Big Dump '08: A New Record

Well, I just thought I'd give you all an update. I read this on Yahoo News today:

By NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS, Associated Press Writer Nicholas K. Geranios, Associated Press Writer – Tue Dec 30, 2:16 pm ET

SPOKANE, Wash. –

...The center of a snow-laden supermarket roof in north Spokane collapsed Monday evening, prompting the evacuation of that store and adjacent businesses. A fire official said only one minor injury was reported....
The collapses came as Spokane set a monthly record for snowfall, at 59.7 inches, after 8.3 inches were recorded in the 24-hour period ending at 4 p.m. Monday, said National Weather Service meteorologist Ellie Kelch. That's more snow than the area receives in a typical winter.
The city's previous record of 56.9 inches was set in January 1950. Snowfall records in the area have been kept since 1893, Kelch said.

I would just like to remind you that 59.7 inches is actually 0.3 inches shy of 5 feet of snow! Oh, and the grocery store that collapsed, that's where I get my groceries and, if I would have returned my movie on time, I would have been at the time of the collapse. The roof over my gym's pool has also collapsed to add to the growing statistic. So far it sounds like nobody has been seriously hurt by the cave-ins. The city has actually called in the National Gaurd to help out a bit too.

There is supposed to be another storm coming in tonight.

Big Dump '08: State of Emergency Declared

As I sit here, the snow is still coming down outside. Now, it’s not like it has been going completely non-stop for over a week now. There was about a minute on Wednesday where the snow stopped falling. However, there was also a period of darkness meaning that this brief respite could have come from all the planes bound for Seattle and Portland converging over Spokane en masse. “It’s OK!” SeaTac officials assure holiday travelers, “once that guy out on the tarmac is done with the snow shovel, we’ll lend it to the Portland Airport.”



Our Mayer declared yesterday that we are officially in a state of emergency, meaning that we should be getting a 17.3 billion dollar bailout soon. This is much better for her public image than last year when she declared, “It’s just snow, folks. We’re doing the best we can.” Now, I’m sure she was just saying what anybody in her position would really want to say to all the people who are convinced the city employees are refusing, just to spite them, to use their magic wands on the streets. Perhaps, however, it would have been taken more understandably if it hadn’t come on the heels of a meeting to outline Spokane’s plan to fight Global Warming.



We may be in a state of emergency, however, as frustrating as it can be, I’m not sure I could pick a better emergency to be in. What other state of emergency gives you days off school for sledding, beautiful artwork of snow and icicles, continuous good hair days, time to snuggle up with hot cocoa and a book without feeling like you should be out doing something, and the chance for all those life lessons… really kiddo, you don’t want to stick your tongue on that pole…

**Deanna**

Some Wintery Fun

Well, it snowed all day yesterday, but thank goodness it was a very light and beautiful snow. The kind of snow they have on TV when they want the scene to be romantic. There were just a handful of large fluffy snowflakes at a time and they fell slowly like feathers. I decided I must take a walk in this and I assure you I wasn't disappointed. It was absolutely beautiful out there even if I did just about freeze my legs off. ;)

In the evening David and I went to see Christmas lights and it was kind of cool to see so many shine from beneath a pile of snow. I think the icicles hanging off the roofs were just as fun to see too. Occasionally there would be some lights behind a wall of icicles and that was so crazy looking!

After the lights we headed to The Davenport Hotel to see the gingerbread houses. Every year chef and architect teams will team up to compete in the gingerbread house display to raise money for Christ's Kitchen.
I had to get a picture of the lobby itself because it is always so incredible at Christmas.

This year the theme seemed to be storybook characters. Here is one that I thought was cute because I've always been a fan of Madeline.

I also liked the detail on this one... and the roof was made of those yummy cheap cookies I like so much!

And here is the grand champion!

*Deanna*

Big Dump '08: The Escape

Well, as of right now, we are buried under about 8 more inches of snow since yesterday. I keep looking at the national news expecting some attention, but the Midwest and East are getting all the attention. This is a section from the AP this morning:

"...the National Weather Service said Bismarck was on track to break a 1916 record for snowfall in December. The city has had 19 inches of snow so far this month, and with 4 more expected Monday night, the record of 21.7 inches could be shattered."

What?! 19 inches for the month and they get all the attention? We had 19 in 24 hours! Oh, and they could shatter their record by 1.3 inches? What would you call the 6 inch obliteration of our 24 hour record? Finally, some good, clean, non-scandalous news for Spokane and the AP flies right by us like all the 4 wheel drives out there who don't realize there's anybody else on the road... but I digress...

This weekend did give us a respite. Saturday was a clear blue sky and people were out in droves. I'm not exactly sure what a drove is, but if it means every main arterial was bumper to bumper and each mall parkade was completely full, then there were definately droves on Saturday. Enter David on his white steed (steed in this case meaning Pontiac). He came over with the most special gift; a snow shovel! Then, he whisked me away (whisked in this case meaning inched through traffic) to dinner. We went to Bangcok Thai which is off the beaten track, but right along the river.

It was warm and quiet and best of all, it was not my apartment! Thai iced tea is one of my new favorite discoveries. It is a smoky flavored tea with sweet coconut milk in it. Yummy yum...

Big Dump '08: Digging Out... Before the Next Round

Well, we are finally having a reprieve from all the snow. Here are some photos that I have taken, with the exception of the overhang above. That is a friend's roof. Snow + negative degree temperatures + wind = what you see in that photo. I would just like to remind you that 4 days ago we had virtually no snow. Many have heard that we broke the record at 19 inches within a 24 hour period, but it did not stop at 19 inches. Many people have started calling it Snowmageddon. I still prefer to call it Big Dump '08.
I couldn't get into work again today, so I have been stuck in my apartment again. As I sit at the computer I watch the squirrels dealing with the weather. At one point this squirrel tried to venture out into the deep (three times deeper than him at least) and seemed a bit confused. Then, without warning he dove head first into the white stuff. I started cracking up because he completely disappeared. Then after about 10 seconds, out pops his head with a little apple in his mouth. I had to cheer for the tenacious little guy.
I decided to venture outside and take a walk to the store to not only get some exercise, but to just be completely sure they were out of snow shovels... I know, no chance. It was quite a walk. Some of the sidewalks were shoveled down to only an inch or two of snow, but to get to them you had to walk over a three foot berm. This was OK with me because you just turn into a kid when you get in snow that deep. At one point I started walking through the non plowed, knee deep snow and, my oh my, I found a replacement for the gym. If the sidewalk wasn't shoveled and you didn't want to get buns of steel, you would end up walking on the road. This was OK I guess because there's hardly any traffic and it's all slow. I do, however want to give kudos to the snow plowers because for having 20+ inches of snow, the streets looked pretty darn good!

On my way back from the store I caught up to a gal who was carrying grocery bags and didn't have gloves on. I helped her carry her bags and found out she just moved here from Jordan a couple of months ago! What a welcome to Spokane! I assured her that once the snow goes away it is beautiful here. We're supposed to get another storm before this weekend is over. I wouldn't be all that disappointed is the weather man was completely wrong this time. I suppose the next one shouldn't be this bad though. This last one just made itself at home and hovered over us like those unwanted Christmas guests who just won't go.

Well, that's my update on Big Dump '08 for now. I'm going to go finish a Christmas present for my mom so I can get it in the mail. Our family Christmas plans were definitely adjusted for the weather, so we're all trying to get things in the mail in time for Christmas.

**Deanna**

Big Dump '08: Condition Red

I'm sitting here typing as I watch my neighbor shovel the snow off the roof. The former record for snowfall is 13 inches in a 24 hour period. We just got 19 inches in a 24 hour period. The city calls this Condition Red. Anytime you are in a state of red it is not good. Basically it means that the plows won't get to my street until some time in April. Yesterday I drove to work with some light snow blowing around and by the time I went home at 5:00, I was beginning to wonder if I'd even make it. I did make it home yesterday evening with some fancy maneuvering, but I haven't left since. Pretty much everything is closed that can be, and half the drivers that braved the roads are stuck, with many of the cars just abandoned in the road under a mound of the still falling snow. Since the snow is up to the average adults knees there is also quite a few people just walking down main arterials just because there is nowhere else to walk.
These photos are right out my back door. I marked the inches in increments of 10 so you can see that it is just below the 20 mark. I also stepped into it up to my knee. Most of my friends are measuring the depth with their children. I'm seeing photos on Facebook of children lost in the fluffy whiteness with nothing but huge grins from purple lips visible. For the most part, and I'm guessing it's because this is our first major snow, everybody is taking this in good spirits. The kids, of course, are in their perfect vision of winter while most of the adults have become kids again for the moment.

The weather is on TV non-stop now and I just got word that one of the major malls has just completely closed. There is a ticker running across the bottom of the screen just listing everything that has closed today... it might be easier to list what is open. The surprising thing is that they haven't given this storm a dramatic name yet. I decided to adopt the one the two radio DJs called it this morning; Big Dump '08.

I had a fluffy squirrel bound by my sliding glass door and as I have been curled up in sweaters and blankets inside, I felt a little guilty. I had a sunflower left over from my dad's garden, so I tossed it out for him. I'm a sucker.

Well, it is still snowing so I'll have to keep you all updated. It sounds like we'll just keep getting more. The good news is that the Gonzaga game is still on for tonight! Also, if I run out of eggnog, I'm in walking distance of a grocery store.

*Deanna*