Marylanders remain ridiculous about winter weather. (I spent 10 years in the Pennsylvania snow belt). Schools being closed today makes more sense than being delayed yesterday, given that icing was forecast. But it's incredible how a few flakes can create widespread panic.

Ahhh...my easiest commute in weeks. Keep closing those schools and freaking out, Baltimore!

Eh, freaking out about snow has become a communal experience that makes up for the lousy seasons the O's have been having for the past, well, forever, it seems.

At any rate, we have three feet on the ground here in New Hampshire, with another half foot on the way. Even still, it's the first couple inches that get drivers, even up here. We had sixty-something cars off the road in my area (the Upper Valley) at the beginning of one of the early season storms. Even now, there'll be a bunch off the road as today's storm gets rolling.

I just moved here from Chicago and cannot believe the fuss made over a little ice and drizzle. My workplace told us yesterday not to come in today, however, so I'm not arguing!

Unfortunately, too many folks in these parts react to the extremes; there's the 'oh dear we'll be housebound for days' types (seen last night at Safeway with a panic-striken look), and then the 'I can still drive 80 mph in my SUV' set. My commute this morning was fine (hardly any traffic); slow down in percentages, give more distance between cars, and make sure your car is completely cleaned off before setting out. Easy peasy. Respect the weather...don't fear it (and don't insult it either).

You think Marylanders are ridiculous about weather? Try driving in SoCal in the rain. I spent 30 years in Maryland before moving out to "Sunny San Diego", thinking I'd seen the worst reactions to weather on the road. Believe it or not, we do better with raging brush fires than precipitation..

To say that Marylanders completely overreact about winter weather is an understatement. I have lived here for over 16 years now and STILL have not gotten used to that.

In Bel Air, the weather was virtually non-existant, with grassy surfaces BARELY covered in snow, and the roads have minimal sleet accumulation, all of it on shoulders. I'm not sure how the rest of Harford county is weather-wise, but if conditions in the rest of the county are even remotely close to how Bel Air is, there is absolutely no reason that school had to be cancelled today.

I grew up in the snow belt of Ohio.....I call maryland residents "winter weather wimps". Such a big deal about nothing. We close schools, up north, when the snow reaches one foot. You close them for a few flurries. Two days ago I was watching CNN and it was featuring an article about the cold, snowy weather in Fargo...temperature was 28 degrees below zero (actual temp, not wind chill) and we could see three young children walking through the 18 inches of snow, in that cold, on their way to school. And this area closes down because of a thin layer of ice.
Winter Weather Wimps!s

Can anyone tell me if the weather is supposed to change from what it is currently doing? Downtown it has pretty much just been raining all day, but the forecast still shows "ice pellets" as the current condition.

the state of Maryland is just pathetic when it comes to a "snow storm" Where is the storm? I am sitting here still waiting for it. I come from PA and what I had to deal with back there is nothing compared to here, but people in and around Baltimore are awful when it comes to a barely measurable "storm." Grocery store shelves are bare, cant get a gallon of milk or eggs anywhere almost everytime they call for anything over a a tenth of an inch. Grow up Baltimorons and learn to drive on wet roads. If you need some practice go to PA, NY, CO, or elsewhere where it really snows. Return once you know how to drive!!!!! Then again, maybe not, makes my life easier getting to and from work since everyone panicks and decides to stay home!

Marylander's overreact to any winter condition. It's pathetic. The media is partly to blame for the hysteria. There are approximately 4 snow events a year. Each one has been called a "Storm." I live in Baltimore, originally from Buffalo, where we measure snow in feet, not inches. We take our time commuting and keep safe distance from others while on the roadways. We shovel our drives and watch the weather channel before heading out. Just like Buffalo, Baltimore does have snow removal equipment and does a decent job using it. Why do Marylander's feel the need to run to the grocery store buy up all the water and canned goods? How long do you people think 1 inch of snow and ice is going to keep you trapped inside of your home?

Initial reports stated up to 1/3 inch of ice - that is a lot of ice that could easily have caused wide-spread power outages, injuries and deaths on the roads.

OK, this didn't happen, but don't blame Marylanders for being cautious.

Not everyone has SUVs. You try driving a rear-wheeled Pontiac Trans-Am on 1/3 inch of ice.

I think part of the over-reaction is a vicious cycle of sorts. Marylanders are notoriously bad in inclement weather, and even worse in wintry weather. Add to this our 24-hour news cycle and the continued coverage that all of the local networks provide of conditions that are not changing that bad, and the end result is even worse.

It's even worse, though, since the weather forecasts for events like this tend to be wrong more times then they are correct in these parts. Thus, I believe another contributing factor to over-reaction is the credibility of our weather forecasters. It just gets worse when they make a bad call in either direction.

I spent my college days in Boston, so our over-reaction is laughable. I still do not understand the need to be glued to television coverage of repeated shots of snow-covered streets.

I am from Rochester NY, where we average almost 100 inches of snow a year. I, like others who have posted, find the hype and hysteria amusing. I saw a feature on the news two nights ago about how people were "coping" with the snow. Coping? There was an inch! That is the one thing I probably will never get used too down here. I love the area but the weather hype can be frustrating. I remember the first storm I experienced 2 years ago and the only people who made it into work in the morning were all the native Western New Yorkers. We all had a lot of fun with hat one...:-)

I too had to laugh - and I am a teacher.

David - you CHOSE to own a rear-wheeled car, and that is your choice. But don't compair yoursef to SUV drivers.

Since I moved here I have seen more people driving SUV's badly in "bad" weather than good SUV drivers.

Not to downplay the dangers of ice driving, because it IS dangerous, the number one problem with MD drivers in "bad" weather that I can see has to do with the fact that most have BALD TIRES!!!!

It costs less to check and replace bad tires than to replace a car - or worse, pay for a funeral.

The weather forcasters are the worst I have ever seen. Before the first "storm" the highlight of the news was a 10 min. report on how the snowplow blades were all lined up and ready to be hitched to the plow trucks. SERIOUSLY??!?!

Take care of your vehicles, stop making excuses, and learn how to drive.

Because frankly, most people drive just as badly in GOOD weather here too.

we don't get inclement weather that often so yes, we overreact. big deal. most of this jeering comes from people stuck in tiny hamlets in the midwest or far north who are used to feet of snow on the ground regularly during winter- i'd MUCH RATHER deal with a few yearly weather panics than to be one of those 'hearty' souls who turn their nose up at our panic. it would be miserable to live in a place in which no one bats an eye at a snow event.

Wow. So people who lived in various "snow belts" like to laugh at the reaction here? When I was growing up in the deep south, we'd laugh at people from up north who'd go on and on and on about the "heat" when it hit 70. I laughed at them then, but since moving to Maryland and having to deal with snow and ice (even if it is only once a year and "not much"), I've learned to be a little less patronizing and a lot less smug.

People here "freak out" about the snow because they rarely face it. I've been living here on and off for ten years, with stints in Canada and Michigan, so I've learned about "real" snow. But, oddly, I find the "oh I'm so amused at the silly people" attitudes a lot more annoying than the yearly regional freak out about the snow.

I saw a report last night on one of the TV station about how much Baltimore was over budget for snow removal, and how it costs the State $200,000 per hour in manpower for snow removal.

Now I'm sure the local weather guys will all have a rationale for whipping everybody into a frenzy with yet another inaccurate forecast. But it begs the question: Could any of us normal folk provide wrong information to our customers time after time, that cost the customer $200,000 per hour and still keep our jobs?

Don't believe I could.

I grew up driving rear wheel drive big American. It isn't that hard. Just a different technique than you use for front wheel drive cars.

4 wheel drive just means you can go straight faster. You can't turn or stop any faster, so more 4WD vehicles end up in ditches than regular cars.

Today's weather wouldn't be enough to comment on in the Great Lakes. I'm really, really puzzled why so much, including my workplace, closed today. Ice is bad, but, folks, that isn't ice out there.

Oh my God! I'm down to ten rolls of Charmin and I've got a lot of butt to wipe!

Yes, but L, they told us it WOULD be ice, and a pretty significant amount. places closed b/c if the forecast had been correct and an employee or student had a fatal accident on icy roads, everyone would have been up in arms. people who complain about a friday off are miserable souls!

I can't imagine a more thankless job than forecasting the weather.

Having worked with some of those men/women in the past, I can tell you that they do keep a fairly good sense of humour about the whole thing.

That having been said, imagine being paid to predict the future. When you correctly predict the future, no one says "thank you". When you incorrectly predict the future, people like Surf52 rant about how they should all be fired for providing "wrong information".

How quickly we forget the days before radar and satellites, when HURRICANES would arrive unannounced. You think Katrina was bad? Imagine what it would have been like without ANY warning.

I'm thankful for the National Weather Service, the Tom Tasselmeyers and the Norm Lewises and the Bob Turks of the world.

Perhaps y'all should be, too.

Hey - it was this very weather blog that cautioned us to "enjoy today "(Thurs.) because a lot of ice was anticipated for Friday. Where did that information come from? Our National Weather Service. The real weather guys, not some audience-seeking local forecaster. Ice is dangerous and schools were cautious. The local guys mess up when they fail to admit it was a no-show and keep warning us that the worst is yet to come.

Ah! I remember those grey damp winter snow ice days in Maryland when I commuted daily from Federal Hill, Baltimore to Herndon, Virginia. I used to slog around the beltway 1.5 hours each way - 3 hours if such a storm arrived mid afternoon. If such a storm arrived in the morning - commuters had the good sense to stay off the roads. The Capitol Beltway at best is a finely choreographed ballet - and if one dancer crahses in Falls Church - the entire 495 ballet come to a crashing halt!

The Baltimore/DC corridor just does not have enough equipment period.

I moved to Minneapolis last year! Last year we had 24" of snow on the ground by March 1st. This year is a bit slower - only 10" on ground remaining. But here - there is a ton of equipment at the ready both on the roads and airports to keep things moving. Plus clearly we don't have the Beltway grind.

I work from home now. My commute is five minutes!

Yee-hah!

I grew up in the midwest and slogged to school thru more snow than I can remember, as a kid. I learned how to drive on snow, so also chuckled at the hype when I moved here. Until I experienced my first "ice event". Slid right off Shawan road into a ditch on my way home from work one night.
I love the hype, and the chance to work at home once in awhile. (I get 10 times more done than I do in the office.) It's a culture thing, like crabs and beer. Relax and enjoy, "hon".

When you live in an area that gets lots of snow, you learn how to deal with it. When you live in an area that has snow on the roads 3 or 4 days a year, you just can't accumulate enough experience to be comfortable with it. Discomfort and uncertainty lead to panic. If things weren't closed here for bad weather, the fatalities from inexperienced drivers coping with a challenging situation would be much higher.

I learned to drive in Wyoming, in the winter, and yes, I can handle the snow. But when it snows here, I am afraid of the other drivers, so I stay home too. Close the schools and businesses, and keep us all safe.

They make a big deal of a few flakes a) because (in case you haven't noticed) the people in this region do NOT suffer snow and ice calmly and rationally like normal people in Buffalo and Chicago; b) snow and ice can pose threats to life and property, which is what the NWS was established to protect, and they don't want to be caught with their pants down; and c) news media like snow and ice forecasts because of "a" (see above) and because talk of such things, in these parts, gets the public's attention and boosts ratings and Web traffic.

I am fed up with all the folks coming here from hardy-country and telling us how ridiculous we are panicking about snow. We have every reason to panic. The area does not expect snow or ice and is usually ill-prepared for it. That causes accidents. Lots of accidents. Even 'simple' bumper bumps are not simple at all. Have three of these in 3 years - three nothing-of-an-accident, and see how fast you end up with state-sponsored car insurance because you are dropped from everyone else - and no insurance will touch you for another 3 years...

Worse yet, get stuck on 95 because of a little snow or ice on the road, and see your car running through a tank of gas to keep you warm, and then almost freeze before the road opens and help comes.

It is ridiculous to endanger our kid's and our lives because some public official or a new administrator (often one 'imported' from a snow belt state) wants to impress the public or their respective board with their 'tough' decisions and keep the schools open in bad weather. Maryland has many variations in weather conditions within very very short distance. Making decisions to keep the schools open based on the *best* possible weather conditions instead of the worse is the easiest way to megabucks law suits. You think they won't come? Wait and see...