I have some pet peeves about weather casts. Temperature is one of them. During the summer when it gets hot and muggy, we start seeing weathercasters talk about “feels-like” temperatures. Media folks assume we know how they got those temperatures, which are always higher in summer than...
Game shows are on the rebound. Shows that were around in the 1960s and '70s like "To Tell the Truth" and "Match Game" are back on air, along with "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" from the ’90s and the solid, never-went-away "Jeopardy."
Since there seems to be a renewed interest in trivia...
We watch the news, search the web, or go to the weather app to see what the great outdoors is like at the moment and what it will be for the next few days. You may go ahead and look at the weather map. It typically has many lines, symbols and colors. Any idea what it all means?
A few...
People always are asking how much rain or snow you got at your location. If you like keeping track of precipitation, why not make it part of a vital information resource? The following information comes from the National Weather Service.
The...
If you’ve been outside and experienced those first drops of rain, especially after a dry spell, you know that smell. You might even be able to sense the smell a little before it starts to rain, a signal that rain is coming. Even after a rain, a sweet musty odor will linger for some time.
A few...
During a storm, no one likes to hear the sound of the community tornado siren or weather alert going off. Everyone living in the Midwest has experienced those warnings, but few have experienced an actual tornado.
My closest call with a tornado occurred when I was little, and it was actually...
There are several types of thunderstorms, from the single cell “pop-up’ thunderstorms that occurs on warm summer afternoons, to multi cell thunderstorms that move along like a train (hence the name training thunderstorms) to squall lines. Supercell thunderstorms are a much different storm.
A...
Have you ever noticed grass looking greener after a spring rain?
Hold that thought.
As you look into how nature works, you see a lot of plant nutrient cycling taking place. Makes sense since the earth isn’t getting any deliveries from Mars. Nitrogen is an essential component of...
Early spring in Illinois can be a battle between the last of cold winter weather and the mild air of spring. On relatively rare occasions in March, we can experience warm, muggy air that normally doesn’t reach us until April or May. When this occurs early in spring, it’s best to be on guard...
I’m now at the point in my life where I know others look at me and think I’m old. For truth in advertising, I’m currently 61; actually 61 ½, but the pleasure in saying the ½ left many decades ago.
I can talk about my weather experiences with a sense of sage nostalgia. Case in point, I...
