So, if you don’t live in California, chances are you haven’t heard about the “storm of the decade.” This storm — let’s call her Gertrude (because every great storm deserves a great name) — is scheduled to bombard the Bay Area on Thursday. So, what is Gertrude, this woolly mammoth, great white of a storm?
The cool way to describe Gertrude is “flash flood.” But as my friend Michael said, the accurate way of describing Gertrude is “rainier than usual.”
@riley_mcatee @seanjwagner “flash flood” = it’s gonna be rainier than usual
— Michael Rosen (@michaelrosen3) December 10, 2014
And boy, does Gertrude have Californians running for shelter. Gertrude currently has so many people worried that many San Francisco schools are shutting it down for the day. No school. #rainday
Now, with people like me giving Californians a whole bunch of shit for their attitude towards water falling from the sky, they’ve now gotten feisty about the people giving them shit for their lack of rain tolerance.
Seattle just tweeted to remind me they get rain all the time. \/\/ — Ina Fried (@inafried) December 10, 2014
(Side note: I am from Seattle.)
I love it when people act like Bay Area folks are the biggest wusses in the world when it’s our *infrastructure* that’s weak and pathetic. — Lisa McIntire (@LisaMcIntire) December 10, 2014
Look I get it. Rain can cause flooding and flooding can cause injuries, damage, etc. It also happens all over the world every day. In every other place, it’s called rain. In California, it’s called “freak out, cancel school, run for cover, winter is coming,” you get the point.
My parents used to let me skip school when it rained in LA until I was in 6th grade. I know, I was very pampered growing up. #stormageddon — Seung Y. Lee (@sngyn92) December 10, 2014
(Side note: Seung is my friend. Hi Seung!)
Not to bring up Seattle again, but Washington governor Jay Inslee just declared a “state of emergency” in five separate counties due to storms. Three schools lost power. And guess what… They stayed in school.
Anyways, stay safe Bay Area. Our thoughts and prayers are with you.
(Side note: I live in Berkeley. Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers.)
UPDATE: And so it begins…
Raindrops are already falling in San Francisco. We have crews across the Bay Area. Up next on NBC Bay Area News at 6. http://t.co/aGi6pEbWhd
— NBC Bay Area (@nbcbayarea) December 11, 2014
About Sean Wagner-McGough