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The Weather Is Anybody's Guess

One of the main reasons people move to Florida is the weather. People are tired of winters, or maybe they never liked winters to begin with. They want more sunshine than northern skies provide, and they want to walk on the beach without wearing a coat and scarf. Well, welcome, but don’t be fooled by the palm trees—January can be chilly.

I get the attraction, although I only ever tired of winter when it dragged on past March. Otherwise, I appreciate the change of seasons. Yet, here I am living full-time in the Florida Panhandle.

I have noticed on some social media pages mostly aimed at vacationers that people from other places will ask about the weather as they plan their visit here. First, let me say that in this grand time of the 21st century, if you can afford to come here for vacation, you probably have the same access to the Internet that those of us living here have. 

Snark aside, predicting the weather here is tricky. I was warned about that before we moved here, but I didn't believe it until I experienced it. To begin with, don't bother checking the ten-day forecast because it's irrelevant. It's irrelevant anywhere but especially here. 

Also, don't put much stock in the forecast for tomorrow, whatever day that might be, because the Gulf winds are going to change it. If the forecast calls for rain in the morning, you might get some rain. You might get a downpour. You might also get sunshine and clear skies without a drop.

If the forecast calls for a sunny afternoon, and you're spending your morning with that weather in mind, it might happen for you. It might also happen that a storm will move in and flood the back yard in 30 minutes flat. What I have found to be true lately is a forecast calling for storms that keep moving around on the radar and then dissipate before they can actually cause trouble.

Hurricanes are another story, and I won't address that here. It's a science combined with some guessing, and I'll leave that to the experts. But for day-to-day weather, you just have to keep checking, look up in the sky, pay attention to thunder you might hear unexpectedly in the distance, and plan generally on being surprised.

This is a screenshot of an actual storm that was threatening the area for days. I did not play with the shape of it in anyway—it's simply Mother Nature having a joke on us, as she often does, acting as if even she doesn't know what's going to happen at any given moment.

Have I mentioned humidity? That's assumed, I suppose. There are people who love humidity like it's a comforting blanket. I have no use for those people.

#30A #EmeralCoast #FloridaPanhandle #Floridaweather

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Comments

dive said…
Well spotted, Robyn! That storm is a very apt shape. This may be why so many English folk take trips to Florida; we're used to weather that changes every time you turn around.
11:18 AM
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