Don't you love when "meteorologists" (i.e., newscasters who have been taught how to read weather reports off teleprompters) tell us that an approaching storm is "bringing" or "bringing with it" x number of inches of snow or rain.
The storm that first came this way the other day was supposed to turn into a blizzard in the wee hours of yesterday morning, "bringing with it" two, or even three, feet of snow.
What the storm--Winter Storm Juno, the first winter storm to have a name-- actually did was to drop about six inches of snow. That's more than the average storm in this area, but still nothing that would bring the city to a standstill--and certainly a lot less than was forecast.
I think this bike brought more snow with it than the storm brought:
What's to do on a day like this?
The NYC Mayor and NYS Governor, in essence, declared a curfew as of 2300 hours (11pm) last night. Oh, you could still go outside. You just couldn't drive or even ride a bike(!). The only things with wheels allowed on the roads were emergency vehicles.
Hmm...If I'd hopped on my bike to rescue a cat from the cold, snow and wind, would that have been considered an emergency?
Then again, I doubt even the most feral cat is out in the elements today. He or she has probably found an overhang or something else that will block at least some of the wind and snow.
While the storm didn't leave nearly as much snow as was forecast, the ban on vehicles remained in effect until a little while ago. So, most people stayed home from work if they could. And schools were closed. So there still aren't very many people outside. Perhaps I'll go out for a bit, just to experience the serenity. Maybe I'll make a snow angel. Who says I'm too old for such things?
Better yet, I'll make a snow bicycle:
The creator of this one, Clifford Burke, assures us that it's "made from 100 percent pure New Mexican snow."
He sounds like someone I'd like to meet. He says that bicycles have been an important part of his life: "They have taken me to places in America, and in my own inner world, I never imagined I would travel to". Yes! Even into the snow and back.
Well, it's official: The northeastern USA--which, of course, includes the home of yours truly--is about to get hit with an "historic" blizzard.
Being the New Yorker that I am, I greet such forecasts with an attitude (if that isn't a New York thing, I don't know what is) of "Oh, yeah? I'll believe it when I see it." Yes, even after Superstorm Sandy, I still react that way.
But I'm becoming more inclined to believe the forecast. The flurries that started fluttering down early this morning are growing thicker and heavier, and the wind is blowing them around. Maybe we really will get the kind of storm that usually strikes only in places like Buffalo.
Whenever a winter storm is on its way, I think about ways of attaching a snow plow to the front of a bike. I think the connection is the most difficult problem: It would need to be strong enough yet not burdensomely heavy. After that, it would just be a matter of finding the right gear ratio.
I've never acted on the idea because, well, I think about it only when a big snowstorm comes along. I mean, who thinks about snowplows in the summer? All right, engineers and people who work in public safety might. And I am not either.
Apparently, someone thought about my idea for even longer than I ever did--and acted on it. Bob Beechy took an adult tricycle and rigged up the plow with various used bike parts, plastic pipe and "other miscellaneous pieces".
