Tuesday, 10/10

What a difference a week makes, huh?

I mean, think of it--80 degrees & sun last Tuesday, and temperatures half of that (plus rain!) today.  Aren't we the lucky ones, huh?  But I'm not here to whine about the weather today; instead, I'm here to point out something that occurred to me as I was deciding what to wear this past three day weekend.

And that has to do with shorts.

In the spring, after six months of cold and snow, the first day when temperatures rise above freezing is a cause for celebration in the UP.  One of the ways in which we celebrate it is the ceremonial wearing of shorts.  In fact, some people (okay, me and a few other diehards) will even continue to wear shorts every time the temperature rises above 32, if only because there were months when we couldn't.  And besides, it's nice to be liberated from pants when you have the opportunity, so, you know, why not?

So if the 32 degree mark is the threshold for wearing shorts in the spring, should we also continue wearing shorts every other day of the year when it's above freezing?  Apparently not in the fall.  Every single day this past three-day weekend the temperatures were well above freezing--10 to 12 degrees above, in fact--yet when I was out & about I did not see one person wearing shorts.  I myself didn't even consider putting them on.

Obviously, a temperature that seems tropical in February or March seems downright Arctic in October, especially just a few days after it was 80 degrees.

I will often tell people visiting the UP that we wear shorts whenever it's above freezing, and that's something I may have to adjust in the future.  Apparently it's okay to wear shorts when there's snow everywhere, but not so much when everything's still (mostly) green.  But like I said--if it's 40 degrees in March it's downright tropical.  But 40 degrees in October?

Welcome to Siberia.

(jim@wmqt.com), still hoping to wear shorts (many times) in 2023