Now that was a long respite!

Wow! I didn't realize it had been as long since I'd last posted! Two months (almost exactly)! But . . . there's been a lot going on in that time, much to do at the office, and a whirlwind of activities that have kept me from posting (not to mention that I keep forgetting my passkey and then don't have enough time to work with it). Be that as it may, it's amazing that as long a period as has passed, the immediate past post could have been the title to this posting: "Kansas Weather never means quite so much...."

The past week has been great cycling weather! (Especially considering what a cold Winter it has been!) But, being Kansas, there's always that, "gotcha" weather: Yesterday morning, nice, cool, dry; last night, chilly, rainy; this morning, damp, cold (with a hint of something floating in the air every once in a while); and tonight? Tomorrow? Wintery mix? Snow? The predicition is for up to eight inches of snow on the ground by tomorrow night, with rain and mixed-rain-and-snow-and-sleet leading up to it. But then, it might be 50 tomorrow. After all, the snow and rain and "wintery mix" was supposed to have started this morning at 3 oclock am -- but it didn't and, in fact, the ride in to work this morning was dry (well, damp, but only on the pavement and in the humidity -- not by actual precipitation).

And so it goes; it's Kansas after all!

Kansas Weather Never Means Quite So Much Until

you're commuting by bike.

This morning, wonderful weather. This morning (at 6am) it was fairly pleasant (as Januarys go); partly-cloudy, slight winds (5mph) with a nice 37 degrees (and 27 degrees wind-chill). A great morning for biking; a great morning for enjoying the trip (especially since it's Friday); and a great morning of no crazy drivers.

This evening, however, was quite another thing.

As I prepared to head out for home (very late as has been usual for this first full freedom week), I checked the weather (as usual) just to make sure that I wasn't under-or-over dressed. Chilly, with very light snow flurries starting, but nothing too bad. Well, other than that the note also mentioned that winds were out of the North at approximately 15 with gusts to 25! Nonetheless, a nice way to start the ride home.

About half-way home, however, (as it usually seems to happen), the winds picked up even more (to the point of blowing me periodically a foot to my side), and the snow started pelting harder-and-heavier-and-stronger. By the time I was a mile from home, I could see that the snows were starting to blow in their little-rivulets across the street when an oncoming vehicle approached.

A nice surprise was encountering another biking commuter as I passed through downtown Overland Park, who was going the other way. Always a welcome sight in the cold, snowy, evenings. I suspect that he is who I've passed before, only when I'm on my way into work at the morning (although I haven't seen him whom I think it is for a few months now -- primarily due to my going into work an hour earlier than I did in the summer and early-Autumn.

I'll not be surprised if we wake tomorrow with an inch of snow on the ground. And, no doubt, it will be a sunny, warm day on Monday!

This must be Kansas! Yesterday, a nice cold day in the morning; a nice cool day in the afternoon. Today, a nice cool morning and an amazingly warm day (for December) overall. Tomorrow? Well, not so much.

It looks as though I'm going to have to break out the cold weather gear while also balancing nice, temperate (relatively) weather. But, I do get to try out my new winter gloves (after trying out yet another pair this weekend that utterly failed). We'll see. I'm skeptical.