How to get from orange county to Simi valley today?

What do you think about article "Storm brings gusty winds and minor flooding"?

• Storm brings gusty winds and minor flooding Mother Nature waved goodbye to Santa Claus and took over from there, pounding the Bay Area on Tuesday with howling wind and rain, some minor flooding and a sobering reminder about who exactly is in charge this time of year. Whipping winds up to 35 miles per hour blew down trees and tossed debris around the San Francisco Bay Area as 2 to 3 inches of rain fell in the wettest coastal regions of Marin and Sonoma counties. Surging waves up to 20 feet high pounded the beaches. Thunder and lightning rocked Mendocino County and the northern Sacramento Valley while high winds in the Sierra closed ski resorts. Up to 3 feet of snow blanketed the Tahoe area, according to the National Weather Service. Although the rain was heavy and the wind was fierce at times, meteorologists said the storm was not unusual for this time of year. "It's what I would call a moderate storm, about a 6 on a scale of 10," said Jan Null, a consultant and adjunct professor of meteorology at San Francisco State University. "We have one or two of these each year. As far as a widespread big event, this is very vanilla." Most residents hunkered down with new gadgets, toys and confusing assembly directions and waited out the day-after-Christmas storm. It was a little more nerve-racking for those living near creeks and waterways. An urban- and small-stream flood advisory remained in effect throughout the night. Residents and merchants in Marin County kept a close watch on San Anselmo Creek. The flood-prone waterway poured over its banks during heavy rains last New Year's Eve, flooding about 500 homes and businesses. The flood cost San Anselmo merchants millions of dollars, putting some of them out of business and others on the brink of ruin. Sandbags were stacked in the flood-prone areas Tuesday. At least 30 merchants had floodgates up to redirect water away from their businesses. San Anselmo Councilwoman Barbara Thornton, who was mayor until earlier this month, said the town has spent the past year preparing for another flood. "We've worked hard throughout the year with businesses and residents to try to get them prepared," she said. "Last year you couldn't even say 'happy New Year' to anybody because of the situation." The National Weather Service issued a high surf advisory through Thursday, which could be good news for surfers, but most Bay Area surfboards remained at home Tuesday. "It's a little bit too stormy," said Ben Arnold, a 20-year-old surfer and employee at Northern Lights Surf Shop in Bodega Bay. "I doubt many people are surfing at all, but I bet up at Maverick's it will be pretty good in the next couple of days." Skiing wasn't particularly pleasurable in the Sierra, as gusting winds forced the closure of many ski runs. Alpine Meadows ski resort was closed Tuesday due to high winds. Aimi Xistra-Rich, the spokeswoman for Heavenly Mountain Resort in South Lake Tahoe, said she expected up to a foot of snow by this afternoon. "The high winds have forced us to go into wind holds on upper elevations," Xistra-Rich said. "By Thursday, Friday and Saturday it should be really good, so we're really looking forward to those days." The season's wettest storm was supposed to have been more intense, but it fizzled as it headed over the Pacific Ocean toward California. Warren Blier, the science officer for the National Weather Service, said the system began over the central Pacific and was heading straight east toward the Bay Area before it suddenly turned northeast. The storm hit Northern California and southern Oregon pretty hard, but Blier said the Bay Area was spared to an extent. Original forecasts had up to 6 inches of rain falling on the Bay Area, but by early Tuesday the rainfall prediction had been reduced by at least half. The weather service also canceled the flash flood warnings issued for Northern California. Blier said a mild El Niño is in effect this winter, a pattern that normally leads to wet weather in the Bay Area and Southern California and drier weather in the Pacific Northwest. "I think it is still an open question about whether the storm pattern will shift south or stay in the Pacific Northwest," Blier said. "So far it has been a very wet season in the Pacific Northwest." Null said so far it looks like a traditional Bay Area winter. "It's not unusual, but being the first windstorm of the year, a lot of weakened trees and loose material get blown around," he said. "When we tend to have significant problems around here is when we have multiple storms moving through the area. This is a one-day event." Gale warnings and high surf advisories were expected to remain in effect through today, but forecasters are predicting good tidings for the new year. Mark Strobin, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said the rain should taper off this morning, with a slight chance of thunderstorms, and completely dry out by the afternoon. "It should be mild and dry for the rest of the week with a lot of valley fog," he said. "It should be a dry New Year's Eve."

• Answer:

  its news, not happy, or sad news, its news and i am neutral to most news