We Ohioans can be fickle about our weather. Rarely do we give rave reviews to the meteorological merits
of a summer day. It’s often too muggy, too dry, too hot, too chilly, too wet … well, you get the idea.

So let me give you some perspective that may help more of us appreciate this humid (or fill in your
particular complaint) weather.
Six months ago, Wood County was crippled by bitter cold. The snow and frigid temperatures just wouldn’t
let up – with temperatures plummeting to 16 below in the middle of January.
Level 3 weather conditions became commonplace. And kids’ textbooks started collecting a layer of dust –
with several school districts running out of calamity days a few weeks into winter.
Communities quickly found their winter resources depleted, and started searching for salt supplies and
funds to slide over into overtime costs for weary snowplow drivers.
Some businesses found themselves void of customers as people hunkered down in their homes. Other
businesses found items flying off shelves – like shovels, road salt, and staples such as bread, milk and
eggs. Not to mention the toilet paper, batteries and diapers.
Nearly every front page of the Sentinel-Tribune in January had at least one weather related story – and
sometimes it was about the only local news of the day. Stories told of farmers taking extra care to keep
livestock warm, communities worrying about ice jams flooding rivers, and many vehicles in ditches.
Those people without snowblowers developed plenty of muscles – especially as snow piles turned into
mountains.
Early in the winter season, the extreme heating demands were already draining propane supplies. Customers
were cautioned to put on more layers, turn down their heat and conserve fuel.
There were stories on people who weren’t lucky enough to get to stay home on Level 3 snow days, but had
to bear the brunt of the frigid weather. The mail carriers, the plow drivers, the firefighters.
The cold not only took its toll on humans, but it also wreaked havoc on mechanics, with pipes freezing
and gushing water into buildings. And the lingering frigidity weighed heavily on our spirits. So our
stories addressed how children were curing cabin fever, and how adults were coping with the winter
blues.
So the next time I feel like grumbling about a summer day being too steamy or soggy, I will try to put it
in perspective. After all, I’d much rather mop sweat on muggy days than dig through mounds of snow.