A winter weather warning.

[MadHound]

There is a one helluva storm coming off the Great Plains today, and going east.

I live in Mid Missouri, and today, it is all about the ice. We are getting a nice thorough coating of ice this morning, and it is supposed to continue, on and off, throughout the day. Out here where storms of all sorts are common, we build our power line infrastructure to withstand a good deal of abuse, so I'm not expecting power to go out, but further east, some of you might have some problems.

Tonight and throughout the day tomorrow is when the snow comes. This morning the forecasters started out at six to eight inches, now they are calling for up to eighteen inches. We apparently are in the perfect position, with a warm moist front colliding with a cold northern front, to get the perfect storm. Again, this is all supposed to move eastward.

Finally, to really kick this fun into gear, the winds are supposed to start kicking up tonight, tomorrow and Wednesday, blowing snow, causing blizzard conditions, etc. Once that is all over with on Wednesday, the temperatures are going to drop into negative digits.

For those of you further east, now is the time to stock up and get prepared. For those of you here in the Midwest, hunker down, and if you don't have to go anywhere, don't. I went out early this morning, right when the first of the freezing rain hit, and already cars were spinning into the ditch. Whatever you do, stay safe, and if you can, stay home. The one day's worth of pay you might miss isn't worth killing yourself for.

Take care, good luck, and stay safe.

[kentuck]

1. It hit the Springs a couple of hours ago...

and is now blowing snow, lightly. It is expected to be much worse by nightfall.

[liberal N proud]

2. Our headquarters in St. Louis has already planned for Tuesday to be closed

We get it on Tuesday Night into Wednesday.

Stay Safe!

[pintobean]

3. Freezing rain in St. Louis

It started around 10:00 and we have a thin coat of ice on everything. Good luck to all.

K/R

typo

[MadHound]

5. Yeah, that's about right,

We got freezing rain starting at 8:00 this morning, and it is still going on. St. Louis traffic is going to be a nightmare this evening, I can just imagine.

[pintobean]

8. Local radio is reporting accidents already.

The brine that they sprayed on the roads has washed away.

[MadHound]

10. Hey, at least you had pre-treat for the morning commute,

Out here in Mid Mo, they didn't pre-treat a damn thing, the ice just hit and stuck.

[kevinbgoode]

31. I'm in west central Illinois, and we are expecting up to 18" of snow

as well. . .though it is just hard for me to believe. So far, it is just cloudy and hazy, with a forecast of maybe a bit of freezing drizzle mixed with snow - we are supposedly just above the freezing rain prediction belt.

However, they are expecting over a foot of snow in about a 12-15 hour period tomorrow afternoon thru Wednesday morning, with winds gusting to 40 mph - some local stations say this could be a recordbreaking snowfall for our area. There are warnings up already for the counties west and south of us, but so far I'm in the "watch" area still, though they are expected to upgrade that to a warning by this evening.

I stocked up enough for a few days late last night - after the gym - but I predict a run on things tonight and tomorrow morning if the watch is upgraded.

Everyone stay safe - and don't venture out once this hits.

[rwork]

4. Really dread it.

Here in Eastern Okla. we have had 3 ice storms since 2000 that caused outages. The first one lasted 16 days.

Still ok here, sun is shining, but I know it is on the way.

[MadHound]

6. One of the reasons I got a generator, ice storms.

That and the fact that rural electric is sometimes dicey.

[Angry Dragon]

7. Give me the snow ............ hate ice storms

[sufrommich]

26. Me too. Snow doesn't usually cause power outages. nt

[bobbolink]

9. Are homeless people being provided for and protected?

[MadHound]

13. I know that locally, in Columbia Mo and surrounding area,

There are a number of organizations that are opening up shelters today, for the duration of the storm. Ameren UE, churches, schools, etc. in addition to the normal homeless shelters.

[bobbolink]

15. I hope its enough. Its not like people in this country really care.

I'm not looking forward to -20 in my car tonight.

Not that it matters.

[MadHound]

18. It should be,

Columbia has always been a pretty decent town when it comes to taking care of the homeless and abused. Depending on where you went you might get a sermon, but you would also get a hot meal and a place inside to sleep.

A tip for you, get some of those hand and foot warmers that they sell for hunters. They will last up to six hours and will keep your feet and hands from getting frostbitten. I used them to great effect when I was on the street.

Take care of yourself.

[bobbolink]

22. Those "warmers" get so hot they burn.

Even tried to figure out how to put them between layers of sox. Just too uncomfortable, unfortunately.

A hot water bottle maybe....

Someone gave me an electric blanket, but there is no way to run it in my car. :( Maybe you could figure out how to make it a windup blanket, like my flashlight? :)

[MadHound]

24. Not windup,

But with an adapter, you should be able to run it out of the cigarette lighter in your car. Granted, you would have to probably turn your car on every few hours to charge the battery, but hey:shrug: it's better than freezing.

[bobbolink]

27. nope, I looked into that. The only adapter coming close would be almost $90!

And he said my car probably couldn't handle it, even running all the time.

Like I said..a windup electric blanket. ^_^

Seriously, all of this really sux.

[Arkansas Granny]

23. Our local Salvation Army has had announcements on tv all winter about

their cold weather shelters being opened anytime nighttime temps are due to drop below 39F. I don't know about the other faith-based shelters in our area.

[jonnyblitz]

11. yep. I am up here in CT waiting for our weekly 2 feet of snow.

I will be out later today "widening" the 7 foot snow banks aligning my driveway in my sad attempt to make room for more!

on edit: i exaggerate a bit on the amount but it sure seems like that much!

[cali]

14. you guys have really been getting slammed.

stay warm and safe through this one.

[jonnyblitz]

17. Vermont isn't getting slammed? I don't think my parents

north of Bangor, ME are getting it as badly either! thanks for the wishs! :hi:

[MadHound]

16. Oh, I hear you.

This has been a winter from my youth, where the snow comes in December and stays on the ground until March, with regular inches added on a weekly basis.

We did have four days with temperatures in the forties, but that still wasn't enough to melt off the snow pack on the ground.

Good luck to you, and perhaps we should consider travel by sleigh:shrug:

[jonnyblitz]

19. I remember not being able to get out the front door when

I was a kid in Northern Maine in the 70's but since i have lived IN CT (10 years or so) i have never seen it like THIS. Most winters since i have been here would have snow but it would eventually melt and the ground would often be bare most of the winter . I assumed it was because I am somewhat near the ocean (near New London, Mystic, Stonington)

I seriously don't know how NYC deals with it.

[NutmegYankee]

21. No kidding! nt

[jonnyblitz]

29. damn, we are practically neighbors. I just checked your

profile for the hell of it! I do believe the "transfer station" (dump) i use is in your town! I live next to Mohegan Sun!:hi:

[NutmegYankee]

30. Well hello neighbor!

Technically, it's in your town too. ;-)

I notice that most folks in this town associate with the villages more than the town. That said, I fully understand your frustration on the snow fall. My driveway has snow piles that are higher than me. It's sick!

Here's the estimates as of today for us: http://www.erh.noaa.gov/okx/stormtotalprecip.php

[Cid_B]

12. Probably pretty close to each other...

Just heard 10-12" of snow expected after midnight...

[Arkansas Granny]

20. Our weather is supposed to start turning nasty tomorrow. The rain starts

tonight, but the temps won't be cold enough to cause any trouble, yet. I'm not looking forward to it. This area of the country is ill equipped to handle snow and ice and most drivers don't have any experience driving on it.

[Mimosa]

25. I feel the cold coming towards ATL

Darnit, it was WARM this weekend. *BRRR*

French Onion soup is called for. Get your supplies on hand.

The Best French Onion Soup Recipe is actually EASY

The Cook's Illustrated recipe uses ready made broths. Your only job is slicing and cooking the onions. And you must use Gruyere, although Swiss Emmentaller cheese is a good substitute.



The Best French Onion Soup


Serves 6

Notes:

For the best flavor, make the soup a day or 2 in advance. Alternatively, the onions can be prepared through step 1, cooled in the pot, and refrigerated for up to 3 days before proceeding with the recipe.
Ingredients:

Soup

* 3 tablespoons unsalted butter , cut into 3 pieces
* 6 large yellow onions (about 4 pounds), halved and cut pole to pole into 1/4-inch-thick slices (Make sure you get Yellow)
* Table salt
* 2 cups water, plus extra for deglazing
* 1/2 cup dry sherry
* 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth (They recommend Swanson Certified Organic Free Range Chicken Broth )
* 2 cups beef broth (They recommend Pacific Beef Broth)
* 6 sprigs fresh thyme , tied with kitchen twine
* 1 bay leaf
* Ground black pepper

Cheese Croutons

* 1 small baguette , cut into 1/2-inch slices
* 8 ounces shredded Gruyère cheese (about 2 1/2 cups)

Directions:

For the soup:

1. Adjust the oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Generously spray the inside of a heavy-bottomed large (at least 7-quart) Dutch oven with a nonstick cooking spray. Place the butter in the pot and add the onions and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, covered, for 1 hour (the onions will be moist and slightly reduced in volume). Remove the pot from the oven and stir the onions, scraping the bottom and sides of the pot. Return the pot to the oven with the lid slightly ajar and continue to cook until the onions are very soft and golden brown, 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours longer, stirring the onions and scraping bottom and sides of pot after 1 hour.
3. Carefully remove pot from oven and place over medium-high heat. Using oven mitts to handle pot, cook onions, stirring frequently and scraping bottom and sides of pot, until the liquid evaporates and the onions brown, 15 to 20 minutes, reducing the heat to medium if the onions are browning too quickly. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the pot bottom is coated with a dark crust, roughly 6 to 8 minutes, adjusting the heat as necessary. (Scrape any fond that collects on spoon back into onions.)
4. Stir in 1/4 cup water, scraping the pot bottom to loosen crust, and cook until water evaporates and pot bottom has formed another dark crust, 6 to 8 minutes. Repeat process of deglazing 2 or 3 more times, until onions are very dark brown. Stir in the sherry and cook, stirring frequently, until the sherry evaporates, about 5 minutes.
5. Stir in the broths, 2 cups of water, thyme, bay leaf, and 1/2 teaspoon salt, scraping up any final bits of browned crust on bottom and sides of pot.
6. Increase heat to high and bring to simmer. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove and discard herbs, then season with salt and pepper.

For the croutons:

1. While the soup simmers, arrange the baguette slices in single layer on baking sheet and bake in a 400-degree oven until the bread is dry, crisp, and golden at edges, about 10 minutes. Set aside.

To serve:

1. Adjust oven rack 6 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Set individual broiler-safe crocks on baking sheet and fill each with about 1 3/4 cups soup. Top each bowl with 1 or 2 baguette slices (do not overlap slices) and sprinkle evenly with Gruyère. Broil until cheese is melted and bubbly around edges, 3 to 5 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.

[shireen]

28. we're expecting lots of ice in Maryland

according to my fav. meteorologist Justin Berk.

Edited to add: stay safe MadHound and everyone else in the path of this storm!