another wet spell

January 2022 will begin with a quiet day. 

Just one.

Crazy times begin immediately after: a bit of snow at dawn followed by about two inches of rain. That mix will sit atop, and drain into, about 12 inches of snow that began Christmas day and continued for the next five. It's been fun (well not the tree landing on our truck) but things will turn ugly. A flood of slush will be heading down from the hill-tops all around as the freezing level rises above 3000 feet for the week. Interesting times!

December ends with over ten inches of moisture, comfortably above both 30-year averages. The new average is lower (1991-2020) so it was well covered - and it looks like January will be off to a wet start.

oh dear: omicron

 

What can words add to this chart? Not much.

My mom left us 2 weeks short of 99 years old, and today Betty White followed just 18 days short of 100. A large TV special was planned for her 17.Jan birthday celebration; presumably the jokes will be muted and tributes will be plentiful.

So many deaths from many sources - but so much suffering worldwide from the Covid Reborn /omicron variant. 

It isn't 'reckless hate' doing the killing like Theoden's orc-quote from Tolkien, just reckless indifference to public safety  - and a claiming of 'rights' and 'freedoms' that echo from his great friend CS Lewis in The Great Divorce.

Enough. Please.

Christmas chaos

 

Weather Underground is often ..exuberant with its forecasts in extreme conditions. On the other hand, it is also ahead of other tools at times. Recall last year's extreme heat, where numbers were off the charts historically - and it played out.

It's been right a few times on snow in the past seven years too - so here we sit, and here we shall remain! Christmas will be spent on the hill-top rather than spent on potentially slick roads and increasingly Covid /omicron-riddled locations. Disappointing, but reasonable given the forecast volatility!

The number of white Christmases in my lifetime can fit comfortably on one hand. This might be one of the missing fingers (no we aren't up to the thumb yet, I'm certain of that!). The odds of consecutive snowfall days around here are also quite rare, so I truly do not expect this amount (looks like .. 16 inches less a tenth) to sit on the ground by late Wednesday. Unless the forecast makes a major u-turn though, a foot would not be a shock. 

cheap thrills: the new PRISM data is here!

 Every ten years the 30-year averages for temperature and precipitation are updated. After watching a few times this fall, I finally accessed our local (800-meter resolution) data to see how the numbers have changed.

And here they are!

The average has dropped by 5.76 inches overall. November crashed the most, losing almost two inches in that month alone. January also took a dive, so the wet season overall took a hit. In fact only September has a higher average than before - though many months dropped by a quarter-inch or less. That's hard to do in the dry season, but July dropped .19" and it was already the driest month!

I haven't looked into temperatures so have no comments on the trends on the hill-top. Our seven years have seen big snows and hot weather, as most medium-term samples will show. Our highest ever temperature was easily this past summer though, and many cedar trees have scorched tips as a result.

I've reset my data tab in Excel to record updated deviations. Oh what fun!

life happens.

 - as does death. 

65th anniversary, 2014

After a relatively brief transition, my mom has stepped into a new and better life. She was two weeks short of 99 years old, an amazing number by any standard. We siblings stayed with her overnight in turns at the end, and I left her bedside at 10:30 that morning, when my sister arrived. Mom left us twelve hours later, joining dad and all the other elder members of our family. We siblings and cousins now assume the mantle of family elders. 

Oh my.

She and my dad moved to assisted living about eight years ago. Dad turned 95 before he passed in 2015, after 70+ years of marriage. Both of them left with sound minds but nearly deaf; we shouted to them cheerfully on our many visits, and savored our countless blessings.

So many great memories throughout my nearly 65 years with this amazing couple! And if my memories stay with me as well as theirs did, they will last me for decades more - God willing.

self-captioned, 2010

Sara and Jan wedding, 2014

Covid times, 2020

an equal-opportunity soaking

We've had no snow on the hill-top yet, but it's been plenty wet. The forecast is quite boring, except for Saturday's possible burst of wind! Yay for wind!! 

Saturday also promises an inch-plus soaking locally. And not just here - all of the high country along the Pacific crest (even south to the Sierra Nevada and San Gabriel ranges) plan to participate in the coming week's soaking! California can feel neglected in La niña years, but this coming week will be most helpful. This is inches of moisture so multiply by 10 more or less for snowfall. Looks like seven feet more or less for the Olympics and Sierra crest, well over three feet for coast ranges and near Los Angeles. Very helpful for backpackers who hope to fill their 'canteens' next summer.

whiplash

 

After weeks of absurd 'heat' and plenty of tropical rainfall, a storm is sliding down the BC coastline for us late on Sunday. It's the classic alignment for low-level snow, but the heat of the past is definitely a hindrance. Current NWS forecast does manage to drop snow to 900 feet though - which is mighty close to us on the hill-top!

Today's WRF snow forecast shows the Willapa Hills catching measurable amounts - so we'll be watching the deck tomorrow night as the elements clash for dominance. It will be close, and after so many days in the mid-50s and higher it will be a change for certain.

BTW November ended at 15.74 inches, easily our wettest November since moving here. Yesterday was a pretty day with sunshine and minimal breeze, but today is a drizzle festival with amounts crawling slowly toward a half-inch.