# Snowpocolypse!!



## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

Soo.. I live in the Greenville area in SC, and we are supposed to be getting the worst snow/ice storm we've had in long time! I've heard everything from 8-12"!! I am from TN and the last time I sawsnow like that I was in single digits of age! 

Is anyone else in this storm's path?

I'm kind of freaking out! We have plenty of food and whatnot but power outages are expected and that is NOT GOOD for our family. Not only do we have the hedgie, but I have two little boys, 2 dogs, a cat, rats, several reptiles and tarantulas! Praying and keeping my fingers crossed that our power stays on!


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## Aether (Nov 18, 2013)

We're supposed to be clipped by it tomorrow. I live in western Kentucky, and we haven't gotten much more than an inch of snow this year.

Do you have any hand warmers for back up heat for your animals, especially your hedgie? They sell them at Walmart in the sports/hunting section and at most sporting goods stores. If you still have time it might be worth the peace of mind to pick up a few. =]

I'll be praying for you all! Hope you stay warm and safe. ^_^


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## abbys (Oct 13, 2012)

Get a bunch of those Little Hottie hand warmers and make sure you have tons of blankets. Good luck!


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## lilsurfergrlsp (Dec 13, 2013)

Ahh! I really hope your power stays on! I'm up in northern MD and we're expected to get around 20 inches! I've stocked up on handwarmers, plus I have several water bottles put aside in case I need to make hot water bottles too. Luckily our power lines are underground, but it's still good to take a snowstorm seriously.

Good luck, keep us updated and hope you stay safe and warm


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

I have plenty of handwarmers, blankets, and even insulated boxes that he will fit in that are left over from reptile and tarantula shipments! I'd just rather not have to deal with it!


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

We actually used a couple handwarmers today as his health check at the vet was today, and it was snowing outside when we took him. I've had them for a couple of years but they are still working great! 

And lilsurfer- 20"?!!! Holy moly! Three inches is a big deal here, haha!


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## Annie&Tibbers (Apr 16, 2013)

Probably a bit late now, but here's a thread with tips on heating during blackouts.


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## bobandelisabeth (Dec 23, 2013)

We are with you in greenville! Sitting here watching the snow fall. Beautiful. Lots of blankets and if you have a gas fireplace - that will heat your house if the power goes out. Also, your body hear can always help with warming a hedgie! We will move dexter next to the fireplace if we lose power. We are praying we don't though! Storm will be over by tomorrow.


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

Our neighbor has a fireplace, and a food truck with a generator that has heat, haha! It is beautiful day, all the pups around here are loving it, save my rat terrier, haha! Our 4yo keeps asking to build a snowman but we are waiting for more snowfall.


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## susiemccormick (Oct 15, 2013)

Good Luck!!!


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## lilsurfergrlsp (Dec 13, 2013)

hlsiefken said:


> We actually used a couple handwarmers today as his health check at the vet was today, and it was snowing outside when we took him. I've had them for a couple of years but they are still working great!
> 
> And lilsurfer- 20"?!!! Holy moly! Three inches is a big deal here, haha!


Haha yeah, it's been a pretty brutal winter for everyone! Thankfully the weatherman only thinks we're going to get 8-12 inches now, but that's still a lot! MD gets weird weather.


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## sonichedghehogbreyer (Jul 23, 2013)

hlsiefken said:


> Soo.. I live in the Greenville area in SC, and we are supposed to be getting the worst snow/ice storm we've had in long time! I've heard everything from 8-12"!! I am from TN and the last time I sawsnow like that I was in single digits of age!
> 
> Is anyone else in this storm's path?
> 
> I'm kind of freaking out! We have plenty of food and whatnot but power outages are expected and that is NOT GOOD for our family. Not only do we have the hedgie, but I have two little boys, 2 dogs, a cat, rats, several reptiles and tarantulas! Praying and keeping my fingers crossed that our power stays on!


Uhh, not to be a prick or anything, but move to VT and then you can whine. We are expecting 6-12 in of snow. It was -15 F this morning.


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

sonichedghehogbreyer said:


> Uhh, not to be a prick or anything, but move to VT and then you can whine. We are expecting 6-12 in of snow. It was -15 F this morning.


Haha..

The reason it's a BIG deal here is.. it never happens. I seriously haven't seen weather like this since I was very small, and that was living in a neighboring state! Since we don't get weather like this, our DOT is just not as prepared as other states, and, several people, like myself, do not have experience in driving in weather like this. It ends up being a huge mess, and with all the ice in this storm, it weighs down power lines, causing mass power outages for long periods of time!

The governor declared a State of Emergency yesterday and urged everyone to stay off the roads!

It snowed most of the day and has been sleeting since for at least 3hrs now.. I still have power, thank goodness, but at least 40K ppl out towards Columbia are powerless!

I know that other states have weather like this all the time, but when you are not used to it (heck, we were playing in our water table in MARCH of last year!), it's quite unnerving.

I think most of us that have been experiencing any kind of winter weather can say that we are ready for it to be OVER!

Hoping everyone in the path of winter weather continues to stay SAFE!


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## Aether (Nov 18, 2013)

Totally unrelated to the snow but...

I LOVE YOUR SIGNATURE PICTURE!! Bingley is sooooooo cute!


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

I think it IS pretty rude for northern people to make fun of the southern areas for freaking out at snow. Yeah, we think it's usual, and we roll our eyes at the thought of 2-3 inches of snow, like in Georgia, but it IS a major issue for people who've never had it happen. Heck, we have accidents all over the freaking place up here in Michigan all winter long, and that's with people who ARE (or should be) used to driving in the snow. It takes practice to realize how to handle it, and the roads remain bad for quite a while if there's not enough plows to get people out. There's a lot of people that have their own plows (especially out in the country) up here. I'm sure that's not the case in southern states. All in all, it's a serious situation for those caught in it, and not really something to be scoffed at by anyone, no matter what their own experiences are.

Good luck to those caught in the storm, and please, stay safe. I hope no one loses power for long! Keep us updated on how you're all doing.


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## sonichedghehogbreyer (Jul 23, 2013)

I am just saying that *sighs.* I don't know. This was our weather this morning:


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

I'm not saying it doesn't suck. But I'm saying that frankly, even if it's not common for your area, it can't be that far from what's common. Our weather in Michigan's been colder this year than the last few years and it sucks, but we do know how to deal with it. We have the appropriate gear to deal with snow and cold, we have experience in driving in snow, etc. The fact that our weather sucks too doesn't discount that the weather in the south sucks just as much for those experiencing it. You can't compare the two regions - they're completely different in what weather they normally get and what people are prepared to deal with. So the people caught in the current storm have every right to whine and be worried about the conditions. There's likely to be plenty of property damage, injuries, and possibly deaths from the storm. Sounds like a perfectly good reason to "whine".


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

Aether said:


> Totally unrelated to the snow but...
> 
> I LOVE YOUR SIGNATURE PICTURE!! Bingley is sooooooo cute!


Why thank you! I think he is quite a doll.. Just adore him! It's almost time for his lights to go out and my second kiddo is almost asleep.. Then it's snuggle time.

Thanks, Lily. And right now it's not just three inches, our totals will but up to 12", and some areas will have at least an inch of ice. Being powerless in this has got to be miserable and all the residential roads are terrible. We thankfully have a 4wheel drive vehicle in case of an emergency but it's old and I swear the heat is going out because it barely even got warm yesterday driving a total of 40 minutes and 15mins to preheat! There's also a large homeless population here called Tent City.. I can't even imagine what it's like for them. They live under a bridge but the wind is blowing the snow and sleet all over the place!

Sonic, it maybe warmer here but our totals should end up being about the same..


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Hlsiefken, do you have any local churches or shelters in the area? If you're concerned, perhaps you could call up some places (or look online) and see if there's been any emergency shelters declared for the homeless. If you can't find anything, might be worth a call to some local churches or the town hall or something to see if someone can get something set up. It really should be done, but it's possible no one's thought about it with the unusual conditions...But I hope so.


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

There was talk on the news of some Red Cross shelters in different schools and churches but I don't know if they actually sent anyone out there! :/


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Oh jeeze...fingers crossed that they got the word out. No one should be out in the conditions everyone's been having this winter, especially storms like this. :?


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## Annie&Tibbers (Apr 16, 2013)

This is getting totally off-topic for hedgehogs, but you know I can't help spreading science:

1. Every year since 1976 has been above-average temperatures. Anyone 37 or younger has never experienced an average year. This is even with a running average, where every hot year redefines "average" as slightly warmer than it used to be. But, due to shifting baselines, we've collectively forgotten what our weather used to be like, so "average" now feels extreme.

2. In 1988, Hansen testimony made global warming a news topic. It was the hottest year on record, which helped make global warming plausible to non-scientists. Now 1988 isn't even in the Top 20 hottest years, and with the constantly shifting-baselines bias, those hot years don't seem weird at all.

3. In the US, the polar vortex gave you a taste of what your weather used to be, and still probably hasn't gotten as cold and snowy as an average winter should be.

Welcome to the new normal.

More info:
XKCD comic on shifting baselines
NOAA 2013 global weather analysis
Earth Observatory 2013 global weather analysis

And, in terms of disasters & risk-reduction: snow when you aren't used to it and don't have the infrastructure to deal with it can be catastrophic. Even a mild earthquake in Tennessee would be far more devastating than in California just because the buildings aren't built to seismic code, while Oregon homes would be torn apart by Florida's storm-season. It's unfeasible & expensive to prepare for everything, so places pick the hazards that are most common for them. When something comes along that's outside that realm, it's potentially devastating.


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## Aether (Nov 18, 2013)

Yes! XKCD! Right on.


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## lilsurfergrlsp (Dec 13, 2013)

Lilysmommy said:


> I'm not saying it doesn't suck. But I'm saying that frankly, even if it's not common for your area, it can't be that far from what's common. Our weather in Michigan's been colder this year than the last few years and it sucks, but we do know how to deal with it. We have the appropriate gear to deal with snow and cold, we have experience in driving in snow, etc. The fact that our weather sucks too doesn't discount that the weather in the south sucks just as much for those experiencing it. You can't compare the two regions - they're completely different in what weather they normally get and what people are prepared to deal with. So the people caught in the current storm have every right to whine and be worried about the conditions. There's likely to be plenty of property damage, injuries, and possibly deaths from the storm. Sounds like a perfectly good reason to "whine".


Well said! In northern MD we get moderate snow all the time (this is the fourth time we've had a snowfall of over four inches this year alone), so I totally understand why people in the south are worrying about the storm. It's scary when you're not used to it. And it always bugs me when people up north think that our snow isn't enough to worry about. That's like taking people from the east coast and putting them in Tornado alley, and then making fun of them for being scared of the tornadoes!

Anyway, rant's over, hope everyone (and their hedgies) are staying warm!


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

Well we made it with power the whole time.. even got out some on Thursday as the roads melted but most of the city was still shut down..

Speaking of earthquakes.. we had one Friday night! Ack! Wasn't awful but it was FREAKY!

And now we have warm weather! CRAZINESS. The new "normal" equals all kinds of messed up! Lol!


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