It's a Deluge

The last couple months Seattle has been living up to its reputation. Normally during our rainy season there are 3 or 4 days between storms and the rain comes in light batches. Not this year. From late December through the first half of January we were going for an all-time record of 33 straight days of measurable rainfall. We got a one-day break after day 27 so no record for Seattle. However, in Olympia, just 60 miles to the south, they succeeded in overcoming their 1953 record and reached 35 straight days of rainfall. We had a little break but the rains are definitely back. The radar image above is from this morning. But last night all the parts that are green in that shot were orange and the orange spots were red. Olympia recorded 2.8 inches of rain yesterday, Seattle 1.66 inches.

Fortunately I am not one who suffers from SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder). The rainy weather doesn't affect my mood too much, at least it hasn't so far. Give me another couple months of this and I may start to feel it. But I feel bad for those who are greatly inconvenienced by the wetness or have had property damaged. Check out this article from KOMO about today's wet effects. The news is of flooding, landslides, mudslides and the consequences of same. We have slides that have diverted rivers into areas where homes are not normally flooded; slides that block major highways; slides that stop commuter trains.

All this rain in the Seattle area means tons of snow in our nearby mountains. And tons of snow means avalanches. Avalanches that hurt people, avalanches that block highways such as the major routes between the east and west regions of our state.

If there is any good to come from so much rain I suppose we shouldn't have to worry about a water shortage this coming summer, and when the sun does come out we will really appreciate it. I know I will.