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Apparently I do need to mention the mild start, since even after I pointed it out you stated that it is already "pretty grim" despite that fact that it wasn't.
Yes, Houston is warmer than Buffalo typically by 15 to 25 degrees, 365 days of the year, winter and summer. So on Buffalo's nicest days, Houston is always blazing hotter. And on Buffalo's coldest days, Houston is also usually cold (by Houston standards).
On Houston's most comfortable days (70s and low 80s) Buffalo is typically in the upper 40s thru 60s. Cooler, yes, but also pleasant. Autumn in the Northeast is the best.
I said typically grim in November, you can cherry pick a few nice days in any location. When you live somewhere you can't just teleport yourself out on the bad days. In 2019 you got nearly a foot of snow on November 11th/12th with nighttime lows in the low teens.
Now that's not typical either, but just like a stretch of 60s and low 70s..it can happen. The 'typical' is more like a high somewhere between 40 and 50, which I think is decidedly less pleasant than a high between 60 and 70 (and I think most people would agree).
Houston catches a lot of flak in this thread, and I think the anti-Sun Belt faction loves to hate it because it's not sexy, it's not a beach city, it gets very high summer temps with high humidity while also having the 'sin' of being potentially open to winter cold air intrusions.
However, it's easy to forget there that Houston will get a good number of 'goldilocks' days with highs between 65 and 80 in every January and December. So while Buffalo might be digging out from another blizzard, Houstonians might be sitting on the patio enjoying the mild to warm air.
People who don't live in Texas often DO think that! LOL
I've lived in the north, for the record. I guess it depends on where you live. However, where I lived, there was often snow piled up in parking lots in APRIL. No thanks.
But it's not just the snow and ice, it's also the temps. Brrrrr And I remember when I lived in the northern states (and in Germany) it took awhile to get dressed in - in this order - boots, gloves, scarf, coat, hat - to even go check the freaking mail, let alone go shopping where one had to lug a coat and other "accoutrements" around.
Dirty snowbanks in spring are not a pretty sight, but its a small price to pay for the beauty of a proper winter IMO. Plus, it is kinda cool to see how long those take to melt lol.
The temps I find enjoyable as long as they are not damp. I have felt 29 in College Station and that 29 felt nasty and unpleasant. The same 29 in Minnesota is likely more dry and feels crisp and pleasant to me. Germany, I reckon is very damp in winter.
I'm pro cold weather, but here's my argument for warmer weather. If you were a roofer, would you want to work when it's 30 or 90 degrees?
30. You could wear gloves, coats, etc. 30 isn't all that cold, though. I wouldn't compare it with 90. I would pick 80 over 30 for working roofing but 30 over 90.
I said typically grim in November, you can cherry pick a few nice days in any location. When you live somewhere you can't just teleport yourself out on the bad days. In 2019 you got nearly a foot of snow on November 11th/12th with nighttime lows in the low teens.
Now that's not typical either, but just like a stretch of 60s and low 70s..it can happen. The 'typical' is more like a high somewhere between 40 and 50, which I think is decidedly less pleasant than a high between 60 and 70 (and I think most people would agree).
Houston catches a lot of flak in this thread, and I think the anti-Sun Belt faction loves to hate it because it's not sexy, it's not a beach city, it gets very high summer temps with high humidity while also having the 'sin' of being potentially open to winter cold air intrusions.
However, it's easy to forget there that Houston will get a good number of 'goldilocks' days with highs between 65 and 80 in every January and December. So while Buffalo might be digging out from another blizzard, Houstonians might be sitting on the patio enjoying the mild to warm air.
I mean we even get some mid 70s in November some years. February? That would be historic. I don't care for temps that warm so early. Idk about your generation, but my generatio is depressed enough with the prospects of global warming, I am not wishing for 75 on Valentine's Day.
I mean we even get some mid 70s in November some years. February? That would be historic. I don't care for temps that warm so early. Idk about your generation, but my generatio is depressed enough with the prospects of global warming, I am not wishing for 75 on Valentine's Day.
Agreed. 80 in December makes me nervous for what's to come.
Agreed. 80 in December makes me nervous for what's to come.
Right.
A few years ago MN recorded tornadoes in December for the first time in recorded history. We hit 57 in the Twin Cities, I am sure southern MN got into the 60s. This ain't normal.
All the wildfires raging in Canada this summer causing the entire eastern half of the US to choke on toxic air for weeks on end isn't normal, either. This is our future, sadly.
I'm pro cold weather, but here's my argument for warmer weather. If you were a roofer, would you want to work when it's 30 or 90 degrees?
Depends on the humidity level.
90 with 20% humidity is fine.
90 with 50% humidity is muggy and unpleasant.
90 with 80% humidity is oppressive and potentially dangerous for some individuals.
I said typically grim in November, you can cherry pick a few nice days in any location. When you live somewhere you can't just teleport yourself out on the bad days. In 2019 you got nearly a foot of snow on November 11th/12th with nighttime lows in the low teens.
Now that's not typical either, but just like a stretch of 60s and low 70s..it can happen. The 'typical' is more like a high somewhere between 40 and 50, which I think is decidedly less pleasant than a high between 60 and 70 (and I think most people would agree).
Houston catches a lot of flak in this thread, and I think the anti-Sun Belt faction loves to hate it because it's not sexy, it's not a beach city, it gets very high summer temps with high humidity while also having the 'sin' of being potentially open to winter cold air intrusions.
However, it's easy to forget there that Houston will get a good number of 'goldilocks' days with highs between 65 and 80 in every January and December. So while Buffalo might be digging out from another blizzard, Houstonians might be sitting on the patio enjoying the mild to warm air.
They might be, but they were likely very cold, as the day when Buffalo was hit by its December blizzard, Houston was under a Hard Freeze and Wind Chill warning, with low temperature in the area 10-15 deg F, and wind chills at 0 deg F.
But, absolutely Houston gets some good days in the winter. I lived most of my adult life in Houston. November can feel hot at times, but December is usually pleasant, and Houston's "fall" is in late December is when the deciduous trees lose their leaves and the grass turns all brown. Usually its not very Christmasy, but even Houston had a white Christmas a few years ago (of course that year I was visiting Austin where it wasn't).
And, in between pleasant winter days there are always those days to "protect your plants, pets, and pipes" that occur a couple times a season, some years more or less, some fairly significant, like the 2021 Texas Freeze. Even "mild" Texas winter climate has had weather events more catastrophic than anything ever experienced up north, in any season.
Believe it or not, there are a lot of things I like about Houston, but not its weather and climate.
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