Have I ever mentioned how crazy the weather is here?
Crazy? Crazier than what?
I guess I’m comparing it to the predictability I became accustomed to in Michigan, California, and Oregon.
In Michigan, we had starkly contrasting seasons. Despite the rigors of surviving the cold, the blizzards, the ice storms of Michigan winters, it all made sense and seemed to be on a fairly tight schedule. California was so predictable, fighting the meteorological boredom was the greatest challenge. Portland, Oregon was predictably wet. It rained 200-250 days a year.
I’m not sure what produces the huge swings in weather here in Tambasasayama, Japan. I just know that, when I head out on my bike, my backpack has to cover a very wide range of contingencies. I can’t even count the number of times I’ve left the house dressed sympatico with the brilliant, warm sunshine and soothing, calm air, to return less than an hour later fighting gale winds, drenched to the bone as a result of a major downpour. Two consolations are that I haven’t yet been sucked into the eye of a tornado or hit by lightning. Both were quite common in Michigan.
Case in point: The first day of spring was sunny and pleasant, hearkening the onset of fine days ahead, strolls through town, picnics in the park. The second day of spring is pictured above.
Of course, a lot has changed over the decades. I left Michigan in 1980. I left California in 1995. I left Oregon in 2006. Has Mother Nature put the pedal to the metal on climate change? Is that it? I’m not really sure. Recent photos on the internet don’t show palm trees in Michigan or glaciers in Los Angeles. They do have lots of fires in California. Maybe it’s people forgetting to put out their campfires. Or karma. You know, Sodom and Gomorrah. Portland, Oregon has been and still is — to my best understanding — just weird. Nothing new there. Maybe new weirdness?
I’ll have to rely on you readers to tell me. Are you seeing this? Is the weather topsy-turvy, nutso, bat-shit, whack, freaky-deaky where you live? Leave your comments below.
