I had one real nice lady explain to me the other day that this kind of weather was not what they bargained for when they were talked into moving here from Michigan. “If I had known this was North Carolina weather, I would have re-mortgaged the house and stayed put!”
Those of us who were born here or have lived here a while know better. This has in no way been a typical North Carolina winter. However, to be honest, this colder weather with the occasional snowstorm reminds me of the winters we had long ago. When I was growing up in the ‘60s, I don’t recall too many 60 or 70 degree days. They were mostly overcast, cold, and windy.
I heard someone say that the coldest they had ever been was the summer day they spent in San Francisco. I don’t know about that. But I will say that though I haven’t had the pleasure of spending a winter day in Michigan. I would probably not want to trade our worst day for one of their best. It can get cold up “nawth,” y’all.
I remember having graduated boot camp in San Antonio, Texas in the U.S. Air Force. The deal was to fly to our next duty camp first. Then after settling in, we could take leave and visit home from there. It was customary to wear our “dress blues” when traveling. The “dress blues” were light summertime material made for dressing up and looking “spiffy.” They were not built for warmth.
It was the middle of February 1972 when I graduated and dressed in my “dress blues” boarded an airplane for my next duty base. It was in the mid-70s with a slight wind in San Antonio, Texas when I boarded the plane. All my heavy uniforms, including heavy coats were in the belly of the airplane. When I arrived at Chanute Air Base in Rantoul, Illinois it was minus 25 degrees, with a strong wind chill factor, making it feel like 40 below!
As we taxied to the terminal, I noticed everyone outside had on winter parkas, heavy gloves, and facemasks. In those days, you didn’t pull up and exit the airplane via a warm tunnel. You exited via stairs down the outside of the airplane and walked at least 100 yards to the terminal. When I stepped outside of that warm airplane and into the throes of an Illinois winter, I felt firsthand what the Jamaican Bobsled team felt arriving for the winter Olympics! The scene in the movie when they left the terminal was an exact replica of me trying to descend those icy stairs leading to the tarmac. I remember the wind in my face and it seeming uphill the whole way to the terminal!
The members of my group going to the air base boarded a bus after collecting our duffel bags. When we arrived at the base, we were instructed to line up and receive our winter gear. We lined up outside of course, and the line stretched 100 strong. There I was looking “spiffy” in my “dress blues” and freezing my newly branded U.S. Air Force tail off! My whole body was colder than the feet of an Antarctica penguin. There were Airmen running up and down the line passing out coffee, facemasks, and reviving those that passed out in the snow.
Needless to say, after that experience, 40 in the daytime and 20 at night doesn’t seem quite as bad. However, it would sure be great to have a sudden heat wave. Nothing outrageous, say up to 58 degrees or so would do. I might even be tempted to break out my traveling “dress blues” again. I’ll be right back.
Post a Comment
