If You Don't Have to Get Out, Don't

The man on the television screen violently shivered in the cold. His lips seemed to be turning a pale shade of blue as he struggled to open his mouth wide enough to sound coherent. Bundled up like an Eskimo, he managed to choke out one of my favorite phrases:

“If you don’t have to get out, don’t.”

During my full time news career, nothing excited me more than weather coverage. Most people would hear a forecast calling for rain, sleet or snow and cringe. I would grin ear to ear, looking forward to what awaited me.

Whenever bad weather was predicted, the station would put me up in the hotel next door for the night. They couldn’t risk me not being able to get to work, so it was automatically an evening of room service and bad television. Bad weather was like a mini vacation, only I didn’t have to pay for it.

Second, I never had to actually get out into the elements. I was a producer, which meant I got to boss reporters around from the comfort of a nice, warm newsroom. No shivering in the cold or blue lips for me. I got to do what I do best—boss people around—while staying toasty.

Weather coverage is also exciting. It’s fast paced, adrenaline rush work. The time flew by, so I barely noticed how many hours I was putting in or how much coffee I was consuming. No sitting around the newsroom trying to scrounge up a story idea or praying for breaking news. The day pretty much planned itself.

However, it wasn’t brain surgery. The information needed was basic: how bad was it out, what areas were hit hardest, road conditions, etc. Agencies that usually ignored us were suddenly eager to give us information during bad weather, so they often called me with news updates instead of the usual, which consisted of me calling and asking for information and getting the runaround.

My favorite part of weather coverage was seeing how many clichés I could fit into a newscast. There are so many in weather coverage, including my previously mentioned favorite. Weather in St. Louis also holds an additional treat. For some reason, people rush out to the store to buy milk and bread whenever a storm is forecast. I never understood that. What are you going to make with that? It sounds like a meal straight from a Dickens novel. My weather groceries of choice? Frozen dinners and tequila.

But my tune has changed now that I’m no longer in the news business. Bad weather makes me cranky instead of excited. I cringe whenever I hear a forecast calling for rain, sleet or snow. And whenever I hear my favorite weather cliché—if you don’t have to get out, don’t—I actually follow the advice. No more mini hotel vacations for me. I’ll just enjoy watching other people freeze from the nice, warm comfort of my living room sofa with a frozen dinner and tequila in hand.