Here in upper midwest August is called "Dog Days". Probably because of the lazy type weather. To hot & humid to do much work. Good time to just lay under a shade tree.
State fairs are the thing in August.
Iowa starts August 12, runs until the 22nd. Minnesota is August 26 through Labor day. I've been to MN State Fair many times. Not quite like it used to be. More Urban now, while in earlier times it was definitely farming theme. The 80 acre "Machinery Hill" has been replaced with riding lawn mowers.
Although not a fair as such, Minnesota's "Farmfest" starts tomorrow. It's a 3 day machinery & crop show. Farmers from wide & far attend to see the newest machines & new crop varieties. Lots of in field demonstrations too.
So we kick off the last month of real summer.
Bernie
August Weather - Dog Days & Fairs
The Old Farmer's Almanac lists the traditional timing of the Dog Days as the 40 days beginning July 3 and ending August 11, coinciding with the ancient heliacal (at sunrise) rising of the Dog Star, Sirius. These are the days of the year when rainfall is at its lowest levels.
Rainfall at it's lowest levels ? Not here, not this year. Been wet here the whole past month.
Normally would be real dry this time of year.
Thanks for the explanation of Dog Days.
Here it has alternated wildly all summer between very dry and very wet; I either have to water the garden, or wear my boots. The ground doesn't seem to hold moisture much this year... it gets bone-dry down deep within just a few days after having lots of rainfall.
Global Weirding?
Stopped Raining - Gauge (which read 3/10 in yesterday morning) now displays 1 & 4/10 in.
Still overcast and cool @ 63°
Details for Sunday, August 01
Cloudy early with isolated thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 78F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%.
Evening: Isolated thunderstorms this evening with a few showers possible overnight. Low 67F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%.
Thanks for the new thread, Bernie.
Darius, thanks for the explanation of Dog Days...I just associate it with snakes...shedding. You're just a 'fount of knowledge'! :D
Dyson, I'd say you found a good spot for your gauge. We didn't get near that much, but it rained lightly all day yesterday. A good soaking.
We have a temp of 64° and still cloudy like it will rain more.
"Welcome to the jungle'
Joey, I keep hearing Guns N' Roses when I think of "Welcome to the Jungle..." LOL
Hot, humid (for us) and sunny.
LOL! Celia! That's what I was thinkin' too! :D
Pretty flowers! What are they?
Those are CA poppies. I found the white on a couple of days ago. I remember putting those seeds in 2 years ago and it finally germinated.
The house built in 1950's looks more like Formstone or Perma-Stone and not real stone.
Interesting that a fake stone could turn out so attractive and hold up so well.
Other than a week in the middle of July, it has been less hot than usual. Last summer was like that, too. However, we can still get brutally hot weather up almost to November. No rain here of course. It's only August.
Van Nuys, California (Airport)
Updated: 1:51 PM PDT on August 01, 2010
84 °F
Clear
Humidity: 24%
Dew Point: 43 °F
Wind: 7 mph from the SSE
This is in the Santa Monica Mountains, which isn't far from here. I don't consider them real mountains, but that's what they're called. They're rugged enough, anyways. The haze is from the fire up at Palmdale.
The chaparral plant community stays green. Coastal sage scrub gets fairly brown. By October it will look pretty tired.
Hot and humid. Just gonna get hotter as week goes on.
Butterfly on zinna. I'm loving my zinnas this year. They are blooming just as my rudibeckias and coneflowers are fading.
Interesting how you have the State Fairs circuit. We have the Agricultural Shows, or just "Shows" for short. In the Northern Territory here we have the Alice Springs one first, which then packs up and moves to Katherine and finally (only a couple of weeks ago) to Darwin. There's a mixture of side shows, amusements, agricultural equipment, livestock, floral, vegetable/produce, woodchopping, rodeos, etc.
To put the area into a bit of perspective, the Northern Territory is more than twice the size of Texas, but Texas has more than 200 times our population. The climate ranges from arid desert in the south to equatorial topics in the north.
Yesterday was quite windy here with a bit of cloud but the temperature got to a maximum of 36.5C (97.7F). This morning's minimum was 24.2C (75.6F). Looks like the temperatures will drop a little over the next few days, but not likely to rain.
Another of the Goodenia sp. growing wild at my place.
71°F Feels Like: 71°
Humidity: 89%
Dew Point: 68°
Pressure: 29.96 in
Visibility: 8.0 mi
UV Index :0 - Low
Sunrise Information: Time Until Sunrise: 0 hrs 30 min
Through 11am: Widespread showers and thunderstorms developing around mid-morning. Increasing clouds with temperatures warming rapidly into the mid to upper 70s. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
Bernie, it's dog days here too, but no rest for the wicked at my place :o) It's too bad the modern world has changed the fairs. If we want to go way back, we have Old Thresher's Day in Mount Pleasant. We used to go when I was a kid. They have a nice mid sized train you can ride. It's really not a kids place unless they've added some attractions for them. Thanks for the new thread!
Darius, thanks for the offical explanation. I do like Bernie's breakdown we are expecting rain today. I think I'll be glad to have it. As much as we've had, only the front yard under the walnut tree is soft enough to feel your heel dig in, and the grass is mighty sparse in the shadiest area. Global weirding is right!
Wow Dyson, a little priming and you hit a waterfall!
Joey, your "jungle" is lovely and I really enjoy my Joe Pye Weed. That's a beautiful spot of tiger sunshine! GORGEOUS African Violets!
Celia, me too! Nice hot and cold colors. Is that Cosmos? Never mind! I love those!
Kelli, rugged and tall. I think they're mountainous enough for me, LOL! I'm amazed that anything is green with the small amount of rain you get. It's even a nice dark green.
Pepper, I love Zinnias too and regret not getting any planted this spring. Next year and I know exactly whare they are going to be planted! I love the buttery Sulphers.
Tropic, your ''shows'' are like our State Fairs. I don't think we have the rodeos, but we have talent shows and bands that play for free in the bandstands. There are tractor pulls and well, here's a link :o) http://www.iowastatefair.com/ I Google Earthed your area and came out on the highways. Are you more arid, humid or in between? I love the fringe on the bloom! It doean't resemble anything I'm familiar with.
I washed windows inside and out the other day so it's going to rain for sure!
Daylily Kwanso bloomed bigger and better!
I forgot to wish Ric a ''HAPPY WORKDAY!!''
We have a big steam engine show not far from here. I have only went once on a Sunday after it rained all weekend. Most of the machines were gone already.
Short rain shower a few minutes ago. Lasted a whole 10 minutes.
I have 2 guys out picking pickles. Couple more supposed to show up.
Very busy time of the year here.
Bernie, I love apples! What kind are you picking? Transparents are the only thing that woud be ready around here.
Our rain should be here in about 3 hgours. It clouded up pretty good a short time after sunrise.
Pickles!
ROTFL!!! What pickles where?
It didn't rain much more than sprinkles this morning. I tied up a few plants and pulled a few weeds. The sun is out and it's getting stuffy out there.
84° and warm! Sunny and breezy. It looks really nice out :o)
Sunrise in the Northeast the other morning
Pickles is one of my favorite cartoons. Bread and butter actual pickles are my favorite to eat. LOL
It's hot, it just rained and now it's muggy.
The temp topped out just shy of 90 today, but was muggy and uncomfortable with dewpoints in the 70s.
A good day to stay indoors. Saw this neat looking yellow beetle on my one trip out and was pleased to get an ID on the insects forum-- Spotless Larger Elm Leaf Beetle. We do have a lot of volunteer elms I am constantly trying to keep out of my garden beds.
Very hot and muggy.
97*
heat index of 106
Humidity at 54%
Winds out of the south at 13 mph
Sunny with not a cloud in site.
Hibiscus and moon carrot. The name of the hib escapes me at the moment but I got the seeds from Summerhill. The blooms are a deep burgandy.
Everyone is having muggy weather, it seems
The first day went much better than I thought it would.
The issue I had before was not enough work and it got VERY boring late in the day.
(Plus I was just burned out.)
Well the guy I'm replacing wasn't doing squat.
So I spent the whole day playing catch up.
I was work friends w/ many of the people there so that part was really nice.
Most didn't know I was coming back and it was fun to see the looks on their faces.
Two went up to Jon (our neighbor and the Plant Manager) and said I'd done work that hadn't been touched in a year.
We just got back from celebrating his 50th Birthday and other than the compliments he said nothing about work. So......
Bit Tough getting up this morning....
Tougher working in Climate Control and coming home to real weather! LOL!
LOL Ric!! I have the same problem!! Going outside is like stepping into a sauna right now.
Minimum overnight temperature was 20.4C (68.7F). Maximum yesterday was 34.2C (93.6F). There's lots of wind now from the south east, dry and cold. I expect by end of this week the minimum will be a few degrees lower, until the high pressure moves on.
The Syzygium suborbiculare here are a mass of buds and flowers now, a sign of immanent rain. The Persoonia falcata has been budding up for a while, a fore runner to the Build-up. Looks like the signals here have been for an early start to the wet season, long enough anyway for the plants to start to believe it. But it's all a couple of months early.
Billyporter, that's an interesting link to the state fair. It is generally the same as what we have just with a different name. I googled ours and came up with this link:
www.darwinshow.com.au/RoyalShow.htm
All aerial/satellite images here are usually taken during the dry season when there's little or no cloud cover. Hence the dry look of the country. Our monsoonal climate means all our rain comes in summer (wet season) and the winter is completely dry (dry season). Annual rainfall is about 2000 millimetres (78.74 inches), but it all comes in virtually only 5 months. The wet season is very hot and humid, the dry season is hot and drier. Although relative humidity levels can still get high during the dry season, just no rain.
Another of the Goodenias growing wild at my place.
73°F Feels Like: 73° High 90°
Past 24-hr: Precip: 1.25 in (est.)
Wind: From SW at 4mph
Breakdown: Humidity:94%
Dew Point: 71°
Pressure: 29.94 in
Visibility: 3.0 mi
UV Index: 0 - Low Sunrise Information:
Time Until Sunrise: 0 hrs 32 min
Through 11am: Showers and thunderstorms ending by mid-morning. Mostly cloudy with temperatures rising towards the low 80s. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph.
Celia, love the sparrows! Awww for picture # 2.
Sunfarm, neat elm bug. I've never seen one here. I pull volunteer chinese elms, walnuts and mulberries.
Pepper, love the name moon carrot! It sets off the Hibiscus color. I'm appreciating my burgandy sedums about now.
Ric, long hours with nothing to do, do burn you out. I'm glad you had a chance to prove your stuff! I think they'll keep you :o)
Tropic, you have a nice fair! Our's is on hilly and flat ground. The bands, old cars, old putt putt motors and more buildings are up! We are going to ride the skylift up and work our way down before we get too tired to climb everywhere. There are a lot of buildings to go in, and the midway with the rides aren't as big as I remember when I was a kid, LOL! It's a long day no mattr how long you stay. It takes us about 3 hours to get there. We bought our tickets at the bank for $7.00. That's for one day. I don't think I could stand not having rain at least every two weeks. I enjoy cloudy, sunny or wet. It all gives me something different to do. Goodenias are neat little flowers!
Yesterday was stuffy, but not too bad. I mowed and cut back flowers. I spread them across the road in the grass to see if I can get them started. I scattered Rudbeckias and Tall American Bellflower I got from the roadside in the first place.
Angelwing on Joe Pye Weed
Nice photos, everyone!
Sunfarm: does that beetle do a lot of damage to the elm trees?
Tropic: it will be interesting to see the different kinds of flowers in your area. I have never heard of a Goodenia, much less seen one! LOL
BP: pretty angelwing
Ric: glad the first day back at work went well--good luck with the 2nd day! :o))
I've been at my DD's for a few days--heading back home this morning.
I got some pics of a Tiger Swallowtail butterfly in her back yard on Saturday evening. I went to the Butterflies and Moths of North America website to get an ID on it and discovered that this butterfly has not been documented as having been seen in the county where my daughter lives. I got in touch with the BAMONA coordinator for Arkansas and emailed her a couple of pics. She gave me the positive ID of a Tiger Swallowtail and she is going to send my pics to BAMONA. They will then document the Tiger as having been seen in this county, but they are working on their website right now so it might be a while before they add my photographs.
Weather today for Harrison, AR where my daughter lives:
# Today: A good deal of sunshine. Near record high temperatures. High near 100F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph.
# Tonight: Mostly clear. Low 77F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph.
Mau, I have no idea how destructive those beetles are; I've never noticed one before. The bright color just caught my eye. BP is the "angelwing" the same as a "question mark?" You picture looks like what I have been calling by the latter name.
Ric, glad to hear your return to work went so well. My DH left a job in 1999 for what looked like a great opportunity with a brand new company, but it turned out to be a nightmare. In 2007 they laid him off, and the place closed a few months later. He always insisted you can't go back, but his old employer took him back gratefully. For once in his life he was wrong! At least his 6 months out of work gave us a glimpse of what retirement might be like-- actually better than we had expected and not all the commuting time and costs he has again.
Still 73* and we have 1 & 2/10'' rain.
Marsue, what a neat story and a gorgeous picture!! Wow, did you go from hot to hotter? LOL!
Sunfarm, yes it is. I posted a larger one last year and never got to see it's colors. I was suprised to see how beautiful they are. These are the only two years I've ever seen them. If you have a good guy, or gal, retirement goes pretty smoothly. Keep a room between you and them occasionally so you have a sense of privacy :o) I'm glad your husband had a happy ending.
Here is a side view of the Comma/Question Mark
80.4 °F with 94º for the high.
Scattered Clouds
Humidity: 45%
Dew Point: 57 °F
Wind: Calm
Wind Gust: 0.0 mph
Pressure: 29.95 in (Rising)
Heat Index: 81 °F
Visibility: 10.0 miles
UV: 2 out of 16
Pollen: 6.10 out of 12
Clouds: Scattered Clouds 13000 ft
Scattered Clouds 16000 ft
(Above Ground Level)
Elevation: 4269 ft
I think this seagull has only one leg.
Celia, I think you're right!
Remember when we were talking about how to make it rain? I did wash windows inside and out a couple of days ago. SEE! It worked !
We just have to water everything and it rains.
:o) Someone wants a big juicy bug for dinner!
In the peach tree, but not a peach
Little Turtle Dove
Very high dew point today.
80º ?
No wind.
Feels like 120º!
Market should be lots of fun! Add 20º for the asphalt.
Bernie, good to know you're doing well. Sorry about the hot.
BP, nice to see your doves have laser sights.
Got hit up to 102 today and heat index is 106 I feel like living in southern California few years ago....
DANGEROUSLY HOT HERE!! The official temp. at the Little Rock airport (Adams Field) was 105 at 5 p.m. The high temp this afternoon was 107F. that's the air temp--not the heat index, soooo----
No, BP in spite of the forecast for Harrison which I posted above, I did not go from hot to hotter in going from here to there. I went from hot to hotter when I came back home this morning! :o((
The time/temp sign at the high school here in Cabot said the temp was 113F when I went to the grocery store this afternoon at 1:30 p.m. Folks, that is HOT!!! Watering everything down here hasn't produced any rain, either, nor washing windows, unfortunately!!!!
Oh! Mau! That's terrible! Please stay inside! OK! This gimpy person is going to do one heck of a rain dance! Geez! And I thought that 93° was bad! I'll not complain anymore! :-O
I hope everybody can stay cool...Safe!
Great Bird Shots! :D Sally, you're getting to be as good as Celia! :D
Don! Happy Birthday!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DON!! I almost missed it! Hope you have had a great day.
Since Bernie and a couple of you others don't visit us over at "the other place" I will post some photos here which I took along the highway on my trip home from my DD's today. Most of these were taken through the windshield so please forgive the bug "splats". :o~
This is one of my favorite spots along hwy 65N just north of Marshall, AR.
