Nights are fair drawin in...

[P.I. Stazzer-Newt]

Solstice been and gone - downhill from here.

[Peerie Maa]

Yep, we had a good summer. I was in Manchester on that day.

[Tom Montgomery]

Yep.

But the big heat-up has only begun here in Louisville, Kentucky. We can look forward to more 90 degree Farenheit days than 80 degree days from now until the end of September. And most days well above a dewpoint of 60 degrees. Ugh.

The old-timers say it was not always so.

[john welsford]

Solstice been and gone - downhill from here.

It depends upon your point of view, for us here in New Zealand, the shortest day has just gone, and we're facing a couple of months of wintry changeable weather then spring will be upon us.

Just time to do some maintenance and we'll be ready to go sailing.

You could say that the southern hemisphere exists so you people in the north have something to be envious of during your winters.

John Welsford

[Tom Montgomery]

My ideal is Northern California.

The 10-day forecast for San Francisco runs from highs in the mid-50s Farenheit to the mid-60s with dew points in the 40s and low 50s.

I guess it is my Northern European and Nordic genes expressing themselves. I suffer in the heat.

Others prefer warmer climes. Mark Twain claimed that the longest winter he ever experienced was a summer in San Francisco.

[Mad Scientist]

Yep, we had a good summer. I was in Manchester on that day.

We get occcasional years like that, too. But, this doesn't look like one.

Our 'weather driver' this time of year is the 'Bermuda high', which is kicking in now, and creating the prevailing southwesterlies which Ian McColgin mentioned in his Last Chores thread.

Tom

[beernd]

Yep, we had a good summer. I was in Manchester on that day.

WOT??
Your summer lasted a whole day

Lucky you

[Gerarddm]

Bah. I hates it.

[Canoeyawl]

My ideal is Northern California.

The 10-day forecast for San Francisco runs from highs in the mid-50s Farenheit to the mid-60s with dew points in the 40s and low 50s.

I guess it is my Northern European and Nordic genes expressing themselves. I suffer in the heat.

Others prefer warmer climes. Mark Twain claimed that the longest winter he ever experienced was a summer in San Francisco.

Here's the deal... Old Samuel Clemens was stuck in the city. You need to get just behind the first range of hills on the central coast between San Francisco and Monterey to have a perfect Mediterranean climate (and that's just about a mile from the beach)

There is a reason the Italians settled here and built wooden boats, fished for sardines, grew grapes, and made wine.

The first place in California that I actually landed the fog would come in and settle at the bottom step of the front door. I could look west out over a perfect blanket of fog and watch the sunset. If I looked out the back door all I could see was sunshine and golden hills with scrub oaks and Redwoods. There was not another house in sight in any direction. It didn't take any more than that to convince me to stay, and I stayed right here.

(If you can grow Avocados and lemons all year round, life is good).

[varadero]

Here's the deal... Old Samuel Clemens was stuck in the city. You need to get just behind the first range of hills on the central coast between San Francisco and Monterey to have a perfect Mediterranean climate (and that's just about a mile from the beach)

There is a reason the Italians settled here and built wooden boats, fished for sardines, grew grapes, and made wine.

The first place in California that I actually landed the fog would come in and settle at the bottom step of the front door. I could look west out over a perfect blanket of fog and watch the sunset. If I looked out the back door all I could see was sunshine and golden hills with scrub oaks and Redwoods. There was not another house in sight in any direction. It didn't take any more than that to convince me to stay, and I stayed right here.

(If you can grow Avocados and lemons all year round, life is good).

That sounds just about perfect!

[purri]

Winter solstice weekend BBQ and swim here tomorrow and a few days late though the water is a temperate 16C (65F) and the whales I saw today are heading north for a "party".

[seanz]

Winter solstice weekend BBQ and swim here tomorrow

Same here, except for the swim.

[skuthorp]

Dark by 5.30 here, uphill for us. But the joint is in flood and getting out of the area what with flooded roads and trees down is a matter of trial end error even in a 4WD. Saw a few today that thought they were more capable than they were, up to the axles in mud and up to the windows in water. This is the main coast highway about 10 k from where we are but because of the creek and river systems all being in flood all the major roads are cut and to go to Melbourne for a family get together tomorrow we will have a 45 km diversion and even then we may have to come home again as it's still raining in the catchments.



Quite a few local houses are flooded, building on a slab on a flood plain may satisfy the state bushfire regulations but when the flood level is higher than usual and the surrounding paddocks are under water stumps would have been a better option.

[varadero]

That is not what I visualise when I think of hot arrid Australia. Do the eucalyptus suffer from too much water?

[skuthorp]

Plenty of them are falling over down here. Eleven years of drought meant that the tap roots withered as the tree sourced it's water from a surface pan of smaller roots. Then the drought broke, the tree suddenly put on lots of new foliage and with the extra weight, water and wind they just pull out of the ground. 18 months ago a neighbours tree fell on the house for just that reason. In our rural road there are 20 odd trees down since then but no houses damaged, only a few close calls. It doesn't help that one of the local the dominant species, known as Swamp Mahogany, has a reputation for falling over and dropping branches.

[varadero]

I only ask as I recently had to take down 2x20m gum trees that lasted and grew great through about 12 years of drought conditions only to become infested with Long-horn borers shortly after the drought broke and 3 cold wet winters.

[Keith Wilson]

Solstice been and gone - downhill from here.

Dude, you need to go south. Too manic-depressive that near the pole.

[AndyG]

Solstice been and gone - downhill from here.

Personally I'm tempted to sacrifice a human, following my old pagan - sorry, "Celtic" - ways, and make the coming equinox bearable.

(Why oh why did that thread get pulled before I got a chance to poke SamF in the eye once more?)

Andy

[Peerie Maa]

Personally I'm tempted to sacrifice a human, following my old pagan - sorry, "Celtic" - ways, and make the coming equinox bearable.

(Why oh why did that thread get pulled before I got a chance to poke SamF in the eye once more?)

Andy

PM George,

Inquiring minds would like to know.

[PeterSibley]

Winter is hard here, three days after the winter solstice ,72F today with a 50F minimum.

[P.I. Stazzer-Newt]

Dude, you need to go south. Too manic-depressive that near the pole.

I did - this is South.

Meanwhile - oop north where Peerie Maa lives....

BBC News reports flooding

[Peerie Maa]

I did - this is South.

Meanwhile - oop north where Peerie Maa lives....

BBC News reports flooding

Fortunately that is the other side of the M6. We got rain, but it ran off straight into the sea. It is warm and dry now, so t' management has laundry pegged out.