Michigan Weather
Michigan Weather
It's actually been a really weird Michigan winter so far. Of course, those in the know (meaning those who are stuck here, suffering) understand that the words "really weird" and "Michigan weather" are synonymous and redundant. But this is the FIRST winter in the past 21 years of my watching closely, where there hasn't been endless stretches of depressing grey skies ! Yeah, their yearly snowfall is about the same as in New Hampshire, but where are the Blue Skies on a day with no precipitation ? Think of those postcard pictures of winter in New England, with the pure white snow, and the ice crystals glinting like diamonds on the pine tree limbs - and the sky SO BLUE you'd swear it was a photography trick ! Never happens here in Michigan. It's Gloomy Grey so many days that even my cheery son, Petey, has suspected he gets SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder), and he's very much NOT the psychology type. But this year has been a delightful exception. Blue Skies and Sunshine more than once a week this winter, and even a decent Leaf Season last Fall ! I had been waiting for a New England Autumn every year for 21 years ! Usually the Gloomy Grey begins already, in mid-Fall, and continues right through to spoil all of Spring, too ! And usually, just five minutes before “full color” in leaf season, the wind storms come and RIP OFF all the leaves from the trees! You get to watch them quit trying to reach their full potential as fiery oranges and reds, and just give up in despair and turn sadly brown and at your feet, instead.
You can even hear them sighing as they admit defeat on the ground......
So, Autumn has been really cruddy here in Michigan for almost a generation now, and you've heard that winter really rots, too. And the joy of Spring is seriously blunted by those interminable grey skies. So what IS the good season in Michigan anyway? Because it's NOT Summer. Maybe I should check with the Tourism Department. What are the selling points for Michigan, anyway ? Come to think of it, has ANYONE EVER seen a travel advertisement gloating about Michigan for a vacation spot ?
The worst to live through is the Fall, though. It has always been my favorite season. I've often said that it's the season that most convinces me that God is real, and that He cares about us little humans. I mean, He could have simply made the leaves fall off, ya know. That would take care of the trees having to feed them during a season without enough light for the necessary levels of photosynthesis they need. He didn't have to make them turn such beautiful colors ! And He didn't do it to please the animals. Lots of them don't even see in color, and those that do only appreciate color as a help in picking out the best mate. (Animals are evidently just as shallow as humans, choosing based on the visual, and not who will make a good companion, or can hold up a stimulating conversation.) He made the beautiful colors just to please US ! A last, GLORIOUS HURRAH before the coming Winter.
Following that philosophy, I have to ask....
What did the early Michiganders do that was SO HEINOUS and Unforgivable that God would remove an entire SEASON from them ? TWENTY YEARS I've been watching and waiting for pretty leaves ! Whatever it was, Hey, Dudes..... REPENT already ! Some of the rest of us are innocent, and stuck here suffering under your curse also ! Repent already !! Torch up some of those ubiquitous orange cones from the lovely Summer season as a Burnt Offering ! You have way too many of those anyway.
It's actually been a really weird Michigan winter so far. Of course, those in the know (meaning those who are stuck here, suffering) understand that the words "really weird" and "Michigan weather" are synonymous and redundant. But this is the FIRST winter in the past 21 years of my watching closely, where there hasn't been endless stretches of depressing grey skies ! Yeah, their yearly snowfall is about the same as in New Hampshire, but where are the Blue Skies on a day with no precipitation ? Think of those postcard pictures of winter in New England, with the pure white snow, and the ice crystals glinting like diamonds on the pine tree limbs - and the sky SO BLUE you'd swear it was a photography trick ! Never happens here in Michigan. It's Gloomy Grey so many days that even my cheery son, Petey, has suspected he gets SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder), and he's very much NOT the psychology type. But this year has been a delightful exception. Blue Skies and Sunshine more than once a week this winter, and even a decent Leaf Season last Fall ! I had been waiting for a New England Autumn every year for 21 years ! Usually the Gloomy Grey begins already, in mid-Fall, and continues right through to spoil all of Spring, too ! And usually, just five minutes before “full color” in leaf season, the wind storms come and RIP OFF all the leaves from the trees! You get to watch them quit trying to reach their full potential as fiery oranges and reds, and just give up in despair and turn sadly brown and at your feet, instead.
You can even hear them sighing as they admit defeat on the ground......
So, Autumn has been really cruddy here in Michigan for almost a generation now, and you've heard that winter really rots, too. And the joy of Spring is seriously blunted by those interminable grey skies. So what IS the good season in Michigan anyway? Because it's NOT Summer. Maybe I should check with the Tourism Department. What are the selling points for Michigan, anyway ? Come to think of it, has ANYONE EVER seen a travel advertisement gloating about Michigan for a vacation spot ?
The worst to live through is the Fall, though. It has always been my favorite season. I've often said that it's the season that most convinces me that God is real, and that He cares about us little humans. I mean, He could have simply made the leaves fall off, ya know. That would take care of the trees having to feed them during a season without enough light for the necessary levels of photosynthesis they need. He didn't have to make them turn such beautiful colors ! And He didn't do it to please the animals. Lots of them don't even see in color, and those that do only appreciate color as a help in picking out the best mate. (Animals are evidently just as shallow as humans, choosing based on the visual, and not who will make a good companion, or can hold up a stimulating conversation.) He made the beautiful colors just to please US ! A last, GLORIOUS HURRAH before the coming Winter.
Following that philosophy, I have to ask....
What did the early Michiganders do that was SO HEINOUS and Unforgivable that God would remove an entire SEASON from them ? TWENTY YEARS I've been watching and waiting for pretty leaves ! Whatever it was, Hey, Dudes..... REPENT already ! Some of the rest of us are innocent, and stuck here suffering under your curse also ! Repent already !! Torch up some of those ubiquitous orange cones from the lovely Summer season as a Burnt Offering ! You have way too many of those anyway.