It is safe to say that that our weather pattern over the past week has not exactly been up to the usual standards. In fact, it has been downright crazy with wind chill advisories, freeze warnings and the longest stretch of crummy weather in over a decade.
After a very brief warm-up on Thursday and Friday, the chill is back this morning with what could be history-making cold temperatures for the region. For the second time in 2010, a surge of arctic air has invaded South Florida dropping temperatures into the upper 20’s and producing wind chill factors that would make an Eskimo cold.
Obviously, this is quite distressing. Especially for me since I despise chilly weather. I spent enough of my life shaking and shivering in places like Green Bay, Wisconsin and Topeka, Kansas. I don’t want to experience any more winter weather
In fact, one of the reasons I love living here is our tropical climate. My motto: the warmer the weather, the happier I am. I love the heat. I’m a big fan of humidity. Give me a sunny, hot, and muggy day and good old Mike has a big smile on his face.
That smile vanished about six days ago when I looked at the weather charts. The polar express was on its way and, unlike most of our cold spells, this one was going to be very cold and, perhaps more disturbing, stick around for a while.
Ordinarily, our nippy weather doesn’t last long. Within 24 to 36 hours, the chilly air is moving away as a warm, tropical breeze returns to the area.
But this frosty pattern was different. Like that visiting relative from up north, it refused to leave as each day got colder and colder. The National Weather Service in Miami says it was the longest period of cold weather since 2001.
The gusty northwest winds and chilly morning temperatures kept me off the golf course and even curtailed my daily run. I did try running one morning but I had on so many layers of clothing it looked like Michelin Man was lost in our cull de sac.
It was even tougher at work because my newscast producers thought it would be “great TV” if I did the nightly weather reports from outside in the cold. So, there I was, every night last week all bundled up telling viewers at home that it was cold outside.
Folks watching probably knew that anyway since the weatherman was turning blue on live TV. Once night I compared our temperature with the temperature in New York. They were virtually the same! How crazy is that? (Last Thursday it was warmer in Juneau, Alaska than Palm Beach, Florida!)
The reason for our prolonged period of misery was something meteorologists call a “blocking” weather pattern. In essence, a large low-pressure system over New England refused to budge, “blocking” any other weather system from moving across the country.
The stuck-in-the-mud low-pressure system helped steer the frigid weather all the way into South Florida. By Friday, the low finally got shoved into the Atlantic Ocean giving Palm Beach a two-day break from the chill. But yesterday, another cold front swept across the state bringing a return of the frigid weather.
Thankfully, this cold spell won’t last long. Warmer temperatures will return by the end of the week meaning I will be wearing a big smile very soon.
