# Holy shit it's snowing! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 2, 2009, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100 "2009-02-02T09:24:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2009, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/21 "2009-02-02T19:19:35Z")
How did you guys manage to get ahold of a good old-fashioned Canadian snowstorm? šŸ˜• What that BBC article described is what we get four or five times each winter, even here in Southern Ontario, except that you are warmer. And it slows us down too, but then the next day everything is normal. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2009, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/22 "2009-02-02T19:39:17Z")
:: whisper whisper :: I have just been informed by one of my minions that he was ā€˜aiming for Australia and missedā€™. Sorry. :: icy pause :: The minion in question has been terminated. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2009, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/23 "2009-02-02T20:48:03Z")
We spent the day making a snowman, sledding on tea-trays and bin-bags and having snowball fights, surrounded by hundreds of people doing the same. In Victoria Park there were snowmen every few feet, organised snowball fights, strangers smiling at each other, and a general atmosphere of uninhibited joy. Iā€™m glad we donā€™t bother spending tons of money on having measures in place that would prevent us from enjoying the only snowy day in London weā€™ve had for twenty years. A city full of happy people for a day is a much better outcome. The only downer is people from snowy places acting all superior. Yes, London has difficulty handling this much snow. It does, however, handle several million commuters every day. Would your snowy areas be able to manage that if it happened unexpectedly for one day? ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2009, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/24 "2009-02-02T20:56:48Z")
And Big Ben and Westminster look spectacular in the snow! [Snow!](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/default.stm) Go to ā€œIn pictures: winter weatherā€ and enjoy. We are supposed to get 8 inches here some time soon [insert dirty joke here]. ---
**Author:** ![Lo-Slung\_Denim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f6c823/32.png) [@Lo-Slung\_Denim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lo-Slung_Denim)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2009, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/25 "2009-02-02T20:58:56Z")
The more I hear from fellow London dopers, the more I think I got a bum deal. I was walking down the road about half five this evening, smoking a cigarette and a girl asked me for one. I said no, because I donā€™t give 'em out to anyone let alone those who donā€™t look old enough to buy their own, so she threw a snowball at me, into my handbag, leaving me to fish it out before all my stuff got ruined. I hope she fell in to one of the stinking slush puddles. The only person I saw smiling was a woman on skis - brilliant - as if she was trekking the Arctic. That did bring a hint of a smile to my lips. ---
**Author:** ![Future\_Londonite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9dc877/32.png) [@Future\_Londonite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Future_Londonite)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2009, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/26 "2009-02-02T21:08:32Z")
Was up in Manchester for the weekend - hardly anything on the ground this morning. Knew things were amiss when I found out my planned train wasnā€™t running. Caught the next one which then started to run late after each station we stopped at. As I made my south the snow got thicker and thicker and I had trod through the slush getting to St Pancrass. Surprisingly enough First Capital Connect was up and running (normally a regular rainstorm knocks them out) and I made it homeā€¦It stopped snowing here (Herts) around 6pm. 80% of the stores never opened their doors and M&S closed at 5, forcing me to do my shopping at Tesco Express šŸ˜ƒ It seems the busses are running but I talked to boss-lady and will be working from home tomorrow ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2009, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/27 "2009-02-02T21:10:25Z")
> [@eleanorigby](#): > > And Big Ben and Westminster look spectacular in the snow! > > [Snow!](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/default.stm) > > Go to ā€œIn pictures: winter weatherā€ and enjoy. They keep saying ā€œthe worst snow in 18 years.ā€ Best snow, surely? ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2009, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/28 "2009-02-02T21:20:19Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > How did you guys manage to get ahold of a good old-fashioned Canadian snowstorm? > > :: whisper whisper :: > > I have just been informed by one of my minions that he was ā€˜aiming for Australia and missedā€™. Sorry. > > :: icy pause :: > > The minion in question has been terminated. You shouldnā€™t have done that. That wasnā€™t your minion did that. That was me. **Illuminatiprimus** provoked me, over in [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=503824). ---
**Author:** ![Illuminatiprimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/illuminatiprimus/32/11520_2.png) [@Illuminatiprimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Illuminatiprimus)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2009, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/29 "2009-02-02T22:44:21Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > You shouldnā€™t have done that. That wasnā€™t your minion did that. That was me. > > **Illuminatiprimus** provoked me, over in [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=503824). Fuck it - I thought I could moon you with impunity but when I did so you gave me an unexpected day off work. Damn you! _Shakes fist in a very half hearted fashion_ ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2009, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/30 "2009-02-02T22:57:46Z")
> [@Illuminatiprimus](#): > > Oh yes, thatā€™s right, I should walk the 15 miles from my house to work. In the snow. Both way. Why not? Itā€™s how I used to get to school. And it was uphill. Both ways. ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/31 "2009-02-03T00:35:08Z")
The video screenshot on [this page](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/topics/weather/4432426/Snow-Schools-airports-motorways-and-railways-all-closed.html) is absolutely fantastic! Very Dickensian. Hell, Iā€™d probably buy that picture. On the plus side, now you Brits can finally get into those pittings about people who only clear off a small portion of their car windows! ---
**Author:** ![George\_Kaplin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3e96dc/32.png) [@George\_Kaplin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/George_Kaplin)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/32 "2009-02-03T00:40:12Z")
From the amateur dictionary of George Kaplin, First edition. **aā‹…dulthood** [uh- **duhlt** , **ad** -uhlt] ā€“adjective 1. having attained full size and strength; grown up; mature: an adult person, animal, or plant. 2. of, pertaining to, or befitting adults. 3. The time in oneā€™s life when one realises that snow is actually a total pain in the arse. ---
**Author:** ![Alpine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpine/32/17813_2.png) [@Alpine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpine)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/33 "2009-02-03T00:47:41Z")
> [@George\_Kaplin](#): > > 1. The time in oneā€™s life when one realises that snow is actually a total pain in the arse. If thatā€™s the case, I ainā€™t gonna grow up! ---
**Author:** ![PastAllReason](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f07891/32.png) [@PastAllReason](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastAllReason)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/34 "2009-02-03T02:06:29Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > How did you guys manage to get ahold of a good old-fashioned Canadian snowstorm? šŸ˜• > > What that BBC article described is what we get four or five times each winter, even here in Southern Ontario, except that you are warmer. And it slows us down too, but then the next day everything is normal. Yanno, really, anyone in Toronto has no business criticizing how anywhere else deals with snowā€¦or are we going to have to bring up the fact that at least in London they didnā€™t call in the army? šŸ˜‰ ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/35 "2009-02-03T02:38:07Z")
> [@interface2x](#): > > The video screenshot on [this page](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/topics/weather/4432426/Snow-Schools-airports-motorways-and-railways-all-closed.html) is absolutely fantastic! Very Dickensian. Hell, Iā€™d probably buy that picture. That pic with Big Ben is fantastic. If you click on readerā€™s picsā€“there is a delightful pic of a baby girl named Clara who is viewing her very first snow with wonder. Fantastic. ---
**Author:** ![Tracy\_Lord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@Tracy\_Lord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tracy_Lord)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/36 "2009-02-03T13:31:26Z")
About six of us made it into the office yesterday (theoretically our press day), and around noon we said ā€œscrew it, it ainā€™t happeningā€ and went to the pub for a few pints and to Green Park to build snowmen, in that order. [My favourite creation of the day](http://www.flickr.com/photos/34671966@N03/3248309566/) (not ours, sadly, but that of another office-looking group!). ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/37 "2009-02-03T13:50:28Z")
> [@Illuminatiprimus](#): > > Fuck it - I thought I could moon you with impunity but when I did so you gave me an unexpected day off work. Damn you! > > _Shakes fist in a very half hearted fashion_ I should re-think my revenge for mooning me. Now I think Iā€™m being mooned by [most of the population of California](http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/01/29/state/n143218S63.DTL), plus every school kid in places where they close schools for snow. ---
**Author:** ![Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bcef8e/32.png) [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Petrobey_Mavromihalis)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/38 "2009-02-03T14:36:37Z")
As an ex Londoner Iā€™m actually a bit jealous. Nevermind, Iā€™ll just have to put up with the streaming sunshine and 19 degrees centigrade temperature. Ah, well. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/39 "2009-02-03T15:19:29Z")
My second day home from work, as the half-hourly trains promised by the Southeastern website this morning proved to be non-existent (seriously - the snow on the rails was pristine and someone had built a snowman on the platform. Do not tell me you are running a half-hourly service from this station.) I was going to take the bus in but my boss told me not to bother as virtually nobody else was in, and she emailed me some busywork to do at home instead. I went for a walk earlier and the neighbourhood is littered with snowpeople (and a few snowcats). Fan-bloody-tastic. ---
**Author:** ![slaphead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9bcb4/32.png) [@slaphead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slaphead)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100/40 "2009-02-03T16:35:06Z")
> [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](#): > > Four inches?!? Are you shittinā€™ me? Four inches of snow and the south-east shuts down? Eh, itā€™s not the quantity, itā€™s the unexpectedness. People trying to blow us up, beer at Ā£3 per pint, creaking-at-the-seams transport system, Faggots in Gravy on the menu, foxes stealing our shoes off the patio, these are all things that we deal with every day. Snow, not so much. How does Southern Ontario cope with a worst-in-20-years snow event? I bet itā€™s a clusterfuck. There was a considerable amount of holiday spirit around yesterday, along with a great deal of grousing about how 3 flakes of snow cause everything to go to hell in a handbasket. I went to the train station to find that all services were suspended, so I had a chat with a nice bloke from Egypt who was loving the whole thing. ā€œIn my country we have nothing like this!!ā€. Then I went home, taking a few photos on the way, and had a few beers while trying to keep up with work on my blackberry. Most ironic was all the people coming back from their holidays skiing in the more frozen parts of Europe, only to find that either their flights were cancelled or that they were stranded at the airport because the whole transport system had collapsed. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-shit-its-snowing/484100.md?page=1)