Sunday, August 05, 2007

RED SKY IN THE MORNING

As a child, I remember learning the adage "Red sky at night, sailor's delight; red sky in the morning, sailor take warning". I woke up this morning early- 6am. I made the coffee and went to the door to look outside. The sky is the most beautiful shade of red- everywhere I looked. The adage came back to me. It may be beautiful now, but there are storms coming today. I sat down here and checked the weather, and sure enough, we have a 60% chance of scattered thunderstorms today.
I enjoy checking the weather by looking at trees to see if the leaves are turned over showing their bottom side- a sign of rain. It's pretty foolproof. The other method that amuses me somewhat is when I note the neighbor's cows laying down in the field. It would seem the more downed cows, the greater the possibility of rain. I sometimes try to estimate the number of cows in a herd and then how many are down.. and sort of determine a % chance of rain by that method. It's hit and miss as you can imagine.
The other way to determine if it's going to rain is to consult my personal pain index.. my joints. They will tell me if rain is in the forecast about 12-24 hr before a storm.
We could use a little more rain.. it would give the plants a well needed drink and cool things down a bit from the 90 degree weather we've been having. I emptied the end of a bottle of Pepsi on the ground yesterday and wasn't certain whether I saw dust rise from the spot or steam.. who knows?
I'm tempted to put a baking thermometer in my car out of curiosity- to see how hot it is before I get in the car.
I probably should get one of those cardboard things I see people have inside their windshield to keep the sun from beating down inside, but then.. I wonder if they would really help keep the car cooler?
Maybe we just need a carport?
Enjoy the rain today.. I'm going to do just that.. it's a gift of God.

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