Well, they said we would get snow. And we’re getting it.
I was just outside with the dog, who was not at all thrilled to find his usual preferred early-morning pee spot covered with about six inches of cold, white powder. He basically peed on the front step and then begged to return to the fireplace.
What a way to start the day.
The winter storm warning remains in effect through early afternoon, and the Capital Region is now forecast to receive between 12 and 24 inches of snow. That’s two feet. TWO FEET. Welcome to winter. The rate of snowfall could reach up to three inches an hour this morning, making travel downright treacherous.
In short, if you don’t have to go out in your car, don’t.
Hundreds of flights have been cancelled up and down the eastern seaboard as a result of the storm, which is expected to produce more snow for New York City than the five boroughs saw in entirety ALL last winter. Amtrak had modified service. There have already been some car accidents and deaths.
Many schools have decided to go all remote, which the pandemic has taught them that the can do so as not to lose any instruction days, sparking considerable debate over whether a time-honored childhood tradition – the snow day – is a thing of the past.
For the record: Not everyone thinks snow days are obsolete.
It’s the eighth and final night of Hanukah. (Yes, I’m officially out of candles – made it through six nights). It’s also National Maple Syrup Day, which is a nice coincidence for those of us who will be stuck in the house (more so than usual, I mean, as a result of the snow), and perhaps will have just a little extra time for making breakfast.
Up until the 1930s, the United States led in maple syrup production, now Canada is the world’s largest maple syrup producer. Our next-door-neighbor, Vermont, is the largest producer of syrup in the 50 states.
It takes about 40 gallons of sap to make one gallon of maple syrup because sap is 98 percent water. All of this water is boiled off, leaving behind the sweet syrup, which, if it’s boiled down even more, becomes maple sugar.
Maple syrup is really a North American thing, and not something you will find much in Europe or other countries, because their climates are – generally speaking – not conducive to producing it.
It’s about 17 degrees as I type this. The temperature is only expected to hit a high of 23 or so, even after the snow stops, and we’ll have a few 20-something days until it “warms” up this weekend, getting somewhere into the mid-30s.
Thus far, it looks like we might get hit with some more snow – not a lot, but enough to feel festive – on Christmas. But it’s early yet. We’ll see how it all develops.
In the headlines…
U.S. officials reported the highest daily number for new coronavirus since the pandemic began, as well as the most deaths in a single day. New infections were put at 244,365, and deaths at 3,607 — nearly 500 more than the record set only a week ago.
As boxes of Pfizer vaccines began arriving around the country this week, hospital pharmacists made a surprising discovery: Some of the glass vials that are supposed to hold five doses contained enough for a sixth — or even a seventh — person.
“At this time, given the public health emergency, FDA is advising that it is acceptable to use every full dose obtainable (the sixth, or possibly even a seventh) from each vial,” Monique Richards, an FDA spokesperson, said.
President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President Mike Pence are locking in plans to get vaccinated for the coronavirus, but President Donald Trump hasn’t yet followed suit.
Pence is set to publicly receive a vaccine tomorrow, along with his wife, Karen, Biden is expected to be vaccinated as soon as next week.
Pence wants to get his shot on camera at the White House to build “vaccine confidence” among the American people.
Amazon has asked the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to give priority to its workers as vaccinations for Covid-19 begin to roll out.
Two health care workers at the same hospital in Alaska developed concerning reactions just minutes after receiving Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine this week, including one staff member who was to remain hospitalized until today.
A set of federal standards for minimum filter efficiency and labels indicating which products meet them are being developed for the bewildering marketplace for masks and other face coverings.
Former Republican New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie says in a new national TV ad that he regrets not wearing a mask while visiting the White House earlier this year, a choice he acknowledges led to him contracting the coronavirus and spending a week in the ICU.
Department of Interior Secretary David Bernhardt has tested positive for COVID-19 following days of meetings with political appointees, a department spokesman confirmed.
South Carolina Republican Rep. Joe Wilson announced that he tested positive for COVID-19 just hours after speaking on the House floor about the Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed and the beginnings of vaccine distribution across the country.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is quarantining after coming into contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19.
Congressional leaders were on the verge of cementing a roughly $900 billion stimulus deal to deliver emergency aid to individuals and companies devastated by the toll of the worsening pandemic, racing to finish the details and stave off a government shutdown on Friday.
The package that would bankroll another round of direct checks to most taxpayers, renew lapsed federal unemployment benefits and deliver more subsidies to struggling small businesses.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said that the U.S. economy urgently needs more relief from Congress as COVID-19 cases surge.
New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker said that the $900 billion coronavirus relief bill that Congress is on the edge of passing fails to provide “robust funding” to communities of color that have been hardest hit by the pandemic.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo lashed out at congressional negotiators who are considering a new federal stimulus bailout measure without a provision to send money to deficit-ridden state and local governments across the country.
It’s looking more likely that direct payments to Americans will be included in the new coronavirus aid Congress aims to pass before lawmakers head home for the holidays. Those stimulus checks could be around $600 to $700 per individual.
As Congress in recent days seemed to be edging closer to reaching a compromise on a federal aid package that would likely provide $4 billion to the M.T.A., the agency has been able to avoid, for now, imposing its doomsday plan for service cuts.
MTA Chairman Patrick Foye warned that the cuts, as well as thousands of layoffs, could still be implemented if the federal government doesn’t come through soon with $4.5 billion in aid.
Biden’s allies are raising millions of dollars from corporations and individuals by offering special “V.I.P. participation” in reimagined inaugural festivities that will be largely virtual because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Biden has chosen Brenda Mallory, an environmental lawyer who spent more than 15 years working in the federal government under both Republican and Democratic presidents, to lead the Council on Environmental Quality.
Trump’s neighbors in Florida are seeking to enforce a decades-old compact that says Mar-a-Lago, his private social club, cannot be used as a full-time residence — as the outgoing president has suggested he plans to do after he leaves the White House.
The holiday shopping season got off to a muted start as U.S. consumers reined in November spending amid a surge in coronavirus infections and new business restrictions in some states.
Staffers at New York City’s public hospitals started receiving the Covid-19 vaccine yesterday, and Cuomo said the state would designate major hospital chains in 10 regions of New York to serve as hubs for broader vaccine administration.
Cuomo outlined the next steps for the COVID-19 vaccine to be distributed to more people in New York over the next 6-8 weeks.
Members of the general public with underlying health conditions that make them especially vulnerable to Covid-19 could start getting vaccinated against the illness in late January.
“In New York state, no person will have to pay a penny for vaccination.” Cuomo added. “We want people to be vaccinated. It shouldn’t be about wealth. No one will pay a penny.”
The COVID-19 vaccine could be administered to New York nursing home staffers and residents as early as Monday, officials said.
The NYPD will start offering the COVID-19 vaccine to its force within two weeks.
New York’s nonessential businesses may be forced to close again in January if the state doesn’t clamp down on escalating coronavirus cases, which have soared in recent weeks to record levels not seen since the spring, Cuomo said.
It’s simply a function of people’s behavior, Cuomo said: “If New Yorkers are responsible and hospitals step up their game, we may not have a shutdown.”
New York state lawmakers may act this month to raise taxes on high-income people, a top legislator said, as the state confronts a budget deficit exacerbated by the pandemic.
Ten major labor unions in New York, including the state AFL-CIO, are pushing for a tax increase on the highest earners in New York as the state faces a multi-billion dollar budget shortfall.
But the governor suggested that state lawmakers should not return to Albany before the end of the year to raise taxes. “If the Legislature wants to do the budget now, we can do that but we have to do a budget, not just a tax increase,” he said.
New York plans to “advance” $1.5 billion to cash-strapped organizations and agencies as Cuomo said he won’t consider raising taxes on the wealthy until next year despite the state’s dire fiscal situation.
Charities serving New York’s most vulnerable are facing financial ruin as influential state lawmakers charge that the administration of Cuomo has been offering a “poor” and disproven excuse for not stepping in to help.
Cuomo indicated that he would be open to fully legalizing online sports betting as a means of generating new revenue in New York.
The governor’s re-election campaign is holding a virtual birthday fundrasier for him tonight, according to an invitation for the event. Additional tickets range from $1,000 to $5,000 for a main reception. There is also a $50 ticket for young professionals.
The Cuomo administration is moving ahead with a planned increase in the minimum wage in the suburbs and upstate despite the pandemic-fuel recession that has ravaged small businesses in New York.
The state Assembly postponed a hearing scheduled for today on mayor control of New York City schools “due to weather” — even though it was set to take place remotely.
The governor’s office confirmed that school districts across the state can expect state aid payments for December to be paid in full despite ongoing uncertainty around the federal stimulus package.
The sale or display of Confederate flags, swastikas and other “symbols of hate” on state property is banned in New York under a law signed by Cuomo despite concerns it may violate free speech protections under the U.S. Constitution.
New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson unveiled legislation that would overhaul New York City’s long-term planning processes.
The Council released a report making the case for a comprehensive planning framework to guide future development, and faults the current process for lacking a “clear citywide vision” and “unfairly targeting certain neighborhoods to bear the burdens of growth.”
The Real Estate Board of New York is calling for an extension of eviction moratoriums in the city.
A Brooklyn school where roughly 150 students and staff crowded into a cafeteria last week for lunch has turned up no positive COVID-19 cases after health officials tested everyone in the building Monday, Education Department officials confirmed.
Whole Foods employees in Brooklyn are accusing the grocery giant of failing to keep them safe in the wake of a series of coronavirus cases at two locations.
Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have charged a Kenyan man with plotting a Sept. 11-style attack on a building in an American city, according to a newly unsealed federal indictment.
The Justice Department plans to unseal new charges in the coming days in connection with the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am jet that exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 people.
First responders quickly rescued the 101-year-old mother of state Sen. Simcha Felder and three others after a fire erupted in a synagogue operating out of a Brooklyn home yesterday morning.
New York City’s closed 21 Club could still make a comeback — but laid-off workers worry the famed restaurant might reopen without them.
For the first time since its inception in 1907, the city’s famed New Year’s ball will drop — and mark the start of 2021 — in an empty Times Square.
Eddy Heritage House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center now has one of the deadliest coronavirus outbreaks among residential facilities in Rensselaer County.
Schenectady City Councilman Ed Kosiur, who faces allegations he abused children decades ago, is retiring from his elected position and his job with Schenectady County.
Former Rochester Police Chief La’Ron Singletary claims Mayor Lovely Warren asked him to provide false and incomplete testimony in a City Council investigation into the Daniel Prude case.
The City of Newburgh is having a moment.
