I moved here from California in late January of 2007, and immediately began to understand all the hullaballo about East Coast winters. Where I grew up, heavy winter coats are pulled out of moth balls for two weeks a year...and gloves, scarves and hats are worn for fashion, not function.

As the overnight lows edge closer to the freezing point, I make more and more trips to area stores to buy layers to keep the stinging cold out. Wednesday night, while I was watching Jeff Lawson's forecast the reality began to sink in, it's going to be a long, chilly winter.

The costliest purchase was a full length wool coat. It became painfully clear in February of 2007 that the vintage Navy peacoat swiped from my father's footlocker (He was stationed at Barbers Point, Hawaii, so the coat hadn't seen much action) wasn't going to be sufficient. It was hard to justify spending that much cash on a piece of clothing, but the investment immediately paid off Sunday night in Virginia Beach. It was miraculous....10:30 p.m. outside for hours on end....and I was warm.

So, if a 13 News van rolls into your neighborhood this winter and you see someone bundled up like the Michelin man...it's probably me.