>> CATHY: WE'VE GOT A FULL SHOW FOR YOU TONIGHT.

WE'LL SHARE A RARE JIMMY CARTER INTERVIEW FROM OUR ARCHIVES.

KAOMI LEE TRAVELS TO ST.

CLOUD TO LOOK AT THEIR CHANGING MEDIA LANDSCAPE.

AND POLITICAL SCIENCE PROFESSORS WILL GRACE THE COUCH.

>> ERIC: BUT WE START THE HOUR TONIGHT WITH THE BIGGEST STORY OF THE WEEK.

A WINTER STORM THAT HAD BUSINESSES, SCHOOLS, STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS CLOSING UP SHOP BEFORE THE BIG WINDS AND PREDICTED HEAVY SNOWFALL EVEN BEGAN.

WAS IT THE EPIC STORM METEROLOGISTS FORECAST?

OR MERELY ANOTHER BIG WINTER SNOWFALL IN MINNESOTA?

PAUL DOUGLAS JOINS US FOR HIS MONTHLY CHAT.

HE SHARES HIS WEATHER KNOWLEDGE IN THE "STAR TRIBUNE" AND ON WCCO RADIO.

[ Laughter ] PAUL HEADS UP HIS OWN WEATHER COMPANY, PREDICT-IX.

I'M NOT SAYING THAT HE'S JOINING US FROM A WARM WEATHER LOCATION WITH HEAVY HUMIDITY AND NO SNOW SHOVELS.

>> NO, NO, NO, NO.

>> Eric: YOU CALLED THE SNOWFALL LUMPY N THE PAPER.

OF WHAT DID THAT MEAN?

>> IT MEANT THAT IT WASN'T UNIFORM.

I THINK THERE'S THIS PERCEPTION, ERIC, THAT EVERYBODY GETS THE SAME AMOUNT OF SNOW.

EVEN OVER THE SPAN OF A COUPLE OF MILES, IT WAS CONVECTIVE.

MUCH LIKE WHAT YOU WOULD SEE IN MARCH WHERE YOU GET POCKETS OF RAPIDLY RISING AIR THAT MIGHT AFFECT ONE AREA, A MILE DOWN THE ROAD YOU DON'T HAVE THE RAPIDLY RISING AIR.

AND, SO, IT'S A LITTLE LIKE SUMMER THUNDERSHOWERS.

SOME AREAS CAN GET SMACKED, A COUPLE OF INCHES OF RAIN.

YOU KNOW, TWO MILES DOWN THE ROAD, PEOPLE ARE SHRUGGING.

IT WASN'T QUITE THAT EXTREME.

BUT THERE WAS A BIG VARIATION.

AND, YES, IT'S GREAT TO BE JOINING YOU.

I HAVE BEEN MOVED TO AN UNDISCLOSED LOCATION.

I'M SAFE FOR NOW.

IT'S BEEN A RAUCOUS 48 HOURS.

>> Cathy: IT HAS BEEN.

>> I WANT TO APOLOGIZE FOR EVERYBODY WHO WAS REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO 70 INCHES OF SNOW FROM THIS STORM.

>> Eric: YOU ENT TO SUCH TROUBLE TO GET THE SLIDES TOGETHER, WE BETTER GO TO THEM.

YOU'RE ON.

>> WE BETTER.

AND WE START WITH ERIC SNOW BLOWING EARLIER TODAY.

[ Laughter ] >> Cathy: RIGHT.

[ Laughter ] >> HOW MAGNANIMOUS AND YOUR NEIGHBORS WERE THRILLED.

I SAW THIS ON SOCIAL MEDIA, WHICH I SHOULD HAVE AVOIDED AT THE HEIGHT OF THE STORM.

TO ME IT SUMMED THINGS UP MINNESOTANS.

WHEN THE SNOWSTORM MISSES THEM.

MINNESOTANS WHEN THE SNOWSTORM HITS THEM BUT DOESN'T GIVE THEM ENOUGH SNOW.

AND YOU MAY NOTICE THE SAME EXPRESSION WHEN MINNESOTANS, WHEN THE SNOWSTORM HITS THEM BUT GIVES THEM TOO MUCH SNOW.

IT'S HARD GETTING IT JUST RIGHT.

I FEEL SAFEST RIGHT NOW WHEN I'M IN APPLE VALLEY WHERE THEY DID, IN FACT, GET 20 INCHES OF SNOW.

LET'S SEE.

UP TOWARDS -- OH, BOY.

ANOKA, 17 INCHES OF SNOW.

ABOUT 16 IN CHAN CHANHASSEN AND 13.4, OFFICIALLY, AT THE AIRPORT, WHERE ALL THINGS OFFICIAL TAKE PLACE.

AND ANY OTHER YEAR, THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN ONE OF THE IGGEST SNOWSTORMS OF THE ENTIRE WINTER.

AND IT MAY STILL VERY WELL BE.

SECOND BIGGEST FEBRUARY SNOWFALL FOR THE METRO ON RECORD.

ACCORDING TO NOAA DATA.

AND IF YOU'RE KEEPING SCORE, NO, IT WASN'T THE TOP FIVE OR A TOP THREE, IT WAS THE 23rd BIGGEST SNOWSTORM SINCE 1884.

AND 17th SNOWIEST WINTER TO DATE.

WE'RE UP TO 1 INCHES, ON OUR WAY TO MAYBE 85 OR 90 AT THE RATE WE'RE GOING.

WE ALL KNOW WHAT IT CAN HAPPEN IN MARCH.

KENNY LUMENFELD, Dr. KENNY BLUMEN FELT TOLD ME HE BELIEVES 25 TO 30,000 SQUARE MILES OF CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN MINNESOTA DID, IN FACT, GET A FOOT OR MORE OF SNOW.

AND TRAVEL WAS REALLY ROUGH.

I MEAN, ROADS WERE SHUT DOWN OVER MUCH OF CENTRAL AND SOUTHWESTERN MINNESOTA.

AT THE HEIGHT OF THE STORM, WINDS GUSTED UP TO 40.

70.7 IN THE TWIN CITIES.

LESS IN St.

CLOUD.

92 IN DULUTH.

LOOK AT THESE DEPARTURES.

33 INCHES ABOVE AVERAGE TO DATE IN THE TWIN CITIES.

PRETTY INCREDIBLE.

MUCH OF THE STATE SNOWIER THAN AVERAGE THIS WINTER.

DULUTH, AS OF YESTERDAY, HAS PICKED UP AN ENTIRE NORMAL WINTER'S WORTH OF SNOW.

THEY'RE UP TO 92.1.

NORMAL FOR THE WHOLE WINTER AT DULUTH IS 90.2.

SO, COUPLE OF HIGHLIGHTS.

THE WINTER TO DATE, 12 SUBZERO NIGHTS SO FAR DURING A TYPICAL WINTER, THE WHOLE WINTER, NOW WE GET 20, BASED ON HEATING DEGREE DAYS, WE'VE SAVED 4% HEATING OUR HOMES AND BUSINESSES.

AGAIN, 33 INCHES SNOWIER THAN AVERAGE OF THIS DATE.

AND WE'RE STILL IN MODERATE DROUGHT.

BUT THERE'S TWO TO SIX INCHES OF LIQUID WATER TRAPPED IN THAT SNOW COVER, ACCORDING TO NOAA.

AND, AGAIN, IF IT'S RELEASED SLOWLY, IF WE GET A GRADUAL MELTDOWN IN MARCH AND APRIL, A MUCH BETTER CHANCE, THAT BODES WELL FOR SOIL MOISTURE AND GETTING WATER BACK IN OUR LAKES.

MONDAY WE COULD HAVE SOME ICY PROBLEMS.

THE GOOD NEWS, NO POLAR AIR BEHIND THIS THING.

TODAY WAS CHILLY.

ADMITTEDLY.

BUT WE'RE LOOKING AT A LOT OF 30s AS WE SAIL INTO MARCH.

AND I JUST WANT TO SAY, CATHY AND ERIC, I PREDICTED 12 O 20.

AND THE MISTAKE I MADE, AND IT WAS A BIG ONE, I SHOWED SOME OF THE MODEL OUTPUT, THE RAW MODEL OUTPUT.

THAT SHOWED 25 INCHES, 27-INCH BULL'S EYE OVER THE TWIN CITIES.

AND ALL THE MODELS WERE PRETTY MUCH SAYING THAT.

AND ONCE YOU SEE IT, YOU CAN'T UNSEE IT.

SO EVEN THOUGH I'M SAYING, 12 TO 20 AND TRYING TO BE A LITTLE MORE CONSERVATIVE, PEOPLE REMEMBER, OH, MY GOSH, HE SHOWED IT, ON TWITTER, HE MUST BELIEVE THAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN.

SO, THAT WAS A BIG GOOF ON MY PART.

>> Eric: ALL RIGHT, JIMMY BUFFETT, JR., WE GOT TO RUN.

>> ALL RIGHT.

>> Cathy: DON'T GET SUNBURNED.