# You Embarrass Me: Winter in Virginia **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 19, 2009, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884 "2009-12-19T20:43:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![tr0psn4j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@tr0psn4j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tr0psn4j)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2009, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/41 "2009-12-20T18:25:13Z")
> [@tr0psn4j](#): > > I could just imagine what it would be like if it rains here, in L.A. SNOWS! Shit Curlcoat’s response makes a lot more sense now. It took four responses to my post for me to catch it too. ☹ Let’s pretend I said “I could just imagine what it would be like if it snows here in L.A.” ---
**Author:** ![Uncle\_Brother\_Walker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f08c70/32.png) [@Uncle\_Brother\_Walker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncle_Brother_Walker)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2009, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/42 "2009-12-20T19:17:36Z")
As a southerner, even I know how to drive in the snow. Now that I’m in MD, I find it both amusing and disgusting about how unprepared these folks are for snow. I mean, c’mon - it happens _every freaking year_, right? Sure, declare an emergency. My friends were pissed because around 2 PM they closed the beer stores. _Beer stores???_ I don’t know who is better suited to handle snow, hail, or dark of night - the post office or beer drinkers. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2009, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/43 "2009-12-20T19:29:09Z")
> [@Chessic\_Sense](#): > > Yinz raided all the grocery stores and took absolutely everything. So, that’s how it’s spelled. I always imagined it as “you’uns” when I was in western PA. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2009, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/44 "2009-12-20T20:46:11Z")
> [@boytyperanma](#): > > Hell in the DC metro area rain is an issue for the drivers. But what kind of rain are we talking about? I’ve lived in New England all my life, so even though I hate driving in the snow, I can cope with it. One of the scariest drives I’ve ever had was during a rainstorm, not snow: it was last November, and we’d already gotten a few inches of snow on the ground, but it had been clear for days. They predicted heavy rain over night, but it was only three in the afternoon, so we thought going out would be fine. It started to rain not long after we reached our destination fifteen miles away. An hour and a half later, and it was pitch black out, already flooding on side roads, and the snow being hit by the warmer rain made for an eerie fog that reduced visability even more. The scary part was that the fog was so thick that it was hard to see if the road ahead was flooded. I ended up turning off that road and back-tracking a few miles to a main route because the fog and lack of streetlights made it so hard to see if it was safe near the areas that typically flood. Now, if we’re talking about just a normal rain in DC causing panic, remind me never to drive there. ---
**Author:** ![Marlitharn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/779978/32.png) [@Marlitharn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marlitharn)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2009, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/45 "2009-12-20T21:10:22Z")
I’ve been a 911 dispatcher for 8 years now, and it never fails to baffle me that the second that very first snowflake hits blacktop, 50 cars slide off into the ditch. It’s probably quantum or something. People lose their damn _minds_, I’m telling you. ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/46 "2009-12-21T01:39:31Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > So, that’s how it’s spelled. I always imagined it as “you’uns” when I was in western PA. Depends on how technical you want to be. If you’re an average person, it’s yinz. If you’re, say, a linguist, it’s you’ns or some variant of that. However, we’re often called yinzers, which would be impossible to spell with your version- you’unser? Younser? Nah. Gotta go with yinz-yinzer. > [@elfkin477](#): > > Now, if we’re talking about just a normal rain in DC causing panic, remind me never to drive there. You don’t need rain to be the reason not to drive in DC. Just don’t do it, period. But it’s true. The rain wreaks havoc here too. I think it’s for two reasons: 1) There’s a lot less street light, I’ve noticed, than other cities. I have no idea why, but it’s like they just decided that headlights would suffice. So visibility sucks. 2) Everyone is aggravated enough by the traffic that it’s insanely aggressive out there. For example, 1.5 car lengths is considered enough of a gap in which to change lanes. Add rain and everyone thinks they’re better at driving than they really are. It’s either drive dangerously or admit that your commute is going to take twice as long as it normally does. ---
**Author:** ![curlcoat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea5d25/32.png) [@curlcoat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curlcoat)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/47 "2009-12-21T05:12:06Z")
> [@tr0psn4j](#): > > SNOWS! > > Shit Curlcoat’s response makes a lot more sense now. It took four responses to my post for me to catch it too. ☹ > > Let’s pretend I said “I could just imagine what it would be like if it snows here in L.A.” Ah! Yes, it does make more sense that way - guess you didn’t miss anything last week after all. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/48 "2009-12-21T05:36:02Z")
> [@Marlitharn](#): > > I’ve been a 911 dispatcher for 8 years now, and it never fails to baffle me that the second that very first snowflake hits blacktop, 50 cars slide off into the ditch. It’s probably quantum or something. People lose their damn _minds_, I’m telling you. I have to admit, that happens every fall here, too, and everyone here knows damned well that it’s going to get cold and snow (if you don’t know and you moved here, you need to research better). November 27th this year (my birthday, by the way), we had about six inches of snow, and it took Jim five hours to get home (yeah, my birthday party was cancelled). That _shouldn’t_ happen here, but it does. ---
**Author:** ![JXJohns](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jxjohns/32/469_2.png) [@JXJohns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JXJohns)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/49 "2009-12-21T06:06:46Z")
> [@Hello\_Again](#): > > Of course you were always prepared because heavy snowfall always happens there. Do you really think you would make yearly preparations for a snow event that happens about once every 15 years? People should be prepared for any event that could disrupt their everyday life for a few days. Hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, floods, snow, fire, etc. Since so many people don’t, there is always a panic, regardless of the calamity approaching. ---
**Author:** ![Tinkertoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f19dbf/32.png) [@Tinkertoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tinkertoy)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/50 "2009-12-21T07:19:53Z")
> [@JXJohns](#): > > People should be prepared for any event that could disrupt their everyday life for a few days. Hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, floods, snow, fire, etc. Since so many people don’t, there is always a panic, regardless of the calamity approaching. Exactly! One of the only things I kept from the religion I long ago left is to be prepared for emergencies. When the company my husband worked for closed unexpectedly, a couple weeks after I became disabled, we were okay food wise because of our storage. And given that we have been evacuated from our home 5 times in the last 19 years our 72 hr. packs have come in handy also. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/51 "2009-12-21T13:32:52Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > I love these threads - panic in the streets and mass hysteria over a snowstorm is always entertaining. 😃 (Yeah, I know, people not prepared for it/don’t have systems in place etc. - it was -30ºC here for two weeks already this year. Throw me a frickin’ bone.) And how many people cried about not being able to get around in it? ---
**Author:** ![Jolly\_Roger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/91b2a8/32.png) [@Jolly\_Roger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jolly_Roger)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/52 "2009-12-21T13:41:35Z")
Years ago when I lived in Virginia it snowed about maybe 3 or 4 inches and people went nuts. I thought it was both hilarious and sad. People litterally cleared the bread aisle of the grocery store. There was a guy on the news buying 10 snow shovels saying he had to be prepared…crazy. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/53 "2009-12-21T14:07:36Z")
I love this time of year. For years, people living in the South have watched Northerners panic & move their families South in search of a better life. Every winter, we get to watch those same Northerners laugh at us for panicking and heading to the grocery store in search of a loaf of bread and a gallon of milk. The only thing that confuses us is your smug look of superiority for figuring out late in life what we’ve known since birth. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/54 "2009-12-21T14:44:40Z")
> [@The\_Tooth](#): > > And how many people cried about not being able to get around in it? Well, a number were pretty PO’ed at the lack of response from municipal authorities in getting the streets clear of snow. Let’s face it, your average passenger car handles a few inches of snow just fine; a few feet of snow (as we had) proves problematic. Didn’t stop people from trying to get around, though they weren’t always successful. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/55 "2009-12-21T15:18:39Z")
> [@Uncle\_Brother\_Walker](#): > > Now that I’m in MD, I find it both amusing and disgusting about how unprepared these folks are for snow. I mean, c’mon - it happens _every freaking year_, right? Well, no, actually. A blizzard of this magnitude happens about once a decade. In my experience of 54 years living in Maryland, typical Mid-Atlantic snows are: 1. Brief flurries that leave less than an inch or two. (Several times a year.) 2. Heavy, wet snow accumulating 4-6 inches, followed by warm weather that melts it all in a day or two. (2-3 times a year.) Our first snowfall of the year was like this. 3. Heavy snow of 6 inches or more that stays around for more than a few days. (0-1 time a year.) 4. Blizzards like this, which are quite rare. There have been years with only type 1 or 2 snowfalls, and few of them. So people here don’t get much experience in coping with snow, and go equally crazy whether it’s a type 1 or type 4. (All of this applies to Maryland east of Hagerstown, or so. Out in Western Maryland, where the ski resorts are, they get lots more snow, and I presume they are more used to dealing with it.) ---
**Author:** ![LurkMeister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/56 "2009-12-21T15:22:24Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > I love this time of year. For years, people living in the South have watched Northerners panic & move their families South in search of a better life. Every winter, we get to watch those same Northerners laugh at us for panicking and heading to the grocery store in search of a loaf of bread and a gallon of milk. > > The only thing that confuses us is your smug look of superiority for figuring out late in life what we’ve known since birth. I had moved to NC from Chicago three years ago, and the first winter I was here I was greatly amused by the newscasts warning people to stay home unless they absolutely had to go out, and the long lists of school closings and delayed openings when it looked like we might get an inch of snow. When I mentioned this to a friend who lived here I got a stern talking-to about how dangerous the roads here got. Also, I was asked whether I had stocked up on bread and milk when I heard about the impending storm. However, I did have the pleasure of her company this weekend because when she had left work Friday it was already snowing. She didn’t want to risk the long drive home under such perilous conditions so she came to my place instead. Then she didn’t want to risk driving home Saturday because of the danger of “black ice” (this despite the fact that the little bit of snow that had fallen here was already mostly gone) so she stayed over until it had warmed up enough on Sunday that she felt it was safe to drive. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/57 "2009-12-21T15:31:41Z")
> [@The\_Tooth](#): > > And how many people cried about not being able to get around in it? I spent several years living in the Upper Midwest and am used to driving in winter conditions, but in that part of the country they plow and salt/chemically treat the damn streets in a timely manner. I live in Virginia now, and this is the third day I’ve been trapped at home. Yes, I’ve heard people around here complain about an inch of snow on the streets, but people have been complaining these past couple of days because the roads actually are blocked. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/58 "2009-12-21T15:35:40Z")
> [@Jolly\_Roger](#): > > Years ago when I lived in Virginia it snowed about maybe 3 or 4 inches and people went nuts. I thought it was both hilarious and sad. People litterally cleared the bread aisle of the grocery store. There was a guy on the news buying 10 snow shovels saying he had to be prepared…crazy. Maybe he’s preparing to peddle them off at twice their value. ---
**Author:** ![AmericanMaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@AmericanMaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AmericanMaid)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/59 "2009-12-21T16:23:49Z")
> [@DianaG](#): > > People go crazy in towns that DO often get big storms. I live in Boston, and I went out yesterday to get some last minute Christmas shopping done. I figured the stores would be mobbed, but they really weren’t. Except the grocery store. The grocery store was, to quote Buffy, “more like a riot than a Ralph’s”. All I needed was some supplies for dinner, some milk, and some cat food, and I was there for nearly an hour. What the hell, people? This is not the frontier, we’re not going to be snowed in for a month. Hell, we’re all gonna have to get up and go into work on Monday. What with the 20lb bags of rice and carts full of bottled water? Hah! I was going to post something similar about MA for snowstorms. There is a local blog that has a “[French Toast Alert System](http://www.universalhub.com/french-toast)” as a joke regarding the raiding of milk, eggs, and bread right before a snow storm. I also describe MA snow drivers as “dodging snowflakes”. I live on the South Shore and we got about 13 inches of light fluffy stuff - which made shoveling a breeze. The streets were pretty deserted yesterday. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884/60 "2009-12-21T17:41:31Z")
> [@AmericanMaid](#): > > Hah! I was going to post something similar about MA for snowstorms. There is a local blog that has a “[French Toast Alert System](http://www.universalhub.com/french-toast)” as a joke regarding the raiding of milk, eggs, and bread right before a snow storm. I also describe MA snow drivers as “dodging snowflakes”. > > I live on the South Shore and we got about 13 inches of light fluffy stuff - which made shoveling a breeze. The streets were pretty deserted yesterday. Don’t forget the toilet paper. Apparently, after the French Toast, they plan on shitting themselves. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-embarrass-me-winter-in-virginia/521884.md?page=4)