Well right now, it is +11. Things have warmed considerably in the last 36hours.
Firstly, thanks to Top Gun for your concern, and yes the internet does still work, actually even faster considering the cold temps come from crystal clear skies. A high pressure system settled in about 11/20/08 across the entire state and with the minimal sunlight we get this time of year, nothing has the chance to warm up.
It has been well below zero now for several week previous, but where I live is not nearly as bad as others. As is evidenced by previous posts. If you look at my avatar to the left, I live in the area that is covering the 4corners region of the lower 48. We have been seeing temps to -30 to -40, but the really cold areas are in the interior, closer to Fairbanks which would lie about where Iowa is on the avatar, where you get temps to minus 80. Whereas I get a stiff breeze coming off the now frozen ocean, those areas have little wind. But windchill doesnt effect metal.
The biggest hassle when it gets this cold is two fold, firstly energy bills go through the roof. When the furnace and wood stove are running more or less constantly it adds up quickly. Especially when the diesel we use to heat our homes in the rural parts of the state is running at well over $7 a gallon, it can easily mean a grand a month just for a cold snap.
The other is on inert materials like plastic and metal. Touching metal to your skin at those temps will cause an instant burn. Plastic becomes very brittle. To the point where a Nalgene bottle is liable to shatter. The same goes with glass, a small nick in my windshield turned into a crack running the entire width of the glass.
I went to college up in Fairbanks where the temps are extreme, and my days of living there, short of a very well paying job, are over. The winters are harsh, with temps dipping to -70 but the summer time will see heatwaves that reach into the 90s. I heard somewhere Fairbanks experiences the highest temp flucuations from winter to summer than anyplace in the world.
As for our cold snap, it is just a small hitch in daily life. We still go to work, we still play hockey outside and go hunting/fishing. Kids still go to school, and life continues. We just make sure to plug our cars in, seal our structures, and not over spend to much outside without an ability to get warm.
Plus, I have an excellent coat, plenty of lined jeans, a pair of bunny boots, and my pride and joy is a set of fur mittens and hat made out of spotted seal and sea otter than keeps me safe.
My biggest concern during these times is always the homeless poppulations. Attempting to sleep and keep warm in a tent, especially while intoxicated as is the often the case with the homeless in AK, leads to a few freezing deaths annually. In my community we had a 21 year old girl freeze to death right around Thanksgiving time as is evidence.