# The Great Freeze-Out (US weather) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 4, 2010, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665 "2010-01-04T19:37:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2010, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/121 "2010-01-09T22:55:50Z")
Even though it’s unseasonably cold here (London UK), I was shocked today to hear that Texas is even colder. Texas! > [@WarmNPrickly](#): > > Well, we’re talking about an 18 month old, so I don’t expect her to hang on to anything odd. I know she likes sleds, because I took her out in Chicago. It needs to be big enough that she wont just drop off of it. Luckily, I got some good advice from my co-worker-in-law (My wife’s coworkers wife), on a new sporting goods store that opened Sunday. I got the last one they had. Literally, I got the display. Yay again! > > Tomorrow, I will light the wood stove in the basement, and even at these temperatures, we will hardly use any propane at all. This is going to be a great winter. Plastic baby baths make great sleds. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/122 "2010-01-10T00:52:18Z")
> [@scifisam2009](#): > > Even though it’s unseasonably cold here (London UK), I was shocked today to hear that Texas is even colder. Texas! They’re having some kind of insane cold snap in the south. A friend of mine posted on her Facebook profile that it was 10 degrees in Memphis, where she lives. It’s been warmer than that here in Michigan. (It was well into the 20s here this afternoon, warm enough that I took my hat off while walking to the grocery store.) ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/123 "2010-01-10T00:57:30Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > They’re having some kind of insane cold snap in the south. A friend of mine posted on her Facebook profile that it was 10 degrees in Memphis, where she lives. It’s been warmer than that here in Michigan. (It was well into the 20s here this afternoon, warm enough that I took my hat off while walking to the grocery store.) I wanted one of our dogs to be able to play on ice. I took a big tarp, layed it out, put some boards under the edges and put a couple inches of water in it. There is just now ice forming on the surface after it taking all afternoon for that warm water to cool down. By morning we should have a nice small ice rink in the back yard. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/124 "2010-01-10T00:58:26Z")
The past couple of days, we haven’t been above 28 degrees here in central Mississippi. Our lows have been 19 and 17. That rain that I previously mentioned? Gone by the time the freakish cold snap got here. Roads are clear, thank God: I’d hate to imagine some of these people trying to drive on that. But no snow, no nothing. Just cold. It’s so pretty, though. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/125 "2010-01-10T01:02:18Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > I wanted one of our dogs to be able to play on ice. I took a big tarp, layed it out, put some boards under the edges and put a couple inches of water in it. > > There is just now ice forming on the surface after it taking all afternoon for that warm water to cool down. By morning we should have a nice small ice rink in the back yard. Where are you at? ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/126 "2010-01-10T01:15:33Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > Where are you at? sunny and currently not so warm florida. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/127 "2010-01-10T01:40:47Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > sunny and currently not so warm florida. It looks cold for[Florida.](http://www.weather.com/newscenter/nationalforecast/index.html) Is your agriculture in danger? I know y’all grow a lot of citrus that can’t freeze. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/128 "2010-01-10T02:39:05Z")
This is where I perform my yearly ritual of showing up in a thread like this one, and pointing people’s attention to my “location” field. If your airports are operating normally, our Tourism Office would like to welcome y’all. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/129 "2010-01-10T02:45:07Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > This is where I perform my yearly ritual of showing up in a thread like this one, and pointing people’s attention to my “location” field. Dude, you are asking to be beaten up and have your lunch money stolen. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Icerigger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icerigger/32/432_2.png) [@Icerigger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icerigger)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/130 "2010-01-10T03:13:06Z")
Current temp near Erie PA 3.5 F and falling. ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/131 "2010-01-10T03:28:23Z")
> [@scifisam2009](#): > > Plastic baby baths make great sleds. Ooh that sounds interesting. She loves her saucer though. There really aren’t any corners for her to bump herself on. She just sits in the middle and the sled does what it does. She giggles all the way down. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/132 "2010-01-10T04:46:09Z")
Yay! No one called me on forgetting the minus sign. Maybe nobody notices. Oh, wait… But, yeah. Arkansas is way too cold right now. Bleh. And, 'round here, it had to snow before the cold snap, get just above freezing to melt some snow, and then freeze on the roads. And, right after it started to warm up, we got sleet which the cars melted by driving over it, and then it got cold and froze it all again. Still, it’s better than the ice storm last year that left people without power for over a month. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/133 "2010-01-10T04:57:13Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Oh, wait… > > But, yeah. Arkansas is way too cold right now… And, 'round here, it had to snow before the cold snap, **Where the heck…** Ahem. Pardon me, I’m cold. Darn cold. Where are you? 19 damned degrees… ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/134 "2010-01-10T05:09:46Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Dude, you are asking to be beaten up and have your lunch money stolen. :dubious: Yeah, but then you’d be stuck with Puerto Rican money! Do you even know what kind of currency they have there? (bad joke I can never help but make; Puerto Rico’s currency is the American Dollar, since of course Puerto Rico has been a US Commonwealth since the Spanish American War. It still amuses me how many folks don’t think of that when I ask them about Puerto Rican money) Anyhow, today was much warmer in Kansas. It was still freezing cold, but the cold no longer _hurt_. I’d say that’s far worse than the mere presence of ice and snow hindering my ability to get around and necessitating me and my co-workers working extra hours, at night, or on weekends (Air Force bases don’t typically close due to the winter, the CE troops go forth and do battle against the winter foe with bulldozers and street sweepers and snow shovels and reflective belts to keep the airfield open. Probably about what they do at civvie airports.) Of course, it’s been pointed out that since I work in the Damage Control Center, where we have the TV, email, and a coffee machine, I don’t get to bitch about Snow Control. Did I mention the look of complete disbelief I got from my supervisor when I told him I didn’t know how to use de-icing salt when I was told to sweep the sidewalks? “Don’t they have snow where you come from?” “Sir, I’m from College Station, TX. Down there, ice is what we get from the freezer.” Seriously, de-icing salt is fucking magical. I love that stuff. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/135 "2010-01-10T05:23:57Z")
> [@Raguleader](#): > > Puerto Rico has been a US Commonwealth since the Spanish American War. Wait a minute, wait a minute. Didn’t the USA liberate PR in the Spanish American war, then invade and take it over? I seem to recall that some Puerto Rican nationalists were pissed off at us, and we had to shoot them or something. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/136 "2010-01-10T05:59:56Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Wait a minute, wait a minute. > Didn’t the USA liberate PR in the Spanish American war, then invade and take it over? I seem to recall that some Puerto Rican nationalists were pissed off at us, and we had to shoot them or something. A quick reading on Wiki says not so much of that, although there was a march by the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party that turned into a shooting masacre. There was an armed rebellion in the Philippines, and another one in Cuba I think (Cuba at the time was a _de jure_ republic, though the US government reserved the right to intervene in their affairs.) Anyhow, this is turning into a hi-jack, sorry! Is it snowing in Cuba? ETA: Nope. Not even close to snowing in Cuba. Low of 48 Fahrenheit in Havana for Sunday. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/137 "2010-01-10T13:26:05Z")
> [@Raguleader](#): > > Anyhow, today was much warmer in Kansas. It was still freezing cold, but the cold no longer _hurt_. I’d say that’s far worse than the mere presence of ice and snow hindering my ability to get around and necessitating me and my co-workers working extra hours, at night, or on weekends (Air Force bases don’t typically close due to the winter, the CE troops go forth and do battle against the winter foe with bulldozers and street sweepers and snow shovels and reflective belts to keep the airfield open. Probably about what they do at civvie airports.) > . \ he said [reflective belt](http://www.afblues.com/?p=1340) … ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/138 "2010-01-10T15:48:08Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > It looks cold for[Florida.](http://www.weather.com/newscenter/nationalforecast/index.html) Is your agriculture in danger? I know y’all grow a lot of citrus that can’t freeze. I am sure it is bad for em, though I really havent been paying much attention to the news. I am working to keep the new citrus trees in our yard alive. I’ve surrounded em with 55 gallon plasic barrels that I refill with fresh 70 degree well water every afternoon and cover with a tarp. Our commerical citrus guys are probably much more prepared and savy about surving cold snaps than they were decades ago. Other growers of other stuff may have a harder time of it. The dogs and cats were not impressed with my impromptu backyard ice rink. Least I got a few pics of dogs and cats on ice. ---
**Author:** ![NinetyWt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/cc9497/32.png) [@NinetyWt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinetyWt)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/139 "2010-01-10T16:06:41Z")
> [@Juliana](#): > > The past couple of days, we haven’t been above 28 degrees here in central Mississippi. Our lows have been 19 and 17. Hey Juliana, our pond is frozen over. I think it was 1989 or 90 the last time it was that cold in Jackson (I remember going on a trip with the kids and it was 17 degrees when we left). I got some great photos of the pond with a few snowflakes dusted on the ice: [link](http://s70.photobucket.com/albums/i84/NinetyWt/?action=view¤t=Snowflakes.jpg). I remember Memphis and North Miss. getting down in the 8-to-10 degree range during my childhood, so 10 degrees in Memphis gets a “meh” from me. ---
**Author:** ![Headrush042](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a5b964/32.png) [@Headrush042](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Headrush042)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2010, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665/140 "2010-01-10T17:16:16Z")
> [@Raguleader](#): > > Also, if your car is covered in snow, clear off as much of it as you can, including the top of the car (so you don’t trail clouds of snow behind you for the drivers following behind you). Gods, yes. The good people of Maryland have an incredibly annoying habit of turning my highway commute into an [Audiosurf obsctacle course](http://www.gamesradar.com/pc/audiosurf/screenshots/g-20080228162145956077/pic-80BE6ED3-20C9-40EC-93D7-58EEEEB13997). It’s particularly bad when it sleets, and I’m weaving around at 55 mph trying to avoid the _flying fucking sheets of ice_ that are peeling off the roofs of the cars in front of me (I could drive slower, but then I’d be a road obstacle for everyone else, who are doing 60+ :rolleyes:). Yeah, Maryland drivers are freakin stupid. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-freeze-out-us-weather/523665.md?page=8)