Yep, Thats right..Just as we entered Winter, Victoria, Aus,just got into summer...with a snowstorm!...They say it was the coldest X-Mas in 150 years.Getting snow there now is like DC geting snow in June!......Wuzzzzz UPPPP Mountain Mash?...... just Got back from the Outback Steak house to pay my respect to the snow Gods....

That's really crazy. Australia has been colder than normal a good bit lately; I heard that when Al Gore was Down-Under recently, the weather was unusually cool (G. W. can bring extreme weather events, both hot and cold). The main reason why the mid-Atlantic seems to be stuck in this mild pattern is a large "Bermuda High" that continues to sit off the East Coast. This large high pressure system (when in place) blocks the Southern branch of the Jet Stream from heading straight across the Continent; instead, the Southern Jet is turned Northward up the Ohio Valley or along the East Coast. At some point, I expect the current Bermuda High to weaken, which should allow the Northern Branch of the Jet to dip down over the mid-Atlantic. However, because the size of the Arctic air mass is quite small this Winter (due to G. W.), I believe that future cold spells are likely to be "seasonal" rather than bitter cold.