Laura N. '09 | February 14, 2007
"Rain is evil"
I hate New England.
No really, I do.
Ask anyone who's had the misfortune to be around me the last few weeks. All I do is complain about the weather. Granted, the weather is not all that different in New Jersey. Except that it's a little bit warmer. And a lot more humid. Not nearly as much of this static electricity buildup nonsense that's been driving me crazy lately. Plus, at home, I never have to walk 15 minutes to work/the grocery store/class in the cold. So basically every day I've been complaining. "I hate the winter. And layers. And bulky winter coats. And static electricity. It has no right being this cold out if it's not going to snow."
And then. Then! Lo and behold, it snowed!
It was very....low quality snow. But it snowed.
And then is started to hail. And then it started to sleet. And then it started to rain.
And then, because the snow on the grass is just snow-like enough to keep from falling apart completely, it creates perfect little dams. And then the rain is free to collect everywhere that people have trampled the increasingly low quality snow into slush.
And then the guys whose job it is to shovel snow don't really have snow left to shovel, but they shovel the slush anyway.
Oh, and by slush, this is what I mean:
Edit: Ruth pointed this out in her comment below- it may be hard to tell from the picture, but that's a minimum of two inches of ice water (much deeper in places), just sitting there waiting for you to have to wade through it.
Arg! I am so unhappy about the weather! Also, it's apparently going to freeze tonight, which means we'll be greeted with several inches of solid ice covering every artificial surface when we wake up in the morning.
That makes me even more unhappy. So guys, if you live anywhere in the area of this crazy "winter" (and I use that term loosely....*glowers at the rain*) storm, be careful out there!
Coming soon (like really, really soon): the end of IAP (2.670!) and the beginning of spring classes! Whoo-hoo!
P.S. Also coming soon: Class of '09 Ring Premiere is this Friday and I am really excited! Expect pictures and stuff! =) (In the meantime, you can read Melis's entry about last year's Ring Premiere to get an idea of what I'm talking about. There are some great links from her entry for more info.)
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Hey, I live in Vancouver, WA. You should see the rain WE get!!
Posted by: T on February 14, 2007 09:25 PM
If you can't tell from the second picture, that's four inches of standing ice water.
After four years in Boston, today was the first time I microwaved my socks between classes.
Very low quality snow.
Posted by: Ruth on February 14, 2007 09:29 PM
I LOVE RAIN....... YEAH, HERE IT'S RAINING, AND RAIN IS MY VALENTINE NOW..... BUT SHE MADE ME A VERY BAD COLD, I AM WAITING WHEN CAN I RESUME MY DUTY AS A RADIO JOCKEY...........
Posted by: The madman who makes people fly on February 14, 2007 09:36 PM
The pics you posted are making me mad... I want to drench in the weather..... in the rain..... in the snow...... Do you know, here rain symbolizes love, and the closeness, and the coziness of love...............
Posted by: The madman who makes people fly aka Captain SS Wandering Albatross on February 14, 2007 09:41 PM
I have little weather related sympathy...
I live in the suburbs of Chicago, and this February has been the coldest in 122 years. Plus, we've had feet and feet of snow! (My golden retriever has to hop around our backyard.)
...and yes, it's slushy here, too.
Posted by: Alyssa on February 14, 2007 09:48 PM
Woot, Chicago! Yeah, pretty sure we've got you beat as far as cold goes. You know it's bad when you've been warming your car up for fifteen minutes and you can STILL see your breath inside it. We were just happy when it the temperatures got back up into double-digits. Having a high of zero degrees Fahrenheit for two weeks straight is not pretty.
My sympathies on the slushy-water lake, though. That sounds exremely unpleasant. There are few things more depressing than several inches variously melted slush.
Posted by: Meara on February 14, 2007 10:20 PM
yeah T- WA! Only Seattle's better, pfah on Vancouver. Thankfully our wierd winter was earlier (see posts from Josh V and me in both December and January). And btw- I hate rain. I don't care that I live in Seattle- it's not so much the rain as the white and gray skies for 9 months of the year. Baahhhh!
Posted by: Elizabeth on February 14, 2007 10:38 PM
The Midwest is just as bad as New England right now... but at least you have MIT. -___-
Posted by: Z on February 14, 2007 10:54 PM
Alyssa -
I don't think you understand. This wasn't slush. This was an entirely new, man-made water table with snow as the structural element. And no drainage pattern. You couldn't walk from point A to point B without going through several inches of water. Especially if you were crossing a street.
Geez. Mass Ave was disgusting. And walking clear across campus for FIRST construction was worse.
Posted by: Evan '10 on February 14, 2007 11:06 PM
I live in Northern Virginia - pretty much all of the counties in Northern Virginia are closed today and tomorrow due to snow/ice/sleet/hail/slush - but I go to boarding school. Classes no matter what. And now they've deemed it too dangerous and banned playing in the snow - but we still have class.
Posted by: Jillian on February 14, 2007 11:09 PM
Evan -
I'll take your word for it on the slush!(Or entirely new compound of watery unpleasantness...) The cold in Chi-town has been impeccable, though...(Although I hear it's supposed to get up to 38 degrees next week!!)*jumps for joy*
Posted by: Alyssa on February 15, 2007 12:09 AM
Cold? Rain? Please. Hahaha. You said it Elizabeth.
But I will concede that we do not get nearly as much snow most years as you New Englanders/Midwesterners.
Posted by: Josh V on February 15, 2007 02:25 AM
I am chilled.Even watching these pics gives me shivers!!!
Posted by: Anonymous on February 15, 2007 04:01 AM
hey can anybody tell will SAT will be deal breaker if other things r at par
Posted by: Anonymous on February 15, 2007 09:53 AM
You should have been on Comm Ave yesterday when the slush and water was up to mid-calf level and the passing cars would send a spray of it onto passing students. I stepped in one puddle to my knees.
Posted by: Anonymous on February 15, 2007 10:12 AM
see the snow torontonians've got in the last few days!
Posted by: tony on February 15, 2007 10:37 AM
It really sounds nice [not sarcasm] though I wouldn't really know [I'm less than 12 degrees from the equator.] Anyway, I *love* the water pouring down in tropical storms, so I'd like to visit Cambridge ... later this year ... in October ... and stay a while ... (4 years) ... or longer. When will I know?
Posted by: Chandresh the Rain-Dancer on February 15, 2007 11:50 AM
Sorry, not October; I don't the order of the months [or maybe I do, but haven't slept since I started writing some code a while ago] so I'll just hope you know what I mean.
Posted by: Chandresh again on February 15, 2007 11:53 AM
When the water freezes, you can wear skating shoes and slide on the ice when going somewhere!!! This way you can also move faster!!! Isn't this awesome? :)
New England is nice in fall though!
Posted by: turnef on February 15, 2007 01:03 PM
I've never seen snow... believe me.
Lived in a tropical country all my life. Would love to come to New England, esp. Cambridge and spend my life there.
Oh i just hope.. to get into MIT...
Posted by: Yohini on February 15, 2007 02:10 PM
@ The madman who makes people fly aka Captain SS Wandering Albatross
hi....kolkata?...me 2..tamilian here..
i like the rain here..it's really nice..n thank God it's cld again here:):)
Posted by: Arwen....not my name on February 15, 2007 02:31 PM
hi yohini..which country?
arwen
Posted by: Anonymous on February 15, 2007 02:32 PM
I haven't ever seen snow here in the equator but during the rainy season around June to August the tropical rains pound down on us in a way that you can only imagine.
Posted by: Solomon on February 15, 2007 06:22 PM
Yeah, my UGGs were very confused. I had to bring out the rain boots. :)
Posted by: Christina on February 15, 2007 06:24 PM
I don't know if this is any comparison, but in my area of NJ, it snowed. But then the one day we had substantial snow, the plows (which usually patrol by every 5 minutes) DIDN'T plow. thus, any snow that's not on the road was either shoveled or pushed out of the way by cars. How's that for irony?
Posted by: theresa on February 15, 2007 06:48 PM
Yup Arwen, but howdy know I am from Kolkata?
And where are you in Tamil nadu?
Posted by: The madman who makes people fly aka Captain SS Wandering Albatross on February 15, 2007 09:00 PM
rain is evil, sun is ?
Posted by: Anonymous on February 17, 2007 02:18 PM
Hey, don't complain. I live in CNY (Central New York), and on Valentine's Day (well, during that week) there was upwards of 11 feet of snow in some parts. I have no sympathy for you, and I actually think that the weather over there sounds absolutely balmy. Enjoy!
Posted by: Eugene on March 2, 2007 04:16 PM
