Anne E. Kettenbrink: Weather leftovers

Globe Life

Related Photos

Discussion

December 19, 2008

Anonymous The Joplin Globe Fri Dec 19, 2008, 11:09 AM CST

How’s the weather?

Fickle. Temperamental. Mercurial.

Those words are a perfect description. No, not me. The weather.

Last Sunday was perfectly gorgeous. Warm, breezy and sunny is unusual for a December day in most climates that have seasons.

Of course, that was only until about 4 p.m.

And then winter bared her ugly face a week early, according to the calendar, which seems to think that winter begins today.

Just days before such a strange, only-in-Missouri phenomenon, I was discussing the state’s strange weather patterns with someone who had lived in multiple locations, none of which prepared him for the indecisiveness that is the forecast here.

“In New York, when it’s hot, it’s hot all the time,” he said. “When it’s cold, it’s cold all the time.”

Well, maybe you’ve noticed, but this ain’t New York.

That’s nice if you can get it, I guess, but if that’s what you were expecting when you got here, I believe someone may not have told you the truth.

Being from Missouri, I am used to the ever-changing climate. I kind of like the variety. It’s nice to think that winter has finally blown in, only to have a short reprieve.

Of course, it works the other way around, too. I when I worked on a school magazine as part of a college class. Most of the other students in the class were from out of state, drawn to Missouri by the great School of Journalism. A hometown student was a rarity.

Anyway, we were diligently planning one of our April issues during March, and most of the other students were excitedly planning a spring issue filled with the hope of warm weather, days spent lounging on the Quad and the thought of not having to trek through campus wearing a huge coat.

I tried to warn them. I regaled them with stories of Aprils past, when it had snowed on my birthday, which is well into April. It was to no avail.

The issue was released with a cover showing a student cavorting in a baby pool with pool toys. And the week it was released, it snowed.

I had to bite my tongue.

But I couldn’t really blame them. I mean, these people were unprepared to attend college in a state where it was impossible to conserve the limited amount of closet space you were allotted in the dorm by switching out winter and summer wardrobes during trips home. Some of them tried freshman year. I’m pretty sure after being left with only sweaters to wear on 80-degree January days, they altered their plans for sophomore year’s closet-rotating schedule.

So, while the finicky weather causes eye-rolling, I can’t really say I mind it. That’s the way things are, and it makes it exciting to live here in Mother Nature’s grab-bag. Sure, Mother Nature, we’ll take whatever’s left at the bottom of the bag when the other, more important states like California and New York are finished picking.

We prefer the leftovers.

They make life interesting.

But we would prefer someone else get the ice storms this year.

Address correspondence to Anne E. Kettenbrink, c/o The Joplin Globe, P.O. Box 7, Joplin, MO 64802, or via e-mail, akettenbrink@joplinglobe.com.

Text Only

Globe Life

Students add vision to collaborative exhibit
In a “secret room” upstairs at Spiva Center for the Arts, an art project began last week that won’t be finished for 18 more days. That’s because it is being created by more than 1,100 artists.

February 6, 2012 1 Photo
Cari Rerat: Pair of graphic novels tell tales of heroism
Witty banter, blood-soaked violence, and old-school sound effects make this one of the most fun graphic novels I’ve read in a long time.

February 6, 2012
Frankie Meyer: Celebrity genealogy hunt makes return to TV
At last, my favorite series is returning for its third season. “Who Do You Think You Are?” is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Fridays.

February 6, 2012
Frankie Meyer: Church minutes can provide details about ancestors
As you compile your family history, you will often learn the name of the church that an ancestor attended. Novice researchers sometimes ignore that type of detail, not realizing that church records can provide details that blast through the brick walls of research.

January 31, 2012
Phyllis Seesengood: Prequel takes Jack Reacher book series back in time
“The Affair,” by Lee Child, is the 16th book in the series of Jack Reacher thrillers and is a prequel to the other books. It takes us back in time to March 1997, where we learn valuable information about Reacher’s background and his reasons for leaving the military.

January 31, 2012
B-easy does it
Chris Watson, a Pittsburg State University graduate and Kansas native, was visiting a local video store when he stumbled across three horror movies he’d either produced, directed, directly written or co-written over the last eight years.

January 31, 2012 3 Photos
Book highlights opposites in animal kingdom
Even in science opposite attract. It’s the opposite ends of a magnet that attract. Don’t try to connect the south poles on two magnets, because it’s not going to work. Opposites attract.

January 23, 2012
Cemetery research can yield details about family
Through cemetery research, family history researchers can learn details such as names of spouses and children, military service, hobbies and religious preference, as well as the date and location of birth, marriages and death.

January 23, 2012
Art class helps kids deal with feelings from tornado
And while this innovative program received national attention -- thanks to the Joplin-based episode of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” on Jan. 13 -- Bourne’s mobile arts center, dedicated to the growth and healing of children through art, had been up and running long before the EF-5 tornado suddenly spiraled out of the clouds.

January 23, 2012 1 Photo
Danya Walker: Non-fiction work examines history’s infamous mistresses
Many times, the cover and title of a book promises a much more risque read than is actually delivered. “Mistresses: A History of the Other Woman” by Elizabeth Abbott is one such book.

January 16, 2012
More Globe Life Headlines

Globe Life

Search Results

Related Photos

Discussion

Anne E. Kettenbrink: Weather leftovers

Joplin City Manager Mark Rohr wants the city to distribute weather radios to all Joplin homes that don’t have one. That’s 11,000 radios. Do you think that’s a good use of $300,440?

Joplin City Manager Mark Rohr wants the city to distribute weather radios to all Joplin homes that don’t have one. That’s 11,000 radios. Do you think that’s a good use of $300,440?

Site Map

Contact Us