It's snowing!

[Frenchie]

It's mainly because these days a lot of kids are bussed in and out, and the bus companies can't/won't guarantee the service if it snows.

Whilst that might be true in rural areas, here in Londonton, kids seldom travel more than two miles to the local State primary school and could make the journey on foot if there were the will. Staff live miles out, sometimes due to major differences in local property prices and have long commutes which aren't possible in deep SNO. S the schools close, often keeping parents off work.

Also, once upon a time, if you were a teacher and couldn't get to your own school, you went to the nearest to help out. Now however, your CRB check is only valid for specific age groups at specifis schools...so you stay home and schools shut.

Crazy; in particular when, as was the case here today, the weather was not severe in most of the town and local region (the region closed 200 schools). Fortunately Baby G's place was open!

[her_welshness]

We closed the library at 3.30pm just to try and give staff the chance to get home early. After picking up my bike from its service, the roads appeared OK at first until just before New Cross it was absolute gridlock. So I got off the bike and walked. At New Cross itself there were three buses that had broken down and further down the road at the bus stop there was a lot of people waiting so I basically told them to walk as it would be a long time for them to wait, which I got thanked for At Deptford traffic was at a standstill so I walked the rest of the way home. It took me 2 hours to get back and am worried how long its going to take my husband to get home as he does not finish work until 7. 

[nuttycyclist]

He'll probably be no longer than usual.  I think the worst of the gridlock are the panic commuters rushing home early.

[Zoidburg]

The Journal Of Captain M. Zoidburg. Bsc. Ssc.

6th of January, day 17.

The winter storm has raged for almost two weeks now, making any headway proved futile and the expedition was forced to make camp just to survive this seemingly endless blizzard. Three days have passed since we were forced to eat the last of the huskies. Hope is beggining to fade among the men and thoughts have began to turn to the unthinkable, they have not spoken of it aloud but it is there for all to see in the empty gaze of homesick eyes. For now I have managed to bolster their spirits with thoughts of empire and family but it will be only a matter of days before the only choice remaining will be to eat the flesh of those who have perished or god forbid - the last remaining pot-noodle.

[Eccentrica Gallumbits]

Schools are being closed because staff can't make it in.  In a lot of schools the staff travel from outside the catchment area, so whilst kids can get there teachers can't.

There used to be an arrangement where teachers would go to their nearest local school of the age range they were qualified for if they couldn't get to their own school.  This has had to be stopped due to teh requirement for every teacher to be CRB checked by every school...

There was a similar arrangement in the NHS - staff who couldn't get to their own workplace were expected to go the nearest NHS facility and work there. I don't know if staff can still do that since the introduction of trusts as individual employers.

[rogerzilla]

Our village was on Points West (regional news magazine) for the sledging.  The slope (Rodway Hill) is now so polished that we only managed five runs tonight - it's almost impossible to walk up.  zOMG it's fast coming down though, and after all that practice in February we have the directional control sorted out to the extent that we managed to avoid both the suicidal Chihuahua and the strategically placed tree.

[Wowbagger]

Extract of the 5-day forecast, Southend-on-Sea:-


 

[mecwales]

Needless to say, the planned drive from Wales back to uni didn't happen!

[peliroja]

Ooh, creamy snowdrifts! 

[Wowbagger]

Absolutely stunning, mecwales! Essex had that sort of thing in 1962-63. Not quite so hilly though.

[mecwales]

It looks nice, but it isn't half starting to get annoying now!

[Jurek]

Whereabouts is that Mecwales?

I remember driving my Vauxhall down something similar to Ystradfellte in 1980-something.

We had considerable difficulty in getting it out again  

[mecwales]

Mid Wales, nearish to a village called Trefeglwys (I guess that may or may not be of any use!) Friends living higher up have had considerably more - from the first snowfall around the 22nd it hasn't had a chance to melt properly and has just kept on accumulating.

[MattH]

We've got around 9 inches here now. I didn't go in to work today, apparently about 5% of people made it in. An email from there this afternoon said that the car park can only be negotiated by 4x4s and there is nothing to clear it with, so not to bother coming in if a normal car was the only way to do it.
All our local schools are off again tomorrow.

[Tewdric]

Wye Valley Piste Report.

Snow conditions were excellent today, with some fabulous champagne powder off-piste to be found on many forest tracks and shaded hillsides.  New snow on an existing firm base in sheltered areas has led to a wonderful fast yet carvable surface, with widespread virgin snow giving much opportunity to experience the sheer joy of making fresh tracks.

Many shaded hillsides have been pisted throughout the day by tobogganers and there are good areas of deep compacted snow developing.  Given the good -8 freeze forecast overnight, combined with clear skies, on-piste conditions should be stunning in the morning.  

Beer prices locally are still reported to be 1/4 those of Val D'Isere.  


WHAT AN AMAZING DAY!

[Jaded]

Our village was on Points West (regional news magazine) for the sledging.

"Oi you fat bastard, bet you can't hit the bottom of the hill"

"Your missus is down there just waiting for me to slide in"

etc

?  

[mercury]

Someone's made an igloo out of snowballs and put a candle in it.



I was so impressed, I made one too. Mine's the one on the right. Isn't Slough a wonderful place to live!!

[Ian H]

Walking home from town I saw a tractor towing a dung spreader coming uphill towards me and so moved into a gateway. It started to slide sideways, then came to a halt, wheels spinning. The driver decided to reverse a bit and slid the spreader across the lane into the hedge.Totally stuck. I wandered up to pass the time of day. Driver said he'd been up through once today without a problem. Said he might have got through the second time if he'd been more competent. He left the tractor across the lane, saying he was going to get a four-wheel drive to tow him out (seemingly unaware that what he was abandoning was a four-wheel drive).
"That'll be Graham; not the sharpest knife in the box", I was told at the pub.

[Really Ancien]

-11 Degrees Centigrade here at the moment, the joys of living in a frost hollow, it was 6 degrees warmer in Leyland.

Damon.

[Bledlow]

The Reading University weather station says -8.3. My garden thermometer says -4. Benson (S. Oxfordshire) weather station says -17.

We just dug the car out of the frozen snow. It took half an hour.

[Edit]Bloody hell! Just opened the curtains in this room & there was ice on the inside of the window! Melting fast now. Shows how much insulation nice thick curtains with lining provide.

[hellymedic]

Personal thermometers read -7°C in the summerhouse, -5.7°C in the observatory and -6.2°C in the mini greenhouse.
Cold for outer Londonton.

[Bledlow]

I thought it was supposed to be sunny today, but it's just started snowing again.

[groucho]

Clear blue skies in Penarth.

The council workman who diligently cleared the snow off the pavement on one side of the main street yesterday ( ) has just started the futile task of hacking at the snow/ice on the pavement on the other side.

[border-rider]

Clear blue skies here, and mind-buggeringly cold.  Once Mrs MV has finished messing about and has tried to go to work I'll go for a run.

[Wowbagger]

About -5°C here and it's just started to snow. The weatherman at 8 o'clock talked about a depression approaching from the NE more rapidly than they had originally forecast. Up for 4" more snow in eastern England, allegedly.