Okay, after complaining about the summer heat for months, I'm now entering my first Georgia winter and I have questions. Back in Minnesota, winter is a serious event. You prepare. You have multiple coats. You own snow tires. You mentally prepare for months of darkness and cold.
Here in Atlanta, people are acting like 40 degrees is the apocalypse. My roommate put on a puffer jacket when it hit 50. I was walking around in a hoodie confused.
According to weather data I looked up, average winter highs in Atlanta are around 50-55°F, and lows are 30-35°F. That's... nothing. That's autumn in Minnesota. People back home wear shorts when it hits 40 because it feels warm after weeks of below zero.
But I keep hearing rumors about "the one snowstorm." Apparently every few years, Atlanta gets an inch of snow and the entire city shuts down. Schools close. Businesses close. People abandon their cars on highways. Is this real? How do people who grew up here not know how to drive in an inch of snow?
A friend from Georgia told me a story about "Snowpocalypse 2014" where two inches of snow paralyzed the entire city for days . People slept in their cars on the highway. That sounds insane to a Minnesotan. We get two feet of snow and school is still open the next day.
I'm also curious about winter clothes. Do I even need a heavy coat here? My giant parka seems ridiculous now. But what if there's that one cold snap? What if I freeze because I underestimated Southern winter?
Also, does it ever snow enough to actually play in? Or is it just that miserable wet slush that looks pretty for an hour then turns into brown ice?
For Northerners who moved South: what's your winter routine? Do you still own a real coat? Have you ever laughed at locals panicking over flurries? I need to know what to expect.
Here in Atlanta, people are acting like 40 degrees is the apocalypse. My roommate put on a puffer jacket when it hit 50. I was walking around in a hoodie confused.
According to weather data I looked up, average winter highs in Atlanta are around 50-55°F, and lows are 30-35°F. That's... nothing. That's autumn in Minnesota. People back home wear shorts when it hits 40 because it feels warm after weeks of below zero.
But I keep hearing rumors about "the one snowstorm." Apparently every few years, Atlanta gets an inch of snow and the entire city shuts down. Schools close. Businesses close. People abandon their cars on highways. Is this real? How do people who grew up here not know how to drive in an inch of snow?
A friend from Georgia told me a story about "Snowpocalypse 2014" where two inches of snow paralyzed the entire city for days . People slept in their cars on the highway. That sounds insane to a Minnesotan. We get two feet of snow and school is still open the next day.
I'm also curious about winter clothes. Do I even need a heavy coat here? My giant parka seems ridiculous now. But what if there's that one cold snap? What if I freeze because I underestimated Southern winter?
Also, does it ever snow enough to actually play in? Or is it just that miserable wet slush that looks pretty for an hour then turns into brown ice?
For Northerners who moved South: what's your winter routine? Do you still own a real coat? Have you ever laughed at locals panicking over flurries? I need to know what to expect.
