Snow or no?

 I live in a part of the country where snow is rare.  And actually, that's a good thing, since we don't deal with snow very well in Birmingham, Alabama.  The normally terrible local drivers are an absolute menace when the flakes start to fall.  Children love the rare snow events, but adults lose their fricken' minds!  Panic buying at grocery stores (and sure, liquor stores) precedes even a faint mention of possible snow.  You'd think we were going to be snowbound in a mountain cabin until the spring thaw, the way people react.  Usually, any snow that may accumulate melts away quickly, leaving only a pleasant memory and a fridge full of deli meat, milk, and bread.  So naturally, long range forecasts are of interest in these parts.  Personally, I ignore the ones from self-appointed YouTube "experts", regarding them as the useless trash they are.  If anything is worth some attention, it might be a serious analysis from NOAA, the government weather professionals (and not the ones with a map and a Sharpie).  The real professionals have recently issued a long-term forecast for the coming winter, and there is a suggestion Birmingham may see more snow than usual.  Which means some snow.  The culprit is a mid-to strong El Niño cycle this year which has the ability to bring snow to the southeast.  NOAA fills their article with disclaimers, and in actuality the skill at these long term forecasts is pretty small.  Also, snow in Birmingham is a tough situation:  for snow, one needs moisture and cold.  The way things work around here, we often have only one or the other.  Cold air comes to us from the north, but by the time it gets here, it is usually very dry.  Moisture comes to us from the south, but it comes from the warm Gulf of Mexico, so the wet air masses usually aren't cold enough for snow.  It's a tricky thing to get both here at the same time.  Anyway, for what it's worth, we have a higher chance than usual for snow, say the experts.  Stay tuned.