"It is best to read the weather forecast before we pray for rain," wrote Mark Twain. A good friend, Mark Anderson, owns Gull Dam Brewery in Nisswa. Note to self: you get bonus points having a buddy who brews his own beer. "You guys do a pretty good job with temperatures out seven days. Precipitation? Not so much," he told me.
Mark brings up a good point: Meteorologists are better at predicting temperatures than rainfall amounts or timing. It's especially true in summer, when random pop-up Thunderstorms may soak one town, while 5 miles down the road the sun is shining. Rain (and snow) from October through April tends to be "stratiform" — more widespread. Nearly everyone gets wet as a storm or front passes through.
The approach of a (much) cooler front ignites thunderstorms today; a few may be severe close to the Iowa border. Thursday will feel like late September with a cool breeze, showers and highs stuck in the 60s. A comfortable weekend gives way to 80s next week, maybe 90s by mid-August. With record highs, worldwide, I'm feeling fairly fortunate.
