Are we getting SOFT about winter weather?

I've lived in Michigan all of my life. A wise man once told me that if you live in Michigan the four seasons are dramatic. Each has its own way of affecting our lives. He said, you don't have to LIKE all four seasons, but you'd better be able to tolerate the ones you don't like. The Motorplex sells every powersports vehicle except one: snow machines. I guess part of the reason is that I really don't embrace cold weather! The other part is economics. It just doesn't snow as much in West Michigan as it used to. Our motto is: "There's always water in Michigan. It might not be WARM water, but there is always water!" Snow machine folks sometimes have to drive north hundreds of miles just to find snow cover. That brings me to one of my pet peeves: Over reactive weather forecasters!

Have you noticed that whenever snow is predicted it comes with great fanfare by the media. Winter storm watch; winter storm warning; Lake effect warning; Blizzard warning. Just today, South Haven was to be the "hot spot" with up to 16" of snow predicted. Any responsible South Haven resident who didn't rush to the store for bread, milk and toilet paper was sure to be caught "unprepared" by the impending, paralyzing onslaught of snow! The 11:00pm news last night had "team coverage" of 2nd storm of the season. One eager reporter was set up along side of US-131 citing how she observed that the snow flakes seemed to be getting larger as the storm covered all of West Michigan. It was amusing as the camera panned to the expressway, cars were traveling by on wet pavement and cruising at 60 to 70 mph! She did make a nice snow man, though, and asked viewers to send in more photos of their creations. Next we were told that roadways were snow covered and slippery and that the morning commute would be a hum dinger! Let's see. We live in Michigan, beside a big, warm lake, and it snows. THAT certainly is "breaking" news. With earth shattering wisdom, the news crew advised that if we MUST go outside, we were to slow down and take extra time for our travels! What a revelation. Not that's what I call useful news coverage.

A local TV weatherman's blog was describing in detail the approaching storm. He said conditions would deteriorate in the late afternoon with falling temps and snow. A person responded and asked if she should change here 3:30pm doctor's appointment or did he think that the "storm" would hold off 'til later in the day? In this day of "instant" news coverage, one would think that Mother Nature would be prompt and keep her "appointments"! My grandfather would only say "your generation has gone soft". It's Michigan. It's winter. You dress warm, you shovel, you plow and if at all possible use some common sense. PURE MICHIGAN! Enjoy the pure, fresh beauty of new fallen snow.