I'm starting to think that it might have a negative affect on property values. Here is a list of news that has been made in the last 5 years within a mile of my house:
- Murder involving the radical MOVE group from Philadelphia at my apartment complex in Maple Shade, Jersey.
- Guy drives his car into a river in my complex in Palmyra, NJ after murdering his girlfriend and setting fire to her house. The girl's house was in JonathanM's house and MarkR had connections to the girl. The three of us sat in adjacent cubes at work. Weird.
- A month after I moved out of Eagan, MN, the apartment two doors down from me (same building) caught fire. I hope it wasn't the microwave I gave them.
- Black bear spotted less than half a mile from my house in Sammamish, WA.
- Downstairs neighbor locks himself in the house with guns and refuses to come out.
- Cops have standoff with car thieves down the road from my house.
The Jersey incidents aren't that surprising the but ones out here in Washington are odd. I live in one of the lowest crime communities in the Seattle area.
I feel like Hurley.
Speaking of that, I've been watching the 2007 World Series of Poker Main Event. So far Scotty Ngyuen has been doing well. He won the main event back in 1998. Did you know that the night he called home to tell his family he won, his brother died in the ensuing celebration?
My routine changes a bit in the winter as my whole life starts to revolve around snow levels. Base areas at local ski resorts are around 4000 feet and runs go over 6000. That translates to a simple rule of thumb:
Snow levels below 4000 make Ben happy. Snow levels above 4000 equal sad Ben.
We already had a brief dip below 4000 feet last week which gave the hills their first dusting. This weekend could bring some actual accumulation... granted it will melt, but this is pretty early for the Cascades to start getting hit.
... Snow showers down to near the 3500 foot level are likely in the Olympics and Cascades on Friday...
A strong storm system will usher in a colder air mass on Friday that will result in snow levels falling to near 3500 feet. A couple of inches of snow are likely above the 4000 foot level... with only a dusting expected below that level. [source]
The weather guys say this will be a La Nina winter which means average snowfall for most of the country and above average snowfall for the Pacific Northwest.