According to the various news sources, we might have some tough days ahead of us.

You need to stock up on emergency supplies which will take you through the projected period of the incoming storm(s)--which in turn will depend on where you live in the state.

This means:

fill-up all of your cars, etc. with gasoline

be certain you have enough drinking water on hand to get everyone in your household through this

medications you take (plus injection needles, if you use them)

you might hard-boil a dozen or so eggs; bake cookies or pastry rolls, make a big pot of vegetable soup, etc.

paper towels

infant supplies (formula; diapers; etc.)

toilet paper; Kleenex; sanitary napkins, etc.

canned goods

produce (wash your produce now, and cut it up now, so you can eat it, as is, out of whatever refrigerator containers you use)

candles and matches (etc.) for possible power outages

extra FLASHLIGHT BATTERIES!!! (Check your flashlights to make sure they work.)

Make sure your shovels and other similar tools are immediately accessible if needed.

Do all of your dishes, and all of your laundry.

Depending on where you live, move your cash, important papers, family heirlooms, etc. to the top shelves of your closets, preferably in suitcases or other "strong" containers.

Be prepared for any power outages that might occur.

What most of us are likely going to have to deal with is street flooding. I am in the San Fernando Valley, so street flooding could possibly be a real problem for many of the two million or so of us who live here, because--depending on where in the Valley we are--we may, effectively, get marooned for awhile if the storm is actually as intense as they are warning us about.

We--all of us--absolutely DO live in interesting times. ;)

And from someone who has been through both blizzards and hurricanes -- ice. Put it in one of your bathtubs. If you lose your electricity, and don't have a generator, you can't have too much ice.

Test your flashlights, and make sure that you have adequate batteries. Keep a flashlight near your bed at night.

Also -- if you are in a low-lying area or flood zone, move your car to high ground.

Thank you for the tip, summer.

I never would have thought of it!

Very muchly appreciated!

I have an umbrella, so I'm good . . .

elderolddog Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I have an umbrella, so I'm good . . .

Well.....

Maybe galoshes would help, too.

Maybe?

The problem with galoshes is they keep falling off your head.

Charge your phones, if possible have extra battery packs. Do you know where your charger cord that will let you charge your in phone in the car is at?

In most of the US even an old phone not currently connected to a network will allow you to call 911. So charge up an old phone just in case.

Do you know where your can opener is?

Dead Cat Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Do you know where your can opener is?

Yes, I do.

In our kitchen drawer.

I just checked, and it really IS there!

[This reminds me of a comic book story I read when I was in fifth grade. At that time, being atom bombed seemed to be a recurring daily threat to us, here in the Valley, in particular (the San Fernando Valley, at that time, was one of the global centers of advanced, weapons-type, research), and it was generally accepted, by most everyone in the Valley, that--if the Russians decided to nuke the USA--we, here in the SFV, just HAD to be on their list of Top 5 priorities. It was something we lived with daily. Because of this comic book story, to this day I always DO make sure that I have a can opener nearby--even if I am no longer angst-ing about enemy attacks from afar. :D ]

The comic book story was about a man who spent many months, and all of his money, storing canned goods and bottled water (etc.) away in a hidden cave that no one but he knew existed. When he had completed stocking the cave, he tripped the mechanism which PERMANENTLY sealed off the cave (there was no way out). Directly after he tripped the mechanism, he realized that he had forgotten a can opener! I can still "see" [in my mind] his horrified comic face.]

I have had the same one for over 30 years. I never had an electric that worked for crap. I have had people buy them for me, for some reason they think I NEED one, but my old trusty manual and I do just fine :) Every few years I clean up the edge with the fine side of an emery board, a little sewing machine oil on the gear.

Get a solar charger for your phone. They are cheap and don't need a lot of light to charge.

I am far North of you but we have had wild weather too. Snow twice and last night a lot of hail. Freaked the dogs out. They are not amused with the snow period and I am glad they are trained to their indoor system. Snow is unusual for us and never this late in the season. The birds and plants can't decide if it is time to bud and breed. I am feeding everyone heavy still so they can stay warm. We now have a steady stream of bunnies, deer, squirrels and chipmunks as well as the birds.

Susan I/S Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I am far North of you but we have had wild weather
> too. Snow twice and last night a lot of hail.
> Freaked the dogs out. They are not amused with
> the snow period and I am glad they are trained to
> their indoor system. Snow is unusual for us and
> never this late in the season. The birds and
> plants can't decide if it is time to bud and
> breed.

> I am feeding everyone heavy still so they
> can stay warm. We now have a steady stream of
> bunnies, deer, squirrels and chipmunks as well as
> the birds.

Oh, Susan...this is so great that you are doing this!!!

On behalf of everyone you are feeding and taking care of:

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

:D

Should I stop praying for moisture now?

bradley Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Should I stop praying for moisture now?

Yes.

One of the many things I have learned in my life is that you CAN have "too much of a good thing." ;)

Tevai Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> We--all of us--absolutely DO live in interesting
> times. ;)

You can say that again! True on every level.

Yow Tevai! I've been thinking about you but haven't watched the news for a few days. It pays to be informed. Even from afar. It is good to keep up with friends and neighbours even those not in the immediate vicinity. :) But close, very close.

I have to do without my vehicle for one day tomorrow and I ran up to the shop to get in supplies - just for a day! Because so many things seem like such necessities and even if I don't go out for a week I like to know my car is outside waiting on my every whim and there's food and veg in the cupboard. Just in case. That's my life's motto (or one of them - everything is just in case...). I so fortunately didn't have to worry about batteries and candles and matches and ice cubes. Not this time anyway.

I wish all the best to everyone who may or will be affected by this weather upon whose mercy we all depend. The worst I have to deal with is it's still chilly. Why do we expect anything different in March? I haven't seen a daffodil yet so spring has not yet quite sprung.

Good luck. Check in when you can. We'll be hoping for fair winds for you. Literally.

Here's an Irish blessing for you:

May the road rise up to meet you.

May the wind be always at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face;

the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,
...(may all be well).


(NB: I left out the last line and added my own due to the 'no religion' rule here - but hopefully nothing was harmed in the course of my edit except the cadence of the poetry perhaps - sorry 'bout that).


Take care. Hurry back!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/08/2023 08:10PM by Nightingale.

Thank you, Nightingale!

Very muchly appreciated!

:D

Hope you stay safe and dry!

anonynon Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hope you stay safe and dry!

Thank you, anonynon!!

:)

I don't think I ever saw a snow shovel growing up in CA. I can't believe some of the pictures of snow there.
I am concerned about flooding, especially after so much fire damage in places there.
I'm sending safety thoughts to everyone.

. . . What kind of thoughts?

They are thoughts about not being buried by mud or water, for starters.

Ah!, that kind of safety!

I will not reveal my safe word here.

Dagny has a SAFE WORD?!? Oh my, you have been holding out on us girl! We all know SD has one but YOU?!?

Seriously though, it is a vicious cycle. After being so dry for so long the ground just doesn't absorb and that is why you have so much run off when you get a lot at once. It's like pouring water on a plate. In the Spring you always have to till/hoe that top layer.

Flash flooding is possible in my town. I have my fingers crossed and fresh batteries in the flashlights. Plenty of food. And flood insurance. Here we go...

Have you noticed that auto and home insurance rates have risen dramatically over the last few years?

It's mostly due to the disasters from flooding, fire and a greater auto accidents. Insurance companies can't stay in business unless they collect more than they pay out. Basic business sense.

SIL near Santa Barbara was saying about the forest fires and that PGE (electric provider) was being sued for their power lines being the cause of many of the fires.

PGE is regulated by the California State Utilities Commission. They can't willy-nilly raise or lower rates. They need permission.

PGE gets sued for $10 billion dollars and the courts agree, then PGE goes to the Utilities Commission for a rate hike. If the Utilities Commission doesn't agree, PGE goes bankrupt and the power grid gets shut down. Everyone loses.

I understand people are complaining that their heating bills have tripled this year compared to last year's bills.

There's a price to live the way we do.

donbagley Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Flash flooding is possible in my town. I have my
> fingers crossed and fresh batteries in the
> flashlights. Plenty of food. And flood insurance.
> Here we go...

Don:

Are you okay?

The news footage is beyond belief.

If you get the chance, please check in and tell us how you and yours are doing.

We care.

I'm good. I live in a foothill town, so there's no risk of standing floodwater. We do get flash-flooding though. My house was built in 1983, and it's never flooded.

Maybe they can refill their aquafirs now.
Oh wait, nah, just let it all flow back into the ocean like god intended. Screw all the crops! Who needs food?

SC:

People are literally dying, as in: they are DEAD.

Homes and communities are being destroyed.

A little compassion would go a whole long ways towards not sounding like an a**.

Mis dos centavos.

Agree. People are trapped in their homes. More roofs could collapse with heavy wet snow. It's frightening to say the least.

schrodingerscat, that is the most ignorant comment I have seen here for many years. Try to educate yourself a little before you go opening your ill-informed yap. You would save yourself a lot of embarrassment. You can thank me later.

I only said that because I just listented to an expert on the subject, the guy who developed the patent for Reverse Osmosis, who said exactly what you said was "the most ignorant comment I have seen here for many years. Try to educate yourself a little before you go opening your ill-informed yap. You would save yourself a lot of embarrassment. You can thank me later."

https://youtu.be/s1hHmGR_q_Y

Israel gets half of their water from desalination and they refill their aquafers. You can pump water down wells the same way you pump water out of them. So create huge dams and trap the water in the valleys and then send it down wells. The rest of the world desalinates enough water to fill the Sacramento and Colorado Rivers, every day. Why don't we?
Why don't we capture these torrential rains and use them for generating electricity while we recharge the aquafers?

His point is there's no shortage of water, it's just a bureaucratic nightmare to get anything done in California in the 21st C.

1. California has 19 times the area of Israel.
2. California has a population 4 times that of Israel.
3. The aquifers in question in California are in the Central Valley, not near the coast.
4. The issue being discussed in this thread is flooding so desalination is irrelevant.
5. California already has a large number of dame and reservoirs, and you can't build a dam just anywhere.
6. California already has a plan for recharging aquifers

https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2023-03-11/california-will-use-floodwater-to-recharge-groundwater

Unfortunately, real science is much more complicated than youtube videos

Crickets, predictably.

I don't think El Gato is interested in substantive answers.

[|] Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> 1. California has 19 times the area of Israel.

And your point is? What they are doing is scalable.

> 2. California has a population 4 times that of
> Israel.

Like I said, it’s scalable.

> 3. The aquifers in question in California are in
> the Central Valley, not near the coast.

Pipe it.

> 4. The issue being discussed in this thread is
> flooding so desalination is irrelevant.

No it’s not. The bigger issue in CA is drought and water scarcity. Now they have flooding. I’m just suggesting the direct the floodwater underground instead of discharging it into the ocean.

> 5. California already has a large number of dame
> and reservoirs, and you can't build a dam just
> anywhere.

Right, you build them in the valleys, where the water goes.

> 6. California already has a plan for recharging
> aquifers
>
> https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2023-03-
> 11/california-will-use-floodwater-to-recharge-grou
> ndwater

So why don’t they put those plans into action so their aquifers drying up?

Bureaucracy, like I said.

>
> Unfortunately, real science is much more
> complicated than youtube videos

The guy in the video is a real scientist, working on this issue in CA since the 70’s, and aquaculture all over the world, had you bothered to watch and listen to what he has to say.

Let's see... your source is California Insider

https://www.theepochtimes.com/c-california-insider

Supports anti-vaxxers, supports the claim that January 6 was not a violent attack on the capitol, and in general seems to be anti-California biased about every topic..


Owned by the Epoch Times

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Epoch_Time


"The Epoch Times is a far-right[1] international multi-language newspaper and media company affiliated with the Falun Gong new religious movement."

"The Epoch Times opposes the Chinese Communist Party,[32][33][22] promotes far-right politicians in Europe,[8][10][22] and has supported former President Donald Trump in the U.S.;[34][35] a 2019 report by NBC News showed it to be the second-largest funder of pro-Trump Facebook advertising after the Trump campaign.[30][36][22] The Epoch Times frequently promotes other Falun Gong-affiliated groups, such as the performing arts company Shen Yun.[34][24][37] The Epoch Media Group's news sites and YouTube channels have spread misinformation and conspiracy theories, such as QAnon and anti-vaccine misinformation,[34][40] and false claims of fraud in the 2020 United States presidential election.[43]"

https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-epoch-times/

"Overall, we rate The Epoch Times Right Biased and Questionable based on the publication of pseudoscience and the promotion of propaganda and conspiracy theories, as well as numerous failed fact checks.

Sorry, but I won't consider it a very reliable source.

Putting that aside

1&2. -it is scalable. Yes, but as you scale it up, costs go way up.

3. Again... cost. Pumping water over mountains costs money.

4. This whole thread until your post was about flooding in California due to recent storms.

5. Dams get built in canyons, not valleys. They have to be built between things on the side. If you build a dam across a stream in a valley, the water flows around the dam after it reaches a level above the stream banks. Building a dam across an entire valley is expensive and impractical - not mention all of the land that gets flooded and is thus unusable for agricultural, industrial, or residential use.

6. They are putting the plan into action. They haven't previously because they haven't had this kind of flooding for a long time.

[|] Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Let's see... your source is California Insider
>
> https://www.theepochtimes.com/c-california-insider
>
>
> Supports anti-vaxxers, supports the claim that
> January 6 was not a violent attack on the capitol,
> and in general seems to be anti-California biased
> about every topic..
>
>
> Owned by the Epoch Times

On El Gato's behalf: "D'oh!"

Apparently, California became aware of The Cat's criticism and couldn't take it, so they announced...

“We are taking steps to maximize groundwater recharge in a way that the state of California has never really done before,” said Erik Ekdahl, deputy director of the State Water Board’s water rights division.  “This is an immense opportunity to help recharge these depleted aquifers.

https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2023-03-11/california-will-use-floodwater-to-recharge-groundwater

Thank God (E=MC^2) for The Cat's courageous efforts on your behalf!

There's no way you woke libtards in California could have come up with this on your own.

Do you know how aquifers are refilled?




ANS:
They are refilled by rainfall and melting snow infiltrating through the soil into the aquifer's recharge zone - the location of which depends on geology/geography (for example the recharge zone for the Dakota aquifer in the midwest is in the Rocky Mountains). The rate of recharge also depends on the geology - primarily on the permeability of the soil and rocks of the aquifer.
When the rate of runoff exceeds the rate of infiltration, then the rest of the water will not enter the aquifer, but will enter streams.

When the runoff rate is as extreme as it currently is in California, very little of the water will be able to enter the aquifer - no matter what you or anyone else wishes.

Yes, it is possible to artificially pump water into the aquifer, but the injection wells have to in place, and the rate water can be pumped into the aquifer is still limited by the permeability of the aquifer. The amount of precipitation and runoff that California is currently experiencing far exceeds the rate at which the aquifer can handle. So you cannot prevent the flooding by "refilling the aquifer".

I believe another factor is the moisture content of the soil. If the ground is too dry, it becomes less permeable and more of the new water runs off.

CA probably needs a few good wet winters to fill the aquifers up.

Depends on the local geology. In most cases, if the soil is dry, infiltration will increase and runoff and streamflow will decrease. If it is an area where soil forms hardpan, then infiltration will be inhibited and runoff will increase.

If the soil is completely saturated, then all new water will be runoff.

The ratio of runoff to infiltration depends on the soil characteristics, but also on the rate of delivery of water to the soil. If the rate of delivery exceeds the infiltration capacity, runoff will occur. If the rate of delivery is less that the rate of infiltration, then all of the water will enter groundwater.

It should also be noted that recharge of aquifers may occur at some distance from the point it is used. An aquifer may consist of a permeable rock layer overlain by an impermeable stratum. If that is the case, then recharge of the aquifer will occur where that aquifer is exposed at the surface or where the impermeable layer above is non-existent. That could be some distance from where the aqifer is being tapped.

Thanks.

And, yes, it will take years to replenish groundwater in California.

Parts of the Central Valley have sunk 10-20+ feet in the last century due to subsidence from groundwater removal. That would be very, very difficult to reverse.

That groundwater hydrology course I took many years ago is suddenly helpful again ;-)

[|] Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> That groundwater hydrology course I took many
> years ago is suddenly helpful again ;-)

I wish they'd put it on YouTube!

I would love to have access to the information you learned.

Thank you very much for your post!

Some people don't seem to know anything about anything. Others have no sense and even less sensitivity. Others still seem ruthless. Some check all boxes.

Don't know about youtube, buy=t google "groundwater hydrology courses online"

[|] Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Don't know about youtube, buy=t google
> "groundwater hydrology courses online"


Will do!

Thank you, [|].

A groundwater hydrology course is likely to be quite technical and mathematical since it will be directed primarily at professionals.

[|] Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> A groundwater hydrology course is likely to be
> quite technical and mathematical since it will be
> directed primarily at professionals.

I understand, but this is--I discovered in the last hour or so-- beside the point.

Go to YouTube and search for "groundwater hydrology."

Although there is no "course" involved, learning the overall basics is then available to anyone with access to YouTube.

This is the way I do dishes. (Actually, I can't really do dishes very well without listening to YouTube for simultaneous brain sustenance.)

YouTube is how I learned much of what I now know about, for example: Judaism (Henry Abramson; Natan Slifkin); some critically important parts of global history (I VERY highly recommend the videos by Timothy Snyder of Yale University); and so on, and so on.

Now, thanks to your post on RfM, I will be able to add groundwater hydrology to my list of things I know enough about to know what I do NOT know!

Naturally, my newly-developed knowledge will be limited to the primary basics, but it means that if I decided to write an article for a periodical, or a script for a video, or whatever, about groundwater hydrology, I would (because of your post) have the initial factual information (plus the leads to the relevant experts in the various fields) to do so.

[I am a writer.]

I thank you very much for sharing this information about your groundwater hydrology education on RfM.

Thank you!!



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 03/11/2023 01:35AM by Tevai.

North Dakota resident here. We are shut down until at least Monday. NO snowplows until then, highways shut down. Blizzard conditions. So, we don't do stupid stuff and try to get around with 2-4 foot drifts over some roads, even if we could get out of the driveway.

Neighbor with calving going on brought all the cattle in to protected areas. Rope strung on posts from house to barn and equipment shed. Goes up every winter. Too easy to get lost in a whiteout with 20+ mph winds and sub zero temperatures. So, hold to the rope & go. Without it you get turned around, wind makes eyes water and 20 below 0 temperatures freeze the tears - you are effectively blind.

Tractors with blades for snow moving - but doing it in 35+ winds and blizzard conditions is self defeating. Just the close in stuff and to help livestock. Major moving of snow after it subsides.

It is winter. It happens every year. Some more severe, some less. But we are prepared. If not you are asking for trouble.

A song up here: 30 below keeps the rif-raf away.

You know snow! Keep warm and safe.

I'm sitting in a deluge as we speak. Waiting in my car in the hospital parking lot to pick my brother up after surgery. It's chilly and I forgot to bring my snack bars. Water is pounding down on my car. But obviously it's nowhere close to your situation. And, of course, we're used to rain rain rain up here. Today is pretty darn wet though. And chilly. I could go inside but the place is full of sick people. I'm in avoid mode so here I sit. At least I've got my book.

Take it easy down there. Hope things settle down soon.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/11/2023 11:29AM by Nightingale.

I don't know what is going on here, we have sun and a blue sky! It is kinna scary. They are saying a full week of rain is on it's way but we will be in the 50s so no snow. Maybe.

I'll say a safe word for you, Sus!

We have an 1890's farm in SoCal that has withstood fires, floods, earthquakes, but the one thing that will eventually take it down....is termites.

Keep a snorkel handy