Yes, I can relate to that, @Joanna Newton . We live in Alabama now, but having grown up in northern Idaho and living most of my life in either Washington or Idaho; sometimes I feel like the misplaced “duck out of water” here, too. I miss the Pacific Northwest, but like that we do not have to deal with the extreme cold and snow here. I think that you get a lot of snow in Iowa, don’t you ?
As an aside @Joanna Newton, my wife is from north central Iowa, and when I first visited her home in the winter, It was -20 F. for two solid weeks, and I said to myself, "Why would anyone choose to live in a place that is this cold for this long?" Now we live in a place that can be -40 F. for two weeks or more , and -20 F. for a month at a time. Ironic, huh?
Not that I ever wanted to live there, but I've always been fascinated by crazy cold climates. So what motivated you to live there?
I had long wanted to try living in Alaska, but didn't want to compete for the scarcity of single women so I waited until I was married a number of years to an adventurous woman. I was offered several jobs here and they would transport family and household goods. First job was in the bush, then I transferred to the "road system" after three years and have been here since. I probably would have considered moving somewhere warmer after our kids moved out, but wife decided she had given up her friend networks several times in the past and wasn't going to do it in retirement, so I am here for the duration. I have adjusted and have the equipment to deal with the cold, so.... There is now a good sense of security being isolated somewhat from the craziness in the lower 48, although Anchorage is quite a zoo. I avoid that place whenever possible.
We had to turn our furnace on last night for the first time this season. It was in the 40s and will be again tonight. Daytime still in the high 70's, though.
@Beth Gallagher No heat yet! This AM 57 degrees, bright sun, mid-afternoon 90 degrees. This is about normal for the coming month. No clouds, low humidity, 30+ degree spread low to high. Frank
I mostly turn the heat up (to 74 or so) to knock the chill off in the mornings then cut it off. It warms up fast during the day; right now it's already 70 and absolutely gorgeous outside.
Nope. I'm from NY, and in comparison Iowa doesn't know what snow is!!! LOL It's the wind chills and ice that I have trouble with.
It’s overcast today and a pleasant 12 Celsius which translates to around 51 Fahrenheit and set to stay that way for a few days.
Rainy now and the ground is thawing. #1 son and family were down south fishing and have been stranded by a landslide. Some areas have received up to 14 inches of rain and the mountainsides and roads are washing out. Last we heard they are in line waiting to go through a narrow one-lane passage around the landslide. DOT hopes to have the road open fully by the weekend if nothing more washes out. We had windstorms over the weekend and there were power outages everywhere, but none affecting us. Transformers blew in several places and wife could hear the nearer ones exploding. A neighbor's greenhouse burned and he had three fire engines in his driveway at 3 AM. I don't know why he was heating it at this time of year unless he is growing cannabis. Weather is supposed to remain above "normal" until Friday. Snow is a possibility for tonight but probably won't happen.