North by Northwest

It may be cold here in Minneapolis, but at least it isn’t -34 F !!!

Mon Jan 21, 12:26 PM ET

PORTLAND, Maine – Temperatures dropped to breathtaking levels, well below zero, in extreme northern sections of Maine early Monday.

Thermometers registered 34 degrees Fahrenheit below zero at Van Buren, 27 below at Presque Isle and 26 below at Allagash, the National Weather Service reported.

In the northern Rockies, Butte, Mont., registered 32 below at 8 a.m. — with a wind chill of minus 47, the weather service said.

Another of the nation’s usual cold spots, International Falls, Minn., managed only 16.1 below zero, but even after the sun came up its temperature of 14 below combined with 6 mph wind for a wind chill of 29 below zero, according to a weather service Web site.

As the cold air blew across Lake Ontario, it picked up enough moisture to produce 3 feet of lake-effect snow Sunday in New York’s Oswego County. The roof of a public works garage holding snow removal equipment collapsed early Monday in Fulton, N.Y., under the weight of 37 inches of snow, and the town declared a state of emergency. The region at the east of Lake Ontario often gets heavy lake-effect snow.

“We’re digging out,” said state police Sgt. Edwin Croucher in Fulton. He reported multiple accidents caused by the storm but no serious injuries.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080121/ap_on_re_us/bitter_cold_4

Even with the cold and snowy weather and working on a holiday, the day was wonderful.

Is this crazy guy from Alabama about to walk to work in the snow? It feels good for the first minute!

… maybe tomorrow …

The parking lot was still pretty clear in the morning, but you can see the piles of snow between the cars.

I could see the drizzling snow out the window of our classroom the entire day.

Sunil; Dave (not teaching!); crow in the snow.

Nice heated stairway and walkway from the parking deck to the building.

A little more snow by the end of the day.

After writing my first Pascal program and dinner at the restaurant at hotel next door, Sunil and I ventured out to the Target to pick up a few things. I learned that the best way to drive in the snow is to not go very far (or very fast). That must be why they have so many Targets around here!

Kip’s; snow caught in the flash (looks like bright stars); the moon through the haze of the snow and clouds.

BTW, I had the “Bangers and Mash” at Kip’s, which was delicious.

This mound of snow is probably 8 feet high. There were several of these huge piles throughout the parking lot.

This one must be at least 12 feet tall!