Can anyone explain to me why people who live in the Northwest/Mid-Atlantic (or anywhere where they have real winters) rush out to buy snows shovels every time a winter storm is coming? (This is not a trick question).

We are expecting a major winter storm and every time this happens the local new always does stories from area hardware stores about how there is this big rush on snow shovels. What I want to ask these people is: Why the hell don’t you already have a snow shovel? This is not Florida. I can understand maybe rushing out to get rock salt/de-icer. That’s a consumable. You can run out of it. But what I want to know is what the hell happened to the snow shovel you used last winter, and the winter before that, and the winter before that? I have had the same two snow shovels for over ten years, maybe longer than that. Winter after winter. I don’t need to run out for one at the last minute. What is wrong with these people?