Holy Flying Frozen Monkeys, Batman!

It's cold! Frigid, blizzarding, your-nose-will-fall-off old-school prairie cold. Cold that makes me consider life in a sweaty, humid, melt-your-nose-off tropical jungle with innumerable crawly things in a positive light. Currently it's -27C with a strong wind blowing snow and a windchill of -42. I haven't been outside all day but am considering taking the garbage out. It's approximately a 3 minute walk roundtrip and this decision requires serious thought. Rem likes this sort of extreme weather. It makes him giddy.

The really great news is this cold snap is going to stick around to Thursday at the earliest. We're looking at highs of -22C and lows of -34C, and who knows what the wind will add to this.

I read last week that about 40 of Edmonton's homeless people die every year -- mostly out of accumulated effects of living on the streets for years, but I wonder how many are suffering outside in this mess. Will anyone be found frozen in a snowdrift after this week? There are only about 800 shelter spaces for something like 2000 homeless folks. Where do the others go in situations like this? I can't imagine wearing enough clothes to keep you alive for long in these temperatures and yet there are still people who camp in the river valley.