Happy New Year!
Today marked the first day back to school for my kids after 16 days off for winter break. Except...it didn't. Snow is a rarity for those of us in the North Metro Atlanta area. Black ice is more common. But neither snow nor ice shut us down this time. This time it was extreme cold coupled with a vicious wind chill. I've seen the phrase "Polar Vortex" thrown around. According to the fine folks at the National Weather Service, in these extreme conditions, frostbite can occur in less than thirty minutes. Now that's cold! So cold that our county schools are closed for students again tomorrow.
All of this backstory leads to this question: When it comes to winter weather, are southerners complete wimps?
According to social media, the answer is mixed. For the most part, people not "from here" have reactions to school closing due to extreme cold ranging from mildly amused to downright angry. I've seen genuine confusion as to why the south can't handle what the north deals with every winter. I've seen the word "idiots" on more than one status update. I've seen snarky retorts at their finest.
Those who have deep southern roots tend to defend the decision of the school superintendent to close, with most celebrating an extension of their winter break. I've seen comments insinuating some people put their jobs above the safety of their children. I've seen back and forth among mutual friends that northerners should move back north if they don't like they way things are run in the south. I've seen more snarky retorts at their finest.
Here's what I think all of us need to remember. People have jobs. People love their children. The school district superintendent had a very tough call to make. It's really freaking cold outside. There were only a handful of people responsible for making a decision that would ultimately affect thousands of people. A decision that leaves you damned if you do and damned if you don't.
If I were to listen to social media, I would have to assume northerners were heartless monsters who would send their babies out regardless of the weather, and looked down upon all of those who were too stupid to know they were doing the right thing. If I were to listen to social media, I would also have to assume that southerners were foolish wimps who cleared the supermarket shelves of bread at the mere mention of a snowflake, and would die a horrible death if they had to attempt survival in a "real" winter storm.
Can you feel the love?
