[Getmeouttacali]

At least a 2 car garage is definitely on our list for any house we consider. Hubby will actually be working mostly from home, but with travel all over SE Michigan, 1-3 times a week, mostly metro Detroit, occasionally Lansing or Ann Arbor. That’s kind of why we’re looking where we are, because it’s pretty centrally located. Possibly once every couple months or so he may have to go to Cincinnati or Cleveland, though probably not in the winter.

[Katarina Witt]

Originally Posted by Getmeouttacali

At least a 2 car garage is definitely on our list for any house we consider. Hubby will actually be working mostly from home, but with travel all over SE Michigan, 1-3 times a week, mostly metro Detroit, occasionally Lansing or Ann Arbor. That’s kind of why we’re looking where we are, because it’s pretty centrally located. Possibly once every couple months or so he may have to go to Cincinnati or Cleveland, though probably not in the winter.

Don't be so sure about that! People don't hole up in the winter in cold climates.

[magellan]

Many of the teenage boys in our high school wear shorts, year round. I'm not even joking. And then they wear sweatshirts and no coats. It's like they're rebelling against nature (and most either drive to school or are driven to school). No waiting at bus stops. My teenage girls however do not wear shorts or skirts in the winter. Hardly anyone wears winter boots, hats or gloves, other than ugly Ugg boots which I'm hoping finally die out as a fad soon.

Honestly for most people in Michigan, the longest walk you'll do outside is from your car to Meijer's front door in their massive parking lots. We as Americans have become indoor animals. A very small percentage of people in Michigan use transit so it's not like you're hiking to the bus or train station every day.

However, I do spend a lot of time in my car, outside on job sites, and getting in and out of my car. The best things to have (tips for your husband maybe):

) A car with heated seats
) Boots, gloves and a blanket in the car in case you end up in a ditch and can't get rescued for a few hours.
) I hate long johns but they have nicer and more comfortable versions of layering pants at sporting goods stores. Cold pants, especially dress pants, on your legs is not a good feeling.
) I personally hate wool socks. You can find thicker sportier socks that will work with dress shoes. I personally wear flip-flops or crocs around the house year round.
) Ear muffs. Your ears will feel the coldest on a windy day in the winter. Easy to put on and take off, and it doesn't mess up your hair. A lot of people are wearing hats as a fashion item lately though, especially guys. I saw people the other day with winter hats on and it was 70 that day (a Fall thing I guess)
) Most people wear boots as a fashion accessory. Very few people wear "snow boots" that actually will allow you to hike through the tundra for hours.
) Coats, plural, lol. I have coats for pretty much every kind of weather. Fleece, pea coat, puffy, etc.. Puffy vests are pretty popular right now for guys.

I personally would just wait until you get here and see how you feel. Just like acclimating to 106 degree desert weather takes a few weeks (or longer for me), the same can be said for winter weather.

Southeast Michigan get wussy winter weather. You can probably go all winter with a spring jacket.

Now excuse me while I go watch my daughter play her last 18 hole golf match of the season in 45 degree weather.

[mgkeith]

The kids needy for attention wear shorts. The others think they're nuts, I was told by a recent grad.



I wouldn't count on "wussy weather." It's variable. You will need warm jackets or coats, gloves, waterproof boots, at a minimum. I really like coats with hoods. Since you mentioned interest in these areas, Lansing and Ann Arbor areas do get more snow than southeast MI.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by mgkeith

The kids needy for attention wear shorts. The others think they're nuts, I was told by a recent grad.

I wouldn't count on "wussy weather." It's variable. You will need warm jackets or coats, gloves, waterproof boots, at a minimum. I really like coats with hoods. Since you mentioned interest in these areas, Lansing and Ann Arbor areas do get more snow than southeast MI.

We have a lot of "needy for attention" kids at our high school then. They're also pretty privileged so that plays a part in that I think. My 3 teenage girls also agree that many of the boys at school are hungry for attention (and un-date-able). lol. Note to parents of teenage boys.

Relatively speaking the winter weather in Lansing, Ann Arbor and Detroit area is not that bad. I grew up in Lansing, we begged for snow days and rarely got them. It was always Pewamo-Westphalia and Ovid-Elsie and other rural school districts who had them all the time. In West Michigan, we use up all the allotted snow days that the state allows and often go over (which extends the school year longer into June). But even here it's warmer and less windy/cold than Chicago or Minneapolis.

I don't think you need waterproof boots except maybe for snow-shoveling or snow-blowing. As someone mentioned, you can get those at Goodwill.

Not trying to diminish the importance of cold-weather gear, but with how little time most people spend outdoors, I think it gets a bit overblown.

[canudigit]

Originally Posted by magellan

Southeast Michigan get wussy winter weather. You can probably go all winter with a spring jacket.

No way. We may get less snow and overall precipitation than you get in western Michigan, but we still get bitter cold weather down here in the "sun belt" of Michigan.

I am an RN who used to work the night shift at a local hospice inpatient facility. Last winter there were plenty of instances where I walked out of work at 7 am and the air temperature was either just below zero or within a few degrees of it. A few years ago I remember leaving my job in NW Ohio, no less, at 7 am and it was -17 degrees F. That's not the wind chill, that's the actual air temperature. That winter (2014-15) was a bit extreme but still, single digit air temperatures in January and February are pretty common. A spring jacket would never be adequate unless you wanted a sure case of hypothermia.

That said, I do agree with your other post that people tend to overestimate what they are going to need to survive a winter in Michigan. I have seen threads here from people who are moving to Metro Detroit and want to know if snow tires will be adequate for getting around in the winter or if they will need tire chains as well. I have lived in this climate since I was born and I have never owned snow tires and done just fine. Do they still make snow tires? I remember that being more of a thing when I was a kid in the '70s but I never hear of them anymore. As far as putting chains on your car's tires, I am pretty sure they are illegal on the roads here, or if they aren't I have never, ever seen them in use.

Bottom line: Winter in Michigan gets cold and snowy, that's a fact. Winter in Michigan can also be 50 degrees and balmy at times and the snow cover, at least here in SE Michigan, is not consistent, as in, we do not have a foot of snow on the ground from November to March and there are even times when you can scarcely see any snow on the ground at all. The road crews are diligent and work around the clock if we do get snow or ice and public places clean their parking lots at 4 am so that you can get your cup of coffee, gallon of milk, or whatever at 7 am and barely get your shoes wet.

It's winter but it's tolerable. Honestly, give me a cold, fairly cloudy winter over sweltering heat for months on end or hurricanes any day. As I've gotten older, and especially in recent years with all of the devastation down South, I am happy to stay right here and just bundle up.

[craig11152]

Originally Posted by canudigit

if we do get snow or ice and public places clean their parking lots at 4 am so that you can get your cup of coffee, gallon of milk, or whatever at 7 am and barely get your shoes wet.

Except when the snow starts in earnest at 4AM

I agree moving and clearing snow is a 24 hour a day thing when snow happens. But they can't keep up when it snows hard, and they can't control when snow happens. That's why schools close and rush hours turn into nightmares. At some point(s) every winter people turn on the TV or radio specifically to see or hear the cancellation list.


2-3 days after an 8-12 inch snow storm most everything is back to normal but during that 8-12 snow things aren't normal

[craig11152]

Originally Posted by magellan

I don't think you need waterproof boots except maybe for snow-shoveling or snow-blowing. As someone mentioned, you can get those at Goodwill.
Not trying to diminish the importance of cold-weather gear, but with how little time most people spend outdoors, I think it gets a bit overblown.

I think the notion one can walk in to a second hand store and find a rack full of winter boots in assorted sizes is extremely overblown. It doesn't hurt to try but chances are extremely high you are going to strike out if you are trying to outfit several people, or even one person. It is very hit or miss. I've tried.


Ironically one place I don't much wear my winter boots is shoveling snow because I stay behind the shovel and walk on the freshly cleared concrete.
I do wear them to walk the dog, take the dog to the dog park, walk my back yard cleaning up the dog poop, going to the store at 4pm when its been snowing since 10 am, going to the store at 7AM when its been snowing since midnight. I wear my winter boots often during the winter.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by craig11152

Except when the snow starts in earnest at 4AM

I agree moving and clearing snow is a 24 hour a day thing when snow happens. But they can't keep up when it snows hard, and they can't control when snow happens. That's why schools close and rush hours turn into nightmares. At some point(s) every winter people turn on the TV or radio specifically to see or hear the cancellation list.


2-3 days after an 8-12 inch snow storm most everything is back to normal but during that 8-12 snow things aren't normal

This is turning into one of those threads where "when I was a kid, we have it so bad...."

The State of Michigan provides for 6 snow or inclement weather days per year, and if you use those up, then you have to extend school into June. Do schools in Lansing or Detroit area even come close to using those up?

GRPS strangely took no snow days this last season. We're in a more rural district so we had 3 or 4 I think.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/loc...ays/523789002/

We don't have a foot of snow on the ground from November to April but we do have about a foot on the ground from mid January through March. It's unusual to see grass during that period unless we get a really long warmup. The roads are fine. Every season I can think of a few days where the roads are un-driveable. And that's until about mid-day and then the plows have gotten most of the main roads. Secondary roads can be **** for a couple of days.

I've never owned snow tires. I've heard you can't or shouldn't drive on them in warmer months, so that means switching out your tires and keeping an extra set around? Is that a thing?

[Zenstyle]

I'm a professional dog walker in West Michigan, and like you, O.P., not especially a fan of layering. Almost all of my work clothes and outerwear come from L L Bean.
Get yourself a nice merino wool turtleneck (merino is non-itchy) and a hooded down coat and you're in business.

As far as below the waist, knee-high Smartwool socks, flannel-lined jeans (Bean!) and rugged-soled boots will do it. Gloves of course, also.