I think it's awful that it takes the deaths of hundreds of people to inspire governments to produce legislation that protects ordinary citizens from the greed and stupidity of businesses and corporations. I think that fire codes in the US were in part brought on by the Triangle Shirtwaist fire, when hundreds of women died for the usual reasons: the company had blockaded the entrances lest the women steal or waste valuable work time.
Is it normal to have that much snow in early December (thanks for the metric)?
You're welcome! Inches to centimeters is such an easy translation that there's no excuse for me not to translate our backwards measurements to a more universally understood term. ;)
As for whether (weather? :^P) it's normal ... yes and no. Lately, no, because it's been so warm. It was in the 70s F (about 21C) last Christmas, for example, which is really, really odd, looking across the records for Maryland over time. I remember having "white Thanksgivings" when I was a kid, with American Thanksgiving the fourth Thursday in November. So in terms of what I grew up with, yes, this amount of snow is normal. It seemed, when I was a kid, that we'd always get a small storm before (or on!) Christmas. But the way it's been recently, with the cold and snow not coming until January and then gone by March? Definitely doesn't fit that pattern. But I'm pleased to have it this way. Even though I'm miserable in the cold, this feels right, the way Maryland autumn/winter should be.
As for extreme weather ... well, we have the saying here that if you don't like the weather, wait five minutes. :) We could have a whole January below freezing and a whole July over 35C with 100% humidity. We get blizzards, hurricanes, tornadoes ... not a lot, but we do get them. I guess it's the luck of the draw, being between the cold, cold north and the hot, humid south!
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Is it normal to have that much snow in early December (thanks for the metric)?
You're welcome! Inches to centimeters is such an easy translation that there's no excuse for me not to translate our backwards measurements to a more universally understood term. ;)
As for whether (weather? :^P) it's normal ... yes and no. Lately, no, because it's been so warm. It was in the 70s F (about 21C) last Christmas, for example, which is really, really odd, looking across the records for Maryland over time. I remember having "white Thanksgivings" when I was a kid, with American Thanksgiving the fourth Thursday in November. So in terms of what I grew up with, yes, this amount of snow is normal. It seemed, when I was a kid, that we'd always get a small storm before (or on!) Christmas. But the way it's been recently, with the cold and snow not coming until January and then gone by March? Definitely doesn't fit that pattern. But I'm pleased to have it this way. Even though I'm miserable in the cold, this feels right, the way Maryland autumn/winter should be.
As for extreme weather ... well, we have the saying here that if you don't like the weather, wait five minutes. :) We could have a whole January below freezing and a whole July over 35C with 100% humidity. We get blizzards, hurricanes, tornadoes ... not a lot, but we do get them. I guess it's the luck of the draw, being between the cold, cold north and the hot, humid south!