7:45 pm – I had a gentle drizzle up here, on and off for the last 5 hours, but nothing really measurable. 15 mins ago, serious rain started, and considering it is 38 degrees outside, if this keeps up, I might get snow.
I have been keeping a close eye on the weather, and reports of a possible storm sometime between Sunday and Wednesday. The reports (and I track Monterey, San Luis Obispo, and Bakersfield) have been all over the map about strength and timing. As of 2:00 pm PST here on my mountain, it is looking like it may stay out to sea, and if we do get any showers, it won’t be much. I’ll keep tracking and let everyone know if there is anything significant.
Currently, the outside temperature is a balmy 39 degrees. I’ve got it up to 67 inside. Lucky me. Avis is busy working on her next Pitkin’s Curve/Rain Rocks photos post, and either she or I will get in up in a few days.
BSN Citizens’ Travel Advisory: Here at the Big Sur Nation Embassy to the Helvetian Confederation (Switzerland for those who are history-challenged) we are happy to report cold rain at 428 meters (1404 feet), with the snow level at 1000 meters (3280 feet) and sinking this evening. We expect no significant road, rail, bus, tram, lake-ship or cable car delays due to this welcome weather system kindly sent to us from the North Atlantic. After a rainy spring and a decent summer, autumn brought us drought conditions and there was virtually no snow in the main chain of the Alps until about a week ago. Although I am no longer a skier, I am a big fan of winter snow as well as the environment – winter snow means the plants and animals are happier and the rivers flow in summer feeding the fish and incidentally, the fields of farmers who grow food for “people”. It also means that Helvetian mountain villages (with a culture not alien to Big Sur) can make some good and needed money off of winter visitors. Selling cheese to starving American mercenaries in Afghanistan just doesn’t cover living costs or smart phones these days. In any case BSN citizens planning to travel to Europe (Yurp for Tea Party and Baby Bush fans) during this season should not be concerned. The Eurozone Dance of Idiot Politicians should not affect vacation plans. And, although the embassy is closed for the winter, essential citizens’ services are still available by email through bigsurnation@gmail.com or directly by phone, fax, semaphore or smoke signal to Sterling.