The Real Reason to Go Into Middle East Studies

So far this winter, DC, which sometimes gets through a winter with only four or five inches of snowfall, has had well over four feet. And now they're forecasting another ten inches or more Tuesday into Wednesday.

The Federal Government, which shut down early Friday and was closed today, has just announced that it will be closed tomorrow, too. I assume MEI will follow suit as they generally follow the Feds, but the point is that the buses aren't running, at least in Virginia, and Metrorail is only running to the below-ground stations, which are far from me. My neighborhood hasn't been plowed, and cars keep getting stuck on our street. And more is coming tomorrow night.

So while it may be a good opportunity to blog, it's a mess otherwise. Schools are closed, buses aren't running, cars can't move out of the neighborhoods (though the main roads are fine).

This never happens in Dubai. Of course, I wouldn't want to be outdoors in the Gulf in August either, but one advantage of the Middle East is they usually don't have four feet of snow.

For purposes of illustration, our dog, Coco, contemplating a snow wall (where our driveway is being shoveled out) several dachshunds deep.

More from Ice Station Virginia as it develops.