There are numerous things I love about living in Missouri, and one is the consistency inconsistent and largely unpredictable weather.
Obviously, we’ve witnessed yet another amazing example of that over the past week or two, culminating with a rapid temperature change for the record books. At about 1:15 p.m. last Sunday (Dec. 28), I sent my brother a screenshot of an online weather page showing the current temperature in Houston, Missouri, at 76 degrees and the forecast low at 16.
He lives in Western Washington, where temperatures usually don’t vary all that much within 24-hour periods. He sent back a simple reply: “That can’t happen.”
Oh, but here in Missouri it not only can, it does. Not that the temperature will drop or rise 60 degrees in such a short period of time with any real regularity, but the fact that it’s even possible is wacky, to say the least.
Of course, a major aspect of this situation is the 76 part. That’s strangely and wonderfully high for early winter in this part of North America, but what’s even wilder is that it was actually a bit lower than had been recorded over the previous few days. At one point on a recent sunny afternoon, I got photographic evidence of the outdoor thermometer at our house showing 78.
The reality is, there aren’t many places on Planet Earth where the weather acts in such a manner. Here in the Show Me State, things can be blazing hot (often accompanied by high levels of airborne moisture or sometimes desert-like dryness) or downright frigid, and as long-time residents like to joke, it’s more or less possible to experience “all four seasons on one day.”
The anything goes nature of Missouri weather clearly evident in the massive gap between the highest and lowest temperatures ever recorded in the Show Me State. The record low is minus 40 on Feb. 13, 1905, and the record high is 118 on July 14, 1954, in Union and (oddly enough) Warsaw again.
You won’t find many places on any continent where the swing is 158 degrees.
Of course, while the weather has resembled late spring or early summer lately, it’s been easy to notice many things that just aren’t normal for late December in Missouri.
As I was driving out of my neighborhood one day, I saw a City of Houston water department crew at work, and a guy near the roadway was wearing shorts and a T-shirt.
A short distance from there, I saw a young man walking on the sidewalk adjacent to the road who was wearing – you guessed it – shorts and a T-shirt.
On my way to Cabool on U.S. 63, I saw a man using a riding mower on a property next to the highway.
Before I reached Cabool, and then again as I returned to Houston, several bugs hit my vehicle’s windshield.
Speaking of unseasonable bug cameos, there were several ladybugs crawling around on the walls in one of our bathrooms and an adjoining walk-in closet.
Again speaking of bugs, as I was sitting on the couch that same evening, I saw a bat going back and forth between our home’s back deck high above the Big Piney River and the tree line at the top of the slope above the river valley.
That night, the bright lights of a gigging boat were visible on the river.
And I’m guessing there were paddlers on the Current River and Jacks Fork River, picnics taking place at various outdoor locations and a whole lot of “grilling out” going on when those activities would typically not receive much consideration.
Pretty crazy.
Anyway, riding Missouri’s weather rollercoaster is a constant source of focus for we who reside in the state, and it certainly keeps things interesting.
And since we’re about to deal with January and February, I figure some of us will more than likely be dripping the water in the laundry room sink overnight, clearing snow from walkways and wearing an extra layer of clothing before long. I also figure it could be a bunch of weeks before the mercury in our outdoor thermometers reaches the 70 level again.
But you never know – and that’s not just an old saying, it’s the way Missouri weather rolls.
Doug Davison is a writer, photographer and newsroom assistant for the Houston Herald. Email: ddavison@houstonherald.com.
I think those are Asian Lady Beetles in your home. I have them also, a nuisance.