I live in Oregon and have been watching the news about all of the horrible cold weather in the east. Our news is always showing car crashes with speeding cars colliding into other cars already wrecked often times at what appears to be very fast speed for the conditions.

Well here in the west, we are having high winds and tides along the Oregon Coast right now and the reporters are finding stories about all of the stupid people who are venturing out onto jetties and log strewn beaches, then getting hit by monster waves and getting swept out to sea or killed by the logs thrown around like toothpicks.

One victim crawled over a guard rail and climbed down to the boulders around a well known blow hole and he was hit by a big wave and lost.
Several of the beaches have been closed, something that doesn't happen very often. Despite the closures, many people are going around barricades. I think that some just want to be on the news.

Of course, our fine men and women of the Coast Guard go out and look for the victims, risking their own lives to save the stupid.

Rant off!

“The two most common elements in the universe are Hydrogen and stupidity.”
― Harlan Ellison

Two dead this fall under the exact same circumstances here in Marquette.
Lake Superior can kill you quick, if the conditions are right.

Soon enough we will have freezing rain and downed power lines in Michigan.

When I was a paid-on-call FF got assigned to a downed wire at a 7-11 store. Icy, windy, freezing rain and all flat surfaces were glare ice.

We set up cones and tape. Wire, about 7500 volts near a light pole that also had a outdoor pay phone. As the newby I was assigned to exit the truck if anyone approached the zone.

Car pulls up, guy gets out and approaches pole. As he is heading right for the zone, I exit the truck and say "Sir, stop". Well he does but starts giving me the "I need that phone" (pre cell days). So arguing back and forth he said "I'm using that phone" and before I could say anything a gust of wind blows the adjacent wirt into contact with the pole.

Bright blue flash, arcing and buzzing as the wire is momentarily welded to the pole, it then breaks away>
I said "Still wanna use it?"


He said nothing and got in his car and left......

And of course in Washington, a hillside is going to slide down into a small valley. Huge cracks in the earth. Geologists expect that it will slide within the next month or two. Hey! lets go for a walk on the hillside:

http://www.yakimaherald.com/sl...ea-fb9da97a114d.html

Click through the slides, and you'll see how big the slide will be.

And then there are those in WA that live on the coast at Washaway Beach, true name by the way, and watch as about 6-8 ft of bank washes away ech year and takes a couple of houses. What could go wrong?

while waiting in the car at Wal Mart , I watched the idiot bitch parked in front of me unload the cart at the rear of her s.u.v. and come around 14 feet ,in between the parked cars and park the cart in front of four vehicles.

instead of walking 15 feet in the other direction (directly behind her car )
and shoving it in to the cart collection thingey

I came close to making her aware, but she looked to be about 60, so she must just be a lost cause , if she is that oblivious

Or, those who drive around the fitness parking lot seeking a spot close to the front door.

Then spend an hour walking on the treadmill.