Clear But Cold Weather Forecast PANICS Houston

And You Thought Texans Were Tough?

At the grocery store today (H.E.B.), some customers were talking of "shortages" on the shelves. I saw none, to be honest, at least nothing significant. 

Well, some raw chicken items were being restocked while I was there around 11:30 a.m. I spoke with the guy putting more bird parts on the shelves and he said, "You should have seen it yesterday. There was a rush on chicken." I asked him why. 

"The freeze is coming," he said. What he meant was the cold front predicted to hit Houston late Thursday evening. Temps will plunge to 19 degrees ("feels like 5") on Friday morning and some Houstonians are freaking out about that.

"Happens every time there's a freeze forecast," the stocker said. "Every single time," he chuckled.

Click to enlarge 
source: wunderground.com

Yes, people are actually panic buying, thinking they need to stock up for a few days of chilly but dry  weather. It's not going to snow. There will be no ice on the roads. What the heck do they think will happen? Deliveries will not be stopped or even slowed. Stores will not be closed.

The ONLY reason I can imagine that they're panic buying now is that the prospect of having to go out in temps below 50 generally terrifies them. And they say Texans are tough? LMAO. 

The next precipitation forecast is next Thursday, Dec 29, when temps will be well above 60 with no chance of freezing. But to me, a native of Wisconsin who spent half of my adult life in Chicago, a few days of dry, cool weather is no big deal.

They say "everything's bigger in Texas." I reckon that includes fear of chilly weather, too.