And it snowed a couple of inches last night. It’s the not-quite yearly snow that sticks around through the morning, wreaking havoc on the commute and closes schools.
It’s also the day when people with SUVs spin out because they don’t realize that four wheel drive doesn’t actually help you stop any sooner. Tomorrow, the conversation at many work places will turn to “why people in Seattle can’t drive in the snow,” a conversation that always omits our hilly terrain and slushy snow.
My recommendation to new Seattle residents: live on Capitol Hill or in Queen Anne. The slight increase in elevation from sea level means more snow and the steep streets are impassable when we get a half inch, so can play hooky and enjoy the snow days guilt-free.
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Galen-
Being that I grew up on Capitol Hill (22nd & E. Prospect) I can remember many late night neighborhood kid competitions sledding down (10-15 people side by side) Highland Drive. Some people actually brought their Dad’s torches and wax to make their sleds faster. Lots of arguing and fighting about who had the best and fasted sled. Those were the days up on the hill!
Yesterday was insane. My kids got out of school around 3pm and there was a shooting (fatality) due to Police vs. car stealing thug at the main intersection of their school road. Add to the mix the snowing up in Everett and they would not let the kids out of school until about 6pm– due to the excitement and blocking the main entrance.
What made matters worse. I had to pick up a family member from the airport who is in the Navy and stationed at NAS Whidbey. It took me a little over 6 hours to go from Snohomish to Sea-Tac airport and back home.
When was this snow forcast? Forgive me for being in a training all day yesterday without nat’l weather RSS feeds to my pocket pc, but I didn’t hear anything about 1 to 7 inches forecast for Wednesday afternoon.
What makes snow kryptonite for us here in Seattle is the unpredictability of when and where it will fall along with the hills AND the potential for fast forming ice….along with all the other things Galen mentioned.
Tim, I hope you had a full tank of gas! Growing up in South Everett, we use to take buckets of water and pour them down hills and then slide down on our feet. Future snowboarders in the making.
Hi Galen,
I made it all the way to Bellevue today from Edmonds to teach a group of Realtors. Yay! We still have lots of icy side-streets up here.
Be safe everyone 🙂
Seattle can be a mess when it snows… But the mess is tame compared to when it snows in Malibu! LOL!