Three days ago it was 75 degrees F. Nice, pleasant weather, a proper desert spring.
This was what it looked like at 1 A.M. this morning…
Let It Snow
Silent Night
…and this is what it looked like at 8 A.M.
Snowflakes in a Pear Tree
Yup, climate changes. Apparently we moved to a taiga overnight. My new camera is happy.
Edited to add a few other shots I took on the way to work. There’s a link to the Picasa folder of all of the shots at the bottom of the post.
Mountain, Trees, Sun, Snow?
My Front Yard
Frosted Tips
Snowflake Orchard
Edited again to add the link to the rest of the shots and a couple of panoramic composites. Via Picasa, of course.
You just linked a definition of climate and then, at least within the context, used it wrong.
You seem to have the inverse of our situation in the Midwest lately. A bit over a week ago I was wearing a heavy winter coat. Now it’s too damn hot (70s are too hot when you’re used to 20).
It’s correct according to the second definition. No, I’m not talking about averages over time or any of that trendy political stuff (not directly, just borrowing the sensational headline), I’m talking about “climate” as in “a region or area characterized by a given climate”
…which is perhaps a circular definition, but it’s the “region” part that I’m using.
…and yes, 70s are indeed way too hot when you’re used to the 20s. That’s how I felt last week, since we had gone from the 30s to the 70s in a week. I much prefer it cold.
Good lord that is a very severe swing in such a short period. Does that play hell with wildlife? I am thinking of all the plants and animals that started poking their heads out because of the nice spring weather only to be hit by freezing snow a couple of days later.
My wife is jealous.
That is straight up crazy. We got some great, driving rain here on Saturday, but at least it passed by the end of the day.
@mbp I’m not sure about what it’s doing to critters, but I’m pretty sure my fruit trees are going to be unhappy, and I saw a few trees on my way to work that seem to have broken under the load. The neighbor’s cat isn’t too happy either. It most likely is confusing the deer and other smaller beasties in the area, too.
@Jason if I could send some her way, I would. We seem to have a surplus.
@Anjin we usually do have some snow through April and even June up in the mountains just a few miles away. Snow isn’t all that crazy this time of year… but yes, this was a huge swing and a much bigger snowdump than usual.
I actually like snow, and it makes for great photos… this just stood out as a big shift worth noting.
Given that it’s only March, we’re probably due for another freeze or two. And yet, the birds seem to know what they’re doing most of the time. It’s those silly plants that screw themselves over. Maybe they like the abuse.
Climate as a word to describe long-term trends is not a “trendy political stuff”, it’s the whole point of the word. If we want to talk about short-term, we have a word for that: weather. To mix the two is as absurd as using year when you’re talking about this week. The second definition has the key word: characterized. We don’t characterize a region based on a few days of weather.
Still missing the point, K. I’m talking about moving from a desert to a taiga. Those are two different climates.
Desert and taiga are two different climates. Two different long-term trends in temperature and precipitation. What you’re seeing is weather. Yesterday here it was hot and dry. Today is is hot and rainy. I did not move to a rainforest climate. The weather changed. If it rains in the desert, it is still a desert. If it rains in the ‘desert’ over and over for a few years, then it is no longer a desert. Temporary events are not the basis of climate.
This would have made sense if you’d explained it as “I used the word climate to highlight the dramatic shift, much like when people use the word forever to describe a long, but non-infinite wait.” If you’d said that then I’d have said “oops, I misread, sorry about that.” Instead you decided to double-down on redefining climate as a redundant word for weather.
K, read the article without your political activist glasses on. I write about moving to a different climate. A different place. (OK, it’s not very clear, it’s ambiguous, but that’s sort of the point. Word usage can be interesting.)
I’m perfectly aware of the definition of “weather” and “climate”, and the flight of fancy is imagining that my location changed overnight. If you don’t understand that, it’s your problem, not mine.
…though I’ll admit that it’s fun to see violent, prejudiced reactions to the sensitive political topic. It nicely illustrates the, shall we say… passionate… feelings invoked by what should be dispassionate science instead of political posturing, and just how little reading comprehension is involved, and how jumping to conclusions can be less than helpful.
I’m not wearing political activist glasses, I’m wearing my “you’re not using words correctly (as I define it (which is its own problem))” glasses. These are the glasses I wear when I get annoyed at people who swear a lot, because then what do I say if I want to be offensive? It weakens language and hurts everyone when we weaken the meaning of words.
The second part of my most recent post (not counting this one) addresses your flight of fancy. The first part addresses your strange first response where rather than saying “it was a flight of fancy” you instead doubled-down on being wrong. If you’d not linked a definition in your post I’d probably have taken it as a flight of fancy (I’m in a rainforest now! How crazy!) rather than an attempt to use the word literally, and incorrectly.
The words as used initially make perfect sense for my meaning. You’re reading them differently, and language allows that. That’s the point, thanks for making it.
That’s crazy. We have had a freakishly mild winter here for the most part. For what it is worth, I got that you were being intentionally absurd when you referred to your “climate” having changed from desert to taiga overnight. It made me grin.
*chuckle* Thanks.
Our winter has been pretty mild, too, overall. That’s part of why this was so, well… crazy and photoworthy.
I love snow! I think I’m one of a handful over here in Blighty that feels the same way. Most people just moan about it.
Great pics as usual – love the front yard shadows! It’s actually similar here, sunny days too hot for a coat, next thing a blizzard. doesn’t worry me though, march and april are always good for a surprise!
Beautiful pictures, just today it’s snowing in my city