The Weather

This is the first of what I'm afraid will be a million posts.

When I moved to Wyoming, it was early summer. My mom was driving and she commented on all the snow gates along on the highways and interstate. I ignored her. I was so excited to begin my new life.

When I lived in Utah, I was always put off by California migrants who freaked out at the first sight of a snowflake. I swore I wasn't going to be like that.

I'm keeping my promise, somewhat.

While I'm planning to keep my complaints at a minimum -- to people at work, at church, to friends and other Wyomingites -- I'm going to complain to everyone else in the world using social media.

Gillette is located in, as my newspaper described, a "radar black hole." The National Weather Service in Rapid City, S.D., has no radar scanning our region. Forecasts are based on historical data and radar in the Black Hills and Billings, Mont. The result is that weather predictions for the area are circa 1980. Freak storms appear all the time.

On the phone with friends in Salt Lake, people tell me that the weather in Wyoming isn't that bad because Utah has more snow. (Well, Utah had more snow as of a couple weeks ago. I don't know if that's still true...)

First off, this isn't a competition. This is a pity party. For me. Not you.

Second, 30 degrees sucks. Thirty degrees with 30 mph winds will chill you to the bone.

The above picture is supposed to illustrate a wind storm in the wintertime. That fence is what ranchers call a "wind break." Cattle can huddle up against it because it shields them from, like, 70 percent of the wind gusts. Wind is more deadly to cattle than snow.

A long time ago, I lived in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. For seven years as a child. Since the peninsula was surrounded by lakes Superior, Michigan and Huron, we received lots of snow. Lake Effect USA.

It's been decades since I lived in Michigan. The mild Utah winters weakened my constitution.

My mom, a Minnesota native, hated the Michigan snow. Minnesota gets more subzero temps than Michigan but less snow. And for some reason, she preferred cold to snow.

This year is expected to be a La Nina year in Wyoming (and across most of the West, for those of you at home keeping score for the worst weather in these United States.)

For Wyoming, La Nina means both cold and snow.

I have asked my mom for "how do I survive winter" advice and she said layering. She also suggested long underwear. Sexy!

I haven't purchased any thermal roos yet. I've been layering with long-sleeve T-shirts. Some days I'm OK. Other days, I'm freezing -- depending on the weather and what I'm wearing over the T.

So maybe long underwear is in store.

I'm learning that I cannot "cheat" winter in Wyoming. For instance, in the middle of the night I cannot throw a coat over my pajamas that end at my ankle and stand outside while my dog does her business. Too cold. I must to slip on a warm pair of pants, even if I'm only going to be outside for two minutes.

Chloe, BTW, loves the snow, hates the wind and cold.