The Weather

Thursday, September 29, 2011

It’s  astonishingly beautiful outside. Funny that one of the things we read about the Dutch people is that they love to talk about the weather, because they usually find it so poor. So far we have found it to be the exact opposite. We’ve been here since August 11 and, with the exception of a handful of days, the sun has been out in all its’ glory. Even the days when it didn’t command the center of attention it managed to come through the clouds in smatterings throughout the day. It really has been very pleasant here. It is more like California coastal weather, than Modesto, minus the morning fog that envelopes the Coast, which we have only seen  one day since our arrival, and that was earlier this week. So maybe indeed we are getting ready for winter. Bring it on! 

Indeed there have been thunderstorms, but they have been short-lived. What they lack in their length though, they make up for in their intensity. It is breathtaking  to sit at the window and watch the lightening light up the room and hear and feel the thunder as if it were shaking the very foundation under our feet. And the rain drops, they are huge. So big in fact that at times they have looked like water cascading over a Fall in one continuous stream. 

Possibly there is another explantation as to why the Dutch talk about the weather so much. It is totally unpredictable. Tell me again why we have weather forecasters? Oh yes, to gainfully employee individuals. They can study the cloud formations, measure the wind speed and make all the predications they want, but mother nature will have it her way, and like the two year old child, it will be opposite of what you say. The answer lies somewhere between intuition and preparedness. Don’t leave home without your umbrella, but go ahead and leave it in your saddlebag while you are shopping. You probably won’t need it anyway.