# It looks all weird outside! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 19, 2010, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690 "2010-02-19T21:26:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**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 19, 2010, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/1 "2010-02-19T21:26:37Z")
When I left work, I noticed that the sky was a strange color. Instead of the normal gray, it was this weird blue color. There were white things in it, and a yellow thing that was too bright to look at. The light was brighter than daylight usually is, too. Then I looked down at the ground, and saw these weird dark patches. One of them even followed me home from work, staying on the ground near me no matter how I tried to get away from it. I slammed the door when I came inside- hopefully the dark patch didn’t get into the house! I wonder if the cats would chase it if it did, and if it would hurt them if they caught it. Is this a sign of the end of the world? ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2010, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/2 "2010-02-19T21:31:14Z")
The bright thing in the sky is a UFO. I posted about it last year. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2010, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/3 "2010-02-19T21:32:33Z")
The bright thing! It burned! Good thing I had some dark glasses I could change into. They were left over from the previous Age. ---
**Author:** ![Methyl\_Ethyl\_Death](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Methyl\_Ethyl\_Death](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Methyl_Ethyl_Death)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2010, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/4 "2010-02-19T21:50:00Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > When I left work, I noticed that the sky was a strange color. Instead of the normal gray, it was this weird blue color. There were white things in it, and a yellow thing that was too bright to look at. The light was brighter than daylight usually is, too. > > Then I looked down at the ground, and saw these weird dark patches. One of them even followed me home from work, staying on the ground near me no matter how I tried to get away from it. I slammed the door when I came inside- hopefully the dark patch didn’t get into the house! I wonder if the cats would chase it if it did, and if it would hurt them if they caught it. > > Is this a sign of the end of the world? I saw the exact same thing two days ago!! I’m scared… MOMMY!!! ---
**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 19, 2010, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/5 "2010-02-19T22:48:40Z")
You want to know what the weirdest thing was? There wasn’t any snow falling! Can you imagine that? ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2010, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/6 "2010-02-19T22:54:10Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > The bright thing in the sky is a UFO. I posted about it last year. Bah, Yellow ball in the sky. UFO, double bah. My top scientists says it is simply all the yellow mercury vapor lights from Asia being focused through atmospheric methane hemisphere vortex refraction to give an illusion of bright and yellow in a blue sky. In reality there is no yellow, there is no blue and there is no warm, there is only grey and cold and so shall it be forevermore. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2010, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/7 "2010-02-19T23:01:21Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > Is this a sign of the end of the world? It’s a sign you’ve been magically transported to Los Angeles. It’s like that here all the time. 😃 ---
**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 20, 2010, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/8 "2010-02-20T00:27:13Z")
How do either the UFO or the focused yellow mercury vapor lights make the snow stop falling? Is there anything we can do to encourage them to come back? ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2010, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/9 "2010-02-20T00:58:45Z")
OMG, I saw all these things in NE Ohio today, too! Did it come here from Pittsburgh? Or did it come to you from Cleveland? ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2010, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/10 "2010-02-20T01:05:18Z")
The ice and snow are going away here, and there were actually little puddles on the ground… :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2010, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/11 "2010-02-20T01:15:38Z")
It’s a trick. Punxatawney Phil said there would be six more weeks of winter and if you can’t trust a weather-predicting rodent then this world is just one crazy mixed-up cuckoo bananas place after all. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2010, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/12 "2010-02-20T02:41:31Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > When I left work, I noticed that the sky was a strange color. Instead of the normal gray, it was this weird blue color. There were white things in it, and a yellow thing that was too bright to look at. The light was brighter than daylight usually is, too. > > Then I looked down at the ground, and saw these weird dark patches. One of them even followed me home from work, staying on the ground near me no matter how I tried to get away from it. I slammed the door when I came inside- hopefully the dark patch didn’t get into the house! I wonder if the cats would chase it if it did, and if it would hurt them if they caught it. > > Is this a sign of the end of the world? No ------- a sign that I’ll have six more weeks of ice hanging from my gutters, yes. The end of the world, no. Unless the gutters break and then all bets are off. ---
**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 20, 2010, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/13 "2010-02-20T02:56:33Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > The ice and snow are going away here, and there were actually little puddles on the ground… :eek: Puddles? Puddles of what? Are you saying that the white upper layer of the soil melts? ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2010, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/14 "2010-02-20T03:02:19Z")
Not only does it melt, but sometimes strange greenish-brown blade-like structures can be seen through the white layer…this only seems to happen when the yellow burny-thing has been out multiple times, though. I’ve been assured that the yellow burny-thing will be gone by Sunday, though…my eyes can’t take much more. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2010, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/15 "2010-02-20T04:11:36Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > Puddles? Puddles of what? Are you saying that the white upper layer of the soil melts? I don’t know! I didn’t touch it, I was afraid! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2010, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/16 "2010-02-20T04:39:21Z")
I always thought the Yellow Burny Thing (YBT) was called the DayStar… I’ve been offering it burnt animal sacrifices\* to see if it will go away, but it only seems to encourage it, then I tried yelling at it to scare it off, but people only looked at me like I was crazy or something… - well, okay, hamburgers, really, and I’ve been eating them, but it’s the same thing, right? ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2010, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/17 "2010-02-20T05:51:21Z")
I’m very confused and scared by all this. After looking outside, I quickly drew the blinds closed and spent the rest of the day in bed, under the cover, waiting for night. I hope things get back to normal tomorrow. ---
**Author:** ![tekella\_mockingbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/47e85d/32.png) [@tekella\_mockingbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tekella_mockingbird)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2010, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/18 "2010-02-20T06:45:51Z")
it burns, my preciouss! ---
**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 23, 2010, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/19 "2010-02-23T23:34:13Z")
> [@kittenblue](#): > > Not only does it melt, but sometimes strange greenish-brown blade-like structures can be seen through the white layer…this only seems to happen when the yellow burny-thing has been out multiple times, though. It has spread from Cleveland to Pittsburgh! There was a huge hole in the snow in my front yard, and the blade-like structures were there! I couldn’t see what color they were, because it was dark. Is this some kind of fungus that’s going to eat my house? ---
**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 24, 2010, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690/20 "2010-02-24T00:40:34Z")
Well, the sky-gray is back, and the white soil covering near me was renewed last night, so things are back to normal. It was, however, abnormally warm, and hard to see at a distance. It was like some of the sky-gray had come down to ground level. Is this going to happen a lot? Is this the climate change people were talking about? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-looks-all-weird-outside/529690.md?page=2)