Winter Storm Draco: Snow!

Wooo hooo! It finally snowed!

Winter Storm Draco walloped Iowa last night and today, disrupting travel, snapping tree branches, and cutting power for thousands. Iowa City did not see much snow accumulation until today, but it was pretty nasty nonetheless. First we received rain, then big fat flakes began to fall, then there was a rain/sleet mix. There was still a mix this morning when I woke and I was pretty bummed. I wanted to wake up, open the window curtains, and see a white winter wonderland. It was whiter than it was brown, but it was slushy more than anything else. However, snow was beginning to blow. And then it blew — hard — and slowly accumulated throughout the day until about four o’clock. The blizzard warning is still in effect until midnight but the storm has basically passed. In total, I think the east side received four to six inches. Locations to the west and north received much more.

I am happy. We finally got some snow! As I have mentioned before, I relish the cold and snow of typical Iowa winters. It provides a balancing yin to the yang of hot, humid summers. (According to my MacBook dictionary, the definition of yin is “(in Chinese philosophy) the passive female principle of the universe, characterized as female and sustaining and associated with earth, dark, and cold.” Contrastingly, yang is defined as “(in Chinese philosophy) the active male principle of the universe, characterized as male and creative and associated with heaven, heat, and light.”) The warmth and lack of snow last year really annoyed me, so I have eagerly anticipated the Arctic freeze and first significant snowfall of the season.

Temperatures are supposed to drop for the weekend so I expect the snow cover to remain through Christmas. Sweet!