Not only was it about six degrees this morning in Bend, but we woke up to blowing snow and snow drifts in our backyard and cul-de-sac. Fun! You can see the ground in some spots, others are buried in drifts up to six inches deep.
On the radio they claimed it was an Arctic front that has moved in. Stellar.
For anyone keeping track of these things, the snow they keep warning us about (last I heard, the advisory was from 3pm today until something like 5am tomorrow morning) has started in earnest at about 1:30pm, here in Downtown Bend.
Today was one of those days when you wake up, blink, and there’s eight inches of snow on the ground.
That’s pretty rare for Bend. (Lapine and Sunriver, not so much. But for Bend and points east and north, rare.)
It’s still coming down. The snow advisory is still on, through at least seven o’clock this evening… eight to 14 inches total is the latest prediction, though since we’re already at eight, that seems like a lame prediction.
So, I dug out the driveway this morning, and finally left for work about nine. The office is about half-staffed right now, I imagine people will be trickling away as the day goes on. My wife tried to take our youngest to preschool (our oldest is home, schools are closed) and got stuck in the snow—the main roads are plowed and sanded, but the neighborhoods and side roads are still unattended.
Surprisingly, I had more trouble driving to work the other day when it first snowed than today; I suppose it could be because there’s less traffic on the roads, or that I left later.
It’ll be an interesting day. Except for work, this would’ve been a nice day to hole up at home and watch the snow. And play in it.
Snow! It’s coming down pretty good, as I’m sure all the Bendites know by now—though I think Rhys will be especially pleased. It’s coming down pretty good; I’m downtown, and looking out the window I’m seeing an inch or so, I think. Driving is pretty awful right now; normally I go home for lunch but I may be staying in the office for lunch for the next few days. (I already went home today; that’s how I know it’s awful.)
And I know it’s technically not the first snow of the season, but to my mind, it’s the first significant snow of the season, and that counts more. :)
Just looked out the window here at work and saw that it’s snowing. As far as I know, this marks the first snow of the season for Bend.
Over the New Year holiday we ended up with even more snow—I measured 13 inches total today, and I’m sure when these photos were taken (on Thursday, the first) it was deeper than that (before it melted down).
This is looking into my front yard from the driveway (it’s diagonal, though, so the house you see is the neighbor’s). The two mounds are the conifer shrubbery entirely buried, which my brother suggested putting hats on and calling them snowmen.
(Click the image to view the 640×480 image.)
On the left is the patio table on the deck again, giving the pictorial update on the snow depth. I’ve included the older patio table picture on the right from my previous post, so you can see the comparison.
(Click the images for the 640×480 versions.)
Winter’s coming early this year; it snowed in Bend today, about three weeks early. Ordinarily Central Oregon doesn’t get its first snow until late November, and that melts off and it doesn’t snow again until after Christmas. (When I say snow, I mean a significant amount that covers everything under a white blanket, not a light dusting that’s gone before the end of the day.)
At least that’s the pattern I’ve noticed over the past four years or so.
I hate driving in the snow, especially the first snow of the season. Traffic jams up, because everybody forgot how to drive on slick roads and panics, and cars creep along at 15 miles per hour or slower. Worse, many people living here are transplants from elsewhere that doesn’t have the snowy conditions we get here, so they don’t have a clue. Not that I’m the best winter driver, but damn.
We carved pumpkins tonight. I always get a big kick out of pumpkin carving, especially now that the kids can start appreciating it more. I outdid myself this year; I carved my pumpkin (a big one!) with the likeness of Charlie Brown.
