If you’re looking for actual insight into the massive winter storm that’s headed our way this weekend, I encourage you to look elsewhere. Charlotte’s Brad Panovich and Greensboro’s Tim Buckley do really good stuff, like telling you what they do and don’t know, how your phone’s weather apps are likely wrong, and showing you ways to prepare. However! In my guesstimation, it’s probably going to suck for most of the state. There’s a good chance that a lot of us are gonna be stuck in our houses without power for a while, so if you want something to talk about, I encourage you to read these three stories and then immediately commit them to memory (since you can’t go back to them if you have no power!).

The most likely forecast at this point for Charlotte, Raleigh, and the Triad is freezing rain, and traditionally, no place in the Southeast gets more of this crap than Greensboro. Why? I looked into it after an ice storm back in 2021. In short, blame geography!

Every time we get really bad weather that knocks trees into power lines, everybody has the same question: Why doesn’t the power company just put all of those lines underground! Problem solved! However, are you aware that power rates are currently going up? Would you like to solve this problem by having them go up even more? Do you think money grows on trees, specifically the trees that are falling over and hitting utility poles? Also, burying power lines could swap out one problem for another. If you want to be armed for this argument when the lights are out and people in your house start complaining, here’s something I wrote in 2024:

If you want the complete story of Raleigh’s most infamous winter weather image (and the subsequent memes), I’ve created a short three minute explanation:

I wrote about this last year, but it’s pretty evergreen. However! Earlier this week, I did trade an email with the woman on the phone, who explains herself, along with the anxiety that comes with being memed in a way that just won’t die. For those of you who prefer text, here’s the original story with some updated details:

One last thing. It’s easy for me to tell you, while I’m warm and cozy and dry on a Friday morning, that things are probably going to be bad while I’m out here sending you memes and stuff. This weekend (and probably next week), power company workers, first responders, and folks in local newsrooms are gonna be out working their tails off. Specifically, folks on television are going to have a ton of time to fill, which means they can only say so many things so many times. More than a decade ago, I came up with a simple game of bingo that you could use as you watched the weather coverage. This is geared more toward snow than freezing rain or sleet, but if you actually get bingo, drop me a line in the comments.

Or! If you’re bored, hit me up on the ol’ North Carolina Rabbit Hole Hotline at (980)477-5465‬, and tell me what you’re seeing, what you’re hearing, what you’re doing, or what you’re thinking about. You’re likely gonna have some extra time on your hands. You’ve gotta fill it with something.

That’s all. Stay warm and stay safe out there.