Why is it when a winter storm is getting ready to hit, do people run out and buy snow shovels and other snow removal gear? I can see where snow and ice melter would be consumed. But snow shovels and blowers? What do people do, throw them away after it snows and then have to go out and buy new ones? I must be doing it wrong. I have snow shovels that are 4 and 5 years old. My snow blower is 3 years old! And what is with stocking up on bread and milk before a snow storm. Do they eat and drink more during a storm than they during the same period without snow? Sane people want to know!
Hahaha thats what Ive always wondered while working at Home Depot. Although we could probably use 1 or 2 new ones. The ones we have are old and near useless Although I certainly wouldnt wait until a snowstorm when theyre sure to be gone from those who didnt plan ahead! And the bread/milk/eggs...what are they gonna do, eat breakfast 3 times a day? eggs w/ toast and french toast? That would get old!
I worked in a flowershop that was inside a grocery store and every time it was forecasted to storm people swarmed in to get a couple things...such as bananas, eggs, bread and milk. EVERYTIME, neverfail, same people, as if they weren't going to be able to get out for a week.
O.K. So far we have snow shovels, snowblowers, bread, milk, eggs and bananas. All this associated with a pending snowstorm. An explanation…….is everyone familiar with a bell curve? It was invented by Phineas Bell a little known mathematician from Hoboken NJ. The curve explained many unusual happenings that, until then, had gone unresolved. Each incident had its own unique independent curve. Bell was attending a symposium in Geneva, Switzerland where he met Nathaniel Bennett. Bennett had just given a talk on his convergence theory and the two compared their ideas over lunch. Thus was born the Bell Convergence Theorem. The theorem provided for the simultaneous convergence at various data points on each curve to explain the seemingly irrational behavior of rational shoppers. When the data for the pending snow storm was overlaid with the convergence data the result was " The Perfect Storm Shopping Scenario " The Information was intercepted by a little known government bureau where it trickled up the alphabet soup of agencies till it stopped at a classifying room. At that point the information, now classified was filed as, "Perfect Storm Shopping Scenario, The" and was swallowed up by the bureaucracy where it has remained with only an acronym for reference. A classified reference. If you have the proper clearance an the need to know, you can access program "PSSST" Jerry
Around here, people think 2 snowflakes on the same day constitute a "blizzard", and panic accordingly. I guess the figure the electricity will go off, hence the need for extra groceries. They also forget IF the electricity goes off, the extra groceries will spoil. If we get a trace of snow [think a small sprinkle of powdered sugar on a cake], everything shuts down except EMS and the US Mail. It is totally ridiculous. And while we are at it, WHY are they naming snowstorms now ? Snow is so common in the winter, why bother? I am from Pennsylvania, and snow there is or was quite common, even snowfalls of several feet where you are still expected to function and go to work, etc. They never/seldom closed schools for ice storms. I remember having my knees cut to ribbons on such icy days.. Little girls were not allowed to wear pants back then. The shovels that I own are all old. They still work just fine. I do not own any snowblowers or other such equipment. I dont even bother to shovel snow 99.9% of the time.
We've got old shovels and an old snowblower in the garage plus old emergency shovels in the cars. We usually need it all every winter bar this one, which is highly irregular. We replace broken shovels, but that doesn't happen every year. I can understand that snowfalls may cause panic if one lives in an area where there's no snow as a rule. Nobody here runs out to stock up on anything unless there's a hurricane on the way. If the power shuts down the shops close since everything they've got runs on electricity. No back-up payment plan.
Here in Scotland no matter how deep the snow is we just carry on as usual here. Ian and I have a snow shovel in the car and two out doors, one in the shed and one in the greenhouse. We always have plenty of salt for pathways as I walk on crutches and would hate to fall. Panic buying is simply not on our agenda. If we don't have milk then we do without. We make our own bread and have enough supplies to keep us going without the need to rush to the shops. Snow simply means that we can't work in the garden so we get on with jobs that need doing inside.
Same here as with Eileen. Though we did go shopping this morning and the town was heaving. People living in the hills around us do tend to stock up on certain items, like powered milk if it looks as if they will not be able to get into town for a while. We have various shovels around and saltm but if the weather turns bad we just stop indoors.
If they say freezing rain. Get a extra can of gas for generator.But the snow blower must $$$$ at local hardware store.Many chained together.Asked if they sold many this year.Only 1.Did buy new shovel.Old one broke and was bent.had to find one not plastic.
We don't own a snow shovel. It's not surposed to snow here. ( photo / image / picture from Donna S's Garden )
