Depending on who you listen to, this weekend will be nothing but snow here in the Albany area. Some people are crying that the stars are falling and others are wondering what the fuss is all about. I am one of the latter people. Snow could be anywhere from a few feet to eighteen feet. Either way, I don’t see the problem.
A lot of businesses have already thrown in the towel, shutting down for the weekend and even Monday. I’ve gotten several email messages from various medical offices as well as my cats’ vet. None of them will be open on Monday. I am sure that there are plenty of other places that have caved, even though the worst of it is expected to be over by the commute.
At the place where I work, some employees are empowered to work from home, assuming that National Grid doesn’t drop the ball on what’s going to be a minimal storm. I, however, am not one of those people. I, and many others like me, are expected to be there no matter what, though they will tolerate storm-related tardies.
I fully expect to be there on time. I am willing to climb over snowbanks to get there. The only way that I will not be there is if something that is out of my control happens. As of right now, I am not expecting anything major to happen. Given that I was briefly raised in Alaska and given that I’ve lived in upstate New York for ages now, I do not panic even as others around me do.
What they’re calling a storm will, in my opinion, not be anything close to that, at least here in Albany proper. The outlying areas, however, may get hit, but even then it’ll be nothing to write home about. In other words, there’s a whole lot of fuss going on and it’s all over nothing. The roads will be plowed. That being said, I do expect some points of failure:
- National Grid will do its best, but I am certain that there will be power outages. To be fair, that could be due to snow and ice weighting down power lines, but if the power does go out, it will be out for hours on a very cold day. No power, no heat.
- People will lose their minds and forget how to drive. This could cause traffic incidents, injuries and maybe even death. All because people forget how to drive when even an inch of snow hits the ground.
- Lots of people will likely lose a day of work on Monday because of employers who overreact. Unless they have PTO on the books, they will lose a day’s income over something so trivial as a so-called “storm.”
- It remains to be seen whether or not CDTA (the entity that hands the bus system in the Albany area) will run normally on Sunday (when the “storm” is supposed to be at its worst) or Monday. My understanding is that they run no matter what, unless there’s a state of emergency in place. Well, Governor Hochul declared one earlier today, so things might very well get interesting for those who rely on that. Come to think of it, riding a bus on Monday might be wise. Certainly, those big, heavy buses provide more protection than a car.
I am fully expecting the bishop of my diocese to declare dispensation (special permission) to stay home from Mass on Sunday if people feel unsafe driving there. Given how light of a punch this “storm” is packing, you’d have to be a real snowflake to be afraid of the snow. Ironic.
I go to Mass on Saturday, so the dispensation, if it happens, won’t affect me at all. Why is dispensation needed? Attending weekend Mass is an obligation. You are required to be there as it is a holy day of obligation.
If you’re a Catholic, don’t use the snow as an excuse to stay home. Get out there and go to Mass! For legal reasons, I have to say that if you do go to Mass through the “storm,” you do so at your own risk. I highly doubt, however, that there will be any real risk.
There’s nothing to do at this point but wait. Will I be proven wrong? Will the storm pack a nasty punch and cause all manner of problems? I doubt it, but I am willing to admit that I just might be wrong here.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I am going nowhere on Sunday. I’m not afraid of driving in the storm, but I am afraid of others. Therefore, I will be sitting at home in the toasty heat relaxing. If the power and/or internet goes out, I have my cell phone. I can use data normally, or I can make a hot spot out of it. Point is, one way or another, my internet connection is assured.
I will be prepared though. My phone will be on its charger at all times so that if the power does for some reason go out, I can get about twelve hours out if it. Email will be received. Facebook will be checked. Hell, I can even write articles for this website under such conditions! Also, I was prepared before the rush: I did go out and procure groceries and other needs. Now I have sufficient for my needs.
There’s nothing left to do but wait. Will the fuss be all for naught, or will all of the panicking and whining be for good cause? Only time will tell!