Living in Southwestern Pennsylvania
I woke up this morning hearing Bruce Springsteen’s song, “Born in the USA”.
My morning shower changed the tune from Born in the USA to Living in Southwest Pennsylvania.
Checking the morning weather, I saw that July 23 was the warmest day ever recorded on the planet. Records go back to the 1880s. I am sure many eons ago the earth was warmer, but recent events show that the current heat is being caused by our increased carbon dioxide levels which have been increasing since the Industrial Revolution began some 250 years ago. Previous heat took millions of years to do what we have managed to accomplish in a much shorter time period.
Next was a look at the satellite images that showed the smoke from the fires out west was dominating a large portion of the Plains. Checking the temperatures showed the brutal heat continues in the west with Las Vegas at 114 and Phoenix at 115. Last summer, Phoenix had 54 days above110 degrees and this year is on track to beat that record.
Even far northern cities in the west are getting slammed with heat. Portland, Oregon, hit 114 last year, topping its previous record by some eight degrees. Boise, Idaho, reached 106 this week.
The soaring heat has dried vegetation and the fires are again raging. People are dying from the heat and it is the biggest killer, far more so than any other weather event. So many of the world’s population do not live like us with air conditioning and ample water resources.
I know it’s been hot here, but we did manage a few rains and lower temperatures and humidity levels brought some welcome relief.
I talked with a relative in Florida and she said this summer has been brutal. Nights stay close to 80, and the daytime 90s and humidity are unbearable and everybody is growing fearful of the coming hurricane season. Many are still repairing from past storms. Her homeowners insurance for a $300,000 home six miles from the Gulf of Mexico is $4,000 per year.
In the scheme of things, a four season climate like we have here might be a better way of life rather than all the heat, droughts, floods, fires and storms that affect much of the country. The new climate patterns may actually benefit us since recent winters are milder, spring is earlier and fall tends to linger longer.
Our weather is becoming more like what Virginia used to be 50 years ago. The new weather patterns we are experiencing will bring warmer summers however, we seem to always manage several periods each season of refreshing cooler and less humid air that visits from Canada.
It’s not a perfect climate, but when you think about it the tune becomes “Living in Southwestern Pennsylvania”. Not a bad place to be.