How Bad Was It? Hell Froze Over

Twenty inches of snow fell on us over a three-day period. Temperatures dropped below zero and stayed there, setting several records. Schools closed. Businesses closed. Even Western Michigan University closed for two days, a rare event. The Kalamazoo Gazette said our winter weather in southwestern Michigan was a dreadful as anything experienced over the last hundred years. Conditions were as bad or worse elsewhere in the state.

To a lad who grew up in northern Wisconsin it didn't seem so awful. After all, my hometown of Tomahawk experienced 30 days of below-zero temps in a typical winter. But then various media had some fun telling us how bad things were. I had to admit it was terrible. I learned that Hell froze over.

The sign that welcomes visitors to Hell, Michigan

A few folks have told the geezer to go there over the years. And some who thought I might wander on the way have told me to go straight there. Yet I knew nothing about Hell. A bit of research revealed that Hell, Michigan, is a small village near Ann Arbor. Going to Hell from our home is a 95 mile trip.

A Hell resident who may have been exaggerating just a bit said the temperature dropped to 30 below zero (Fahrenheit) one night last weekend. He somewhat proudly posed beside an abandoned plow that got stuck in a huge snow drift while trying to rescue another truck stuck in a drift. You can be amused by this and other media reports on the subject if you choose. Just navigate to your favorite search engine and go to Hell.

This should be an amazing year. We'll get to enjoy all those things that never were supposed to happen until Hell froze over.