Monday, February 15, 2010, 06:06
How Long?
Do you know how long it has been since the temperature here at Rural Route 2 was above freezing during the day and at night?
Unfortunately -- or fortunately -- I do know. I checked back in my weather records book.
The last time it was above freezing both day and night was the day before Thanksgiving, when the temperature was in the 40s. Maybe at the time I didn't think it seemed like it was all that warm, but now, by contrast, in the 40s would seem like shorts and tee-shirt weather.
I got out my other little handy-dandy calendar book and looked back to 2009 and counted. It has been 11 weeks -- nearly three months -- since it was above freezing during the day and at night. Seems like an eternity.
On the bright side, though, I think the big, round thermometer that we have mounted on the bird feeder pole in the east side yard is trying to make me feel better. Friday morning when it was actually six degrees *below* zero, the thermometer told me it was 18 degrees *above* zero.
The other day, when it told me it was 30 degrees above zero, it was actually 15 degrees above zero. The next day it told me it was 24 degrees above zero when it was actually four degrees above zero.
Now -- either the thermometer is trying to make things seem better than what they are. Or the thermometer is broken. I'm guessing it's broken.
But that's another thing. The round thermometer is only two years old. It has no right to quit working after only a couple of years. My other "good" reliable thermometer (knock on wood) was installed on the outside door frame of our walkout basement by my dad nearly 35 years ago. The difference, I would imagine, is that the old thermometer was made in the United States. The new thermometer most likely is cheap junk from China.
And you know, that kind of thing really bothers me. We have all kinds of environmental concerns, and just at a time when we really don't need to be using tons of petroleum products -- what with global warming or climate change or peak oil -- we are put in a position of having to use more petroleum products because everything is made out of plastic and everything is cheap junk. Use it for a couple of years, it stops working, throw it out and buy another one.
I wonder if Dad would be surprised that the thermometer he installed 35 years ago is still working?
Probably not. He lived in a time when he took good quality for granted.
LeAnn R. Ralph
Thursday, February 11, 2010, 05:45
A Dud and then. . .Sunshine
You know that snowstorm that hit Chicago and southern Wisconsin and dumped all kinds of snow?
That was supposed to be "our" snowstorm here in the west central part of the state. The weather forecast predicted snow for several days. According to the forecast, we were supposed to get between 6 inches and 11 inches of snow.
After several days of snow and light snow and snow squalls, we ended up with -- 3 inches. That's right. Three inches. I am disappointed. I had hoped for more snow so we could go out with the snowshoes, although I suppose there is enough of the light fluffy variety around now covering the last bit of freezing rain that we could try the snowshoes.
Monday when I got home from the newspaper office, I went for a walk up the dirt road. We were supposed to be in the middle of the snowstorm at that point, but I had already noticed there seemed to be a little too much blue in the sky, a little bit too much sunshine, off and on, for a snowstorm to be lurking over the horizon.
After that we had light snow and snow flurries on Tuesday.
By Wednesday, the clouds had moved away and there was plenty of bright sunshine. I always think it is amazing how much more energetic I feel, how much more optimistic I feel, when the sun is shining.
After all, if we're not going to get a snowstorm, then it might as well be sunny. Right?
LeAnn R. Ralph