I’m fairly confident that the weather, in terms of daily temperatures, will be back into the upper 70s-mid 60s for the high-low spread by the time you read this. I don’t have a lot of confidence in forecasting how long that will last but, in the meantime I sure have enjoyed the sweater weather we experienced here on Charlie Brown Road for nearly a week.
You may recall that September of last year was the hottest and driest Kentucky September ever recorded. If there was a drop of rainfall in September of 2019, my rain gauge never detected it and if the daily high temperature was below 90, I missed that one too.
Last year I personally went from tee-shirts for outdoor exposure directly to heavy, late fall jackets in one fell swoop. I never took a single cardigan, pullover or hoodie out of the closet last fall unless it was some sort of rain gear large enough to fit over a heavy jacket. When it finally did start raining in early October, I needed both pieces of apparel to feel comfortable anytime I was outdoors.
I realize that I am fairly “cold blooded” when it comes to seeking comfort from the elements, but I was a bit surprised when Loretta wanted to know what on earth I was wearing after I had ventured out to the front porch last Wednesday morning and discovered the thermometer reading 45 going on 46. Anytime the temperature gets below 65, I need long sleeves. From 55 to down to 45 I want a good warm sweater or thick sweatshirt. I honestly believe my wife would run around in shirtsleeves no matter how chilly the weather if the calendar has yet to hit October.
Anyway, when I pulled out my favorite, fleece-lined UK shirt last Wednesday morning the thermometer on our front porch showed 50 degrees. I finally shucked it just before noon and I’ve worn it every morning and late afternoon since then. I haven’t kept tabs on Loretta’s attire but she stopped making fun of me when we hit the mid 40s the very next day.
Last year I don’t believe we had a drop of rain between mid August and the second week of September. If it rained here in mid to late August, it was not enough to settle the dust. Ditto for early October. This year I emptied my rain gauge twice in August with 3 inches in the middle of the month and 4 inches on August 31. The National Weather Service says we had 7.04 inches of rain in Paint Lick’s zip code (40461) and that’s close enough for me to declare no doubt in my rain gauge’s accuracy.
We have one of those gauges with a 1.5-inch, clear plastic tube that is about 2 feet tall and gauges up to 6 inches of rainfall before it starts to overflow. A red, plastic, floating disk about the size of a silver dollar floats up the tube as rain accumulates. The measurement numbers and incremental hash marks are easily legible more than 60 feet from my favorite front porch chair.
I hadn’t glanced at the gauge in over a week but when I did so, last Wednesday, it appeared that the gauge was empty even though I knew it was up to nearly 4 inches the last time I’d checked it. So I went inside and spent over half an hour finding a tube of gorilla glue and a sheet of thin plastic, intending to fix the leak.
When I went outside to take the tube down, I discovered it was completely filled and the measuring disk had risen up under the intake spout. After emptying the tube, the disk fell back where it was supposed to onto the base of the measuring tube which also happens to exactly the same shade of red.
It has not moved one iota since then but I can tell you we’ve already had at least 6 inches of rain in September and right now we could use another one. My Lazy Wife fall beans and Babe beans could sure use at least one more good soaking but I’d rather the temperature was well above 60.
In the meantime, at least I know where the Gorilla Glue is stashed if I need it anytime soon.
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