19 November 2016

I Am Determined

not to let national politics intrude on my all-too-brief weekend.

I didn't want to see this morning's headlines, but they're everywhere. So this is me, ignoring them.
Or trying to, anyway.

It's another cold morning (15° F. here, and 8° along the river valley, below), and AccuHunch says these temps are here to stay for awhile. Last night, today's forecast was for partly cloudy skies. This morning, they say 1" to 3" of snow is likely. That's a dusting, by Alaskan standards, and reflects mainly on the prognosticators' inability to see more than 15 minutes into the future.

But it could be worse. I spent two years on Adak in the Aleutian Islands, home to some of the world's most volatile weather systems. It's where the warm waters of the Japanese Current in the north Pacific meet the cold water and Arctic air of the Bering Sea. (For the record, Adak is some 1350 air miles southwest of here, and 650 miles from the nearest mainland. It's almost centered on the southernmost point of the arc that the chain forms.)

Unstable? Oh my, yes. We had precipitation 270 days out of the year, and sunlight was rather rare. Three-foot snowfalls were common in winter, too, and usually melted into the mud-and-tundra after three days. Then it would repeat.

All winter long.

A typical winter's day
Looking in the same general direction, in summer. Summer lasts only 90 days out there.

So three inches of snow is rather a minor thing. Just enough to make the roads slick without providing the traction of a deeper snowfall. But no matter; we only have one brief outing planned for today, anyway.

So y'all stay safe, wherever you are, and thanks for stopping by.

9 comments:

Sandy Livesay said...

Rev. Paul,

Great pictures!!! Like you, we're avoiding politics this weekend.
Stay warm, and safe up there :-)

Rev. Paul said...

Thanks, Sandy. Politics just ain't on the menu today. :)

Borepatch said...

Dang, it's cold there. But even here in MD it's suddenly turning winter - temperature dropping 20 degrees in 3 hours and a forecast for flurries.

Rev. Paul said...

A 20-degree drop makes a BIG difference in comfort. Stay warm down there.

Old NFO said...

Took off from there in bright sunshine one day, landed 12 hours later in the middle of a ##%^ blizzard!!! Sigh... At least Adak was better than Shemya...

Rob said...

Oh there is so much more to talk about other then the cry babies. Winter has moved in now until 4th of July weekend here in MN. You can keep the bitter cold thank you...

Rev. Paul said...

NFO - that's how we used to console ourselves, too. I'm not sure it was a LOT better, but ... you know, any port in a storm. :)

Rob - it's cold, but will get a lot colder before spring eventually arrives.

Chickenmom said...

Yesterday it was 80 on the back deck - it's snowing now and the wind is howling!

Rev. Paul said...

Chickenmom, that's a significant change. Stay warm!