I've been calling it the Ides of December, too --but that would have been Dec. 13th --which was windy that day , too.

Apparently the ides occur on the 15th only in March, May, July and October, and on the 13th the other months.

How about the Gales of December,
or the gales of twelve-fifteen...

Hah! Great thread. I've heard several people grousing about how the storm doesn't have a good name yet, and I agree.

I made up "pre-Holiday storm" of 2006 and that's what I'm sticking with until I hear something better or more universally adopted. It needs some kind of name, for sure.

Thanks for the interesting thread, and the laugh.
Grant

We should name it after the last place that gets their lights back on.

Reg, there doesn't seem to be a lot to tie it to on that date. I looked, and came up with only the anniversary of George Washingtons death (since it was blowing and flooding here by noon on the 14th). Could we just call it George?

I don't know why we were so fortunate here so close to the ocean that most of us were back to normal within a day or so - except I found I was exhausted, I don't think I remembered to breathe for about 12 hours. A trailer, rake, and a borrowed gas mega leaf blower and DH with a group of friends who began with the church had the drives and houses on this block cleaned up by Saturday, mowed our lawn and the neighbors to finish up on Sunday. (touch of Christmas spirit I think)

I made a trip to Bellevue yesterday and saw evidence of wind damage the entire 110 miles which just impressed on me again how lucky we were.

Checking in from Vashon Island. We had winds clocked at 80 mph overhere on the sw end of the Island. I lost atleast 35 big trees from my two acre wood. Doug firs pulled out ot f the ground....really big Doug firs! Supersaturated clay soil just could not hold against the winds. Madrona's twisted and shattered. My woodpecker trees went down but new ones were started. Fortunately my ornamentals all survived, but the copper trellis loaded with Summer Wine rose and its huge red rose hips went down and pulled down the lights off the outside of the house. I had to trim it back to about 8' but it will renew itself and bloom better then ever I bet.

How about "Pre-Winter Solstice Storm of 06" Rather a mouthful, but one gardeners are attuned to!

Beginning tomorrow, sunset will be a minute later! We will be gaining a whole minute a day for the next couple of weeks. It can't come soon enough for me. Today looks like there will be a bit of sunshine. What a gloomy, stormy autumn this has been. It sounds like you got hit really hard Lizalily. My sympathies.

Since the 1962 storm was much bigger, how about calling this the "Stand-in Storm of 2006" ?

I like calling it George! You'd think in a state named after George I would have known that was the anniversary of his death. Having long deep roots in the Deep South I can appreciate calling storms by first name. I noticed whenever visiting grandparents that everyone would talk about hurricanes as if they were relatives - Camille did this and Frederick did that and then there was Gilbert, boy he was a wild one ...

but I think everyone else would be puzzled if we just called it George. George who??

I think Thurston County is all back on line now.

The nightmare before Christmas....apologies to Tim Burton.

We were actually spared, power only out for 7 hours.

Ha. I am going to use the "nightmare before christmas". That storm was quite a capper on a fall full of extreem weather. Our Poor trees. they have been through so much stress these past few years; so full of drought or flood. I live in the middle of a small forest and have been loosing pine and hemlock to stess realated illness. Then came this storm. The devistation was almost as bad as the ice storm we had about eight years ago. We were lucky to only loose a few trees, many were not.