Perfect snow

This is a perfect snow.  Just a little, not a lot and not on the driveway or streets. If only. We woke up to this today but they are promising more and more for the next three days.  

Here's another geography lesson.  Michigan is unique in that we are surrounded by the Great Lakes,  lakes which people think of as inland seas because they are so big. It's about 120 miles or so across Lake Michigan.  Draw a line directly down the middle of the state and Lake Michigan governs our weather to the west of that line.  When the cold Canadian air comes across Lake Michigan, which is considered warm because it isn't frozen, snow happens.  We call it Lake Effect snow and that impacts the western shores and depending on the wind speeds, can reach into Grand Rapids, a 45 minute drive    from the lake. Anything west of Grand Rapids can get really pounded with lake effect snow.  I am  about 15 miles further inland (see that little blue box east of Grand Rapids? It says Grand River?  That's about where I am. We can skirt by many big snowfall inches by just being that little bit farther from the lake.  Lansing? No lake effect unless the winds are very, very strong and carry the snow that much further.  Detroit?  No lake effect.  

Then there's what is called system snow and everybody gets that. It's a storm that wonks everyone.  Tomorrow's forcasted 6 inch snow? Lake effect.

Absolutely no stitching being done.