Rain Again? It Is All Good.

   For a while now, our weather has been a bit unusual.  Most years, late summer sees us in a drought which is no fun whatsoever for the garden.   This year, however, the total rainfall has been unreal.  The area usually sees about 65 inches during an average year but we surpassed that at the half year mark....and are still counting.  While this creates problems for folks in low-lying areas, we are safe from rainfall flooding.  It simply runs off into the Bayou or Bay.  That is the advantage of living on a hill.  Oh, it is raining as I write this...imagine that.  It seems as if each day starts with dark, threatening clouds overhead.  Is it strange that I love this weather?  All too soon, it may turn around to where we are all wishing for rain. 

  This morning, the sun struggled to peep through the heavy clouds.  As it did, a soft golden glow spread out over the waters near the pier.  Sitting back, I breathed in the fresh morning air and gave thanks that I am able to live where I do....rains and all.  I am sort of isolated from the woes of the world.  Morning has broken.  Rejoice and be happy in it.  Appreciate what you are handed.

Cloud Watching

  I have an elderly neighbor who was telling me today that he likes to "cloud watch".  He sits in his rocking chair on the front porch and watches the clouds as they pass overhead.  This particular day, he was exceedingly happy because he claims that he saw Ben Franklin and Abraham Lincoln floating around up there in the sky.  Imagine that!  The neighbor went on to say that he sees all sorts of things but mostly people....dead people...??  I guess that is applicable because Old Ben and Old Abe are not with us any longer but the elderly gentleman said he never sees anyone that is still alive.  Alrighty then...

  After a a lengthy chat, our phone call ended with me pondering why I never see dead people in clouds.  Is this some special skill that I am sorely lacking?  So when I took the old dog out for his last run of the day, we headed to the pier.  There, I can see just about any cloud in the sky.  I sat for a good while looking up at the sky.  Nope.  No dead people.  In fact, no people at all.  No cats, dogs, rabbits, elephants, dinosaurs or anything that resembled anything but a cloud.  All I saw was the possibility of a rain shower heading our way. 

  Perhaps I need to venture out when the sky is filled with puffy white clouds to do my cloud watching.  Maybe the dark, threatening clouds only carry rain and not images.  To be honest, only thrice have I ever seen anything that resembled people in the sky and one of those looked a lot like a demon. So...what do I see in the clouds? ....  That likely chance of a rain shower.

Sun Showers or "Beam Me Up"

  Yep, there is such a thing as a sun shower but the name is a bit misleading.  A sun shower is when the sun stays visible during a rain shower.  It may be bright and sunny but have a drizzly rain coming down.  This happens often as a small cloud passes over but does not completely block over the entire sky.  It is a localized shower.  It can be raining on one side of the house while the sun is beaming brightly on the other.  It is misleading in the fact that a "rain" shower means that rain is falling to the ground but a "sun" shower means that rain is falling to the ground.  Same thing...not a good name.

  While on the pier yesterday evening, we actually had a true sun shower or at least it appeared to be such.  A large thunderhead blew up from the horizon blocking out the setting sun.  While that huge cloud lingered the sun beamed down between the clouds to shoot rays in what appeared to be a true shower.  We are accustomed to seeing storms look like this with actual rain falling but the sunbeams were something new.  It was gorgeous!  Those beams shot down right on top of my cousin's house.  It sort of reminded me of those nice rays that movie spaceships beamed folks up from Earth.  I better check on my cousin!

Now I am pondering what fine word should be applied to this weather phenomenon.  Since sun shower is already taken, a new name is needed.  "Beam me up, Scotty!" might work but it has been erroneously contributed to Captain Kirk!  (And that is a story for another day.)