difficulties in a big snowfall, I may miss the Friday game. But I'll still have two more.

One last thing. It's nice that normal, everyday people will be able to earn money by shoveling snow. That's one of the best things about snow and it comes at an opportune time, when many people's wallets are empty.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Here comes the storm

It's snowing outside and we're expecting high winds. Here's hoping our Sandy-battered electrical system can handle it. There must be a lot of tree limbs out there, hanging by a thread right over a power line. We're expecting up to five inches and this is a wet, heavy snow. In other words, I may lose power. If I disappear, it's not by choice.

Good luck to all the Hurricane Sandy victims who are trying to weather the cold in half-destroyed houses. New York and New Jersey are still a major wreck. I don't think people outside the area really understand how bad it is. The election was a nice intermission but reality is returning with a vengeance.

We already know it's Winter

Has this happened to news in your area? It used to be the case that when you turned on the news you'd see, you know, news. No more.

About two years ago, NYC's TV stations decided that news is optional on their news shows. Once they made that decision, they were free to broadcast a full hour and a half of snow coverage whenever they wanted to. Or rain coverage. Or any old weather-related thing. The heck with news. We don't need that stuff anymore.

But see, we already know it's winter. Even if we don't go out, we have these things called "windows". For this reason, snow doesn't come as a total surprise to us. We know when it snows. Now, if the only way to learn whether it had snowed was to turn on the TV and have them tell us, then it would qualify as news. See how that works?

This is a huge problem these past two months because there has been a slew of total-snow "news" shows. They don't even pretend to tell you anything that went on in the world that day. They just interview one shoveler after the next. They don't do this every day but they do it way too often.

And then, of course, they don't do it well. One of their most recent innovations -- wait for it -- is to send reporters out in a car so viewers can see out the car window as they travel along. Because we can't do that. We can't possibly get in our cars and look out the window. That is something only possible through the magic of TV. And the most horrifying thing is that as soon as one of the three NY news stations did this, the others promptly sent intrepid Driver Reporters out into the, you know, snow. Wow. I don't know about you but I'm impressed.

I remember when there used to be news. I liked it. Are things any better in your area?