January in Florida.

Actually, it hit 70 degrees here today. Was 74 when we were up in Tallahassee this afternoon. Doesn't seem right that on Wednesday it might not even get out of the 30s. And they are calling for possibly a "wintry mix", so even the newspaper seems reluctant to use the "S" word when talking about precipitation in sunny Florida.

But they are continually ratcheting up the predicted low for Wednesday night, so maybe it won't be too brutal. Yeah, I know, it's all relative. But trust me, when you've been living down here for 20 years, it doesn't take much for it to feel "brutally cold" any longer. Even at 60 degrees I'm putting on a jacket to go outside.

Well, saw some sleet with some snow flakes scattered in a little while ago. The top of the pool enclosure looks iced over. Actually have icicles hanging from the roof edges. Outside temp according to my thermometer on the front porch is 31.6*. And quite likely it's not going to get any warmer than that today since it is 3pm. I've got to run outside and drip the faucets, hoping they aren't already frozen up. And if the precipitation will stop, got to cover a few more plants before nightfall. The predicted overnight low has changed every time I look at it, but right now they are calling for 25*. The tropicals Connie has between two buildings has remained covered all day long, so hopefully they will be OK. She's trying to raise some pineapple plants.

Man I don't want to go outside today AT ALL......... :{

The next town over from me, to the northwest, has schools closed tomorrow for a snow day...

Just got back from dripping the outside faucets. One is only able to run a couple of drops of water through it, so obviously it is iced up. Hopefully the real slow dip will help. Tree branches are covered with a thin sheet of ice. And the ground is crunchy because there is a thin layer of sleet all over everything. The tarp covering Connie's tropical plants has a bunch of sleet captured on it. The front steps to the porch are covered with sleet, but it wasn't frozen solid to be actually slippery. And it is still coming down. Outside temp is now 31.3*, so it's dropping. I guess when the precipitation stops and if the cloud cover moves out it just might get real DAMNED cold tonight.

The amazing thing is that the precipitation is coming from a southerly direction, so since it's coming off of the Gulf, it should be warmer than it would otherwise be without it. So if not for that, I think this would have been an VERY cold day here.

Hey, want to hear a joke I just heard? Global warming!

We have your global warming here in california where we've been pretty much entirely without rain and unseasonal high temperatures. The country used to get cold snapes like this one quite often. It only seems so noteworthy because they've been fewer and further between.

http://xkcd.com/1321/

So, with that in mind, what exactly is the down side to a potential global warming anyway? Extended growing seasons seem like they would be quite beneficial. And I've just never seen any bright side to freezing temperatures at all unless you are a polar bear needing to cross frozen water.

So in my opinion? Global warming? Bring it on! Sure would be easier and more convenient than my moving further south.

Oh and as for the predictions of gloom and doom, heck, this is from people who can't even make an accurate prediction of what the weather is going to be like three days from now. So those statements need extra large doses of salt to swallow along with them.

Global warming =

More extreme hurricanes and storms
More extreme droughts
Changing zones where plant types can be grown resulting in death of current forest makeups and other wild habitats

Originally Posted by Shiari

Global warming =

More extreme hurricanes and storms
More extreme droughts
Changing zones where plant types can be grown resulting in death of current forest makeups and other wild habitats

I believe that is just a prediction. Much like a weather forecast.

Actually, it's physics. Warmer temperatures will equal warmer ocean temperatures, which are the driving forces of hurricanes. Increasing temperatures will also change and disrupt oceanic water cycles. Simple physics of how things move as they change temperature.

There's already noticeable flora migration. Plants are showing up at elevations and lattitudes they historically have not been seen. Winters here have gotten obviously warmer just in my lifetime. When I was a kid in Morgan Hill, frost and ice on puddles was a common occurrence. Same in San Jose. Now frost in general is rarely seen even in winter.

Originally Posted by Shiari

Actually, it's physics. Warmer temperatures will equal warmer ocean temperatures, which are the driving forces of hurricanes. Increasing temperatures will also change and disrupt oceanic water cycles. Simple physics of how things move as they change temperature.

There's already noticeable flora migration. Plants are showing up at elevations and lattitudes they historically have not been seen. Winters here have gotten obviously warmer just in my lifetime. When I was a kid in Morgan Hill, frost and ice on puddles was a common occurrence. Same in San Jose. Now frost in general is rarely seen even in winter.

Regardless, it's STILL a prediction based on conjecture and suppositions.

And isn't an expanded range for plant life actually a GOOD thing? Longer growing seasons and wider ranges of usable land for crops that are now marginal, at best, because of temperatures being too cold? The world CHANGES, which is evident in the geological evidence. The world isn't here merely to suit human beings. It will change whether we like it or not, and whether or not the changes are better for us. We, as a species either have to adapt or, well, die. It is just foolish to expect the world to remain the same just because that is how we have recorded it in the VERY short period of time we have done so. And certainly changes that do take place do not have to be uniformly applied, well, "globally". Why would anyone think it unreasonable to expect that some areas of the globe very well could get warmer, and others get colder? Just as some areas sometimes get wetter and others drier over time. Is not the world littered with ruins from civilizations that existed before us and are now gone? Why is that, do you suppose?

And it is also just as foolish to think of our sun (usually referred to as a variable star) will be a constant source of exactly the same energy output that warms the earth in the same amount year after year, day after day. Matter of fact there is some evidence that we may be entering a Dalton Minimum, which will mean COLDER temps because of reduced solar activity. I'm sure that anyone can find a theory for just about anything they want if they just look hard enough.

Heck, probably most here don't remember that there was a general concern in the 1970s that we were on the brink of going through a period of global cooling, likely to preface a new ice age. Which, of course, was blamed on human activity.

The universe does not exist merely at our pleasure and for our comfort. And I suggest that scientists are only guessing what is going on around us. Remember, what they are saying are only THEORIES, not proven facts. Theories are only guesses based on other guesses put together in a sales package to the listeners. As I said, little better than weather predictions.

So again, "global warming"? Perhaps "spotty, here and there, now and again warming" might be more accurate.