White-Out

Everything ground to a halt today as yet another winter storm wreaks havoc on the already overwhelmed DC area. Snow started falling late yesterday afternoon, but the worst of it arrived this morning with heavy snow and gusty winds of 30 mph or more. According to the National Weather Service, Arlington has already received nearly a foot of snow from this storm. Temperatures have fallen into the 20's -- with wind chills in the single digits -- and we are under a blizzard warning until 7 pm. Everything is closed today -- the government, schools, offices, airports -- and mail and trash services have been suspended. The Metro is only running underground, and all bus service has been suspended. Essentially, all we can do is hunker down at home and hope our power doesn't go out.

Did I mention the single-digit wind chill? The Weather Channel says it currently feels like it is 7 degrees outside. Yes, seven degrees. So I hope you'll understand why the only photos I have were taken from inside the house. I did open the front door briefly to get these two shots. The front porch was entirely covered with snow, and you could barely see across the street.
This one was taken through the family room window looking out at the back yard. Both the picnic table and the birdhouse appear to have a crown of snow greater than their own height.
Believe it or not, they are now predicting we might get even MORE snow on Monday! It could be a long time before people are able to get back to their normal work/school routines.

If you are curious to see more photos of DC's epic 'Snowmageddon,' check out the Washington Post's collection of user-submitted photos. There are some great snow sculptures!

Hope everyone is warm and safe, wherever you are...