Stands to reason that I might be a little weather obsessed. Aren't all we Brits? But this year, my mild interest has turned into a full blown weather checking mania.
It's not enough to just look out of the window. Mostly because when I wake up and look out of the window, it's just pitch black this time of year. I peer into the impenetrable, trying to figure out if I am going to have to scrape frost off the car before the school run and whether it is dry enough to play tennis outside.
An hour later, all is clear - but by then I've already made the important choices like jumping in the shower or putting on my kit and abandoning any thoughts of grooming till after I've finished playing.
So I'm harnessing technology, courtesy of the nice folks at Oregon Scientific who make a home weather station, and seeing if it revolutionises my life.
My new toy lets me know what the weather is like while I am still snuggled up in bed - and has a 12 hour forecast, so I can contemplate just pulling the duvet back over my head and waiting any grimness out.
Recently, I also discovered it has a new trick (having not read the manual completely...) that when it is icy out, the unit flashes a little green warning. Which was most useful as it made me get a wriggle on so there was time to de-ice the car properly before leaving for school. Cunningly avoiding doing that thing when you drive hunched up in the seat, because you've only properly de-iced a portion of the windscreen and you need to angle yourself to see through the clear bit for the first 5 mins of the journey till the blowers in the car have done their job.
If I had a greenhouse, or outdoor animals, I could have sensors in different spots outside and check they weren't too chilly (or hot) without having to head outside at all.
Which makes it sound like I am a wimpy weather avoider. Not true!
See - frost warnings be damned - I'm still playing tennis outside. Though I might have piled on an extra layer or two.
Why has your post only just popped up on my blogroll when it is six days old? I don't trust that blogroll, I fear I may be missing things.
This weather station thingy sounds like something my husband would like. It might stop him complaining about the bbc weather app which consistently has different weather from not only the bbc weather website but from the actual weather. I'll make do with looking out the window.
Posted by: Sue | 16 December 2014 at 16:03
How odd, as Sue says, about this just appearing now. I am a little weather obsessed but simply because I need there to be no cloud cover when the ISS is due to pass over my house.
Posted by: Toffeeapple | 16 December 2014 at 18:38
I like the idea of the flashing green frosty car warning, it would be especially good for those mornings when I've forgotten to put the car blanket on.
so is tennis like golf, do you play with different coloured balls in the snow?
Posted by: driftwood | 17 December 2014 at 08:34
don't try to fool us... you're only interested in tennis weather...
we need to talk!
Posted by: monica | 17 December 2014 at 15:35
Belated reading here. Hope you've had a wonderful Christmas and all weather watching has been precise and interesting. I like it when the seasons behave and have the appropriate and correct weather. I was quite disappointed that the snow missed us last night. Ax
Posted by: Magic Bean | 27 December 2014 at 18:48