Weather, weather, weather. It’s a common topic these days, especially in light of the unseasonably warm temperatures we’re enjoying this January.
Last January, by this point, many of us were just thawing out after being snowed in with several inches of snow and ice. According to weather.gov, the high temperatures ranged between the mid-30s to low 40s, with lows in the teens and low 20s. On average, the temperatures were 10-20 degrees below normal.
Not so for this January. We’ve swung to the opposite end of that spectrum with temps 15-20 degrees above normal with highs in the 60s and 70s.
I can’t complain, however. My husband and I have greatly enjoyed the lovely temperatures and have kept windows open to enjoy the fresh air.
Each winter, our house drastically dries out. We’ve purchased humidifiers, but they don’t seem to touch the problem. According to our humidistat, the humidity drops below 16 percent when we run the heat. How far below, we are not sure, as it doesn’t read below this amount.
This results in incredible thirst in the middle of the night, dry eyes, dry skin and more. Humidifiers might, yes, might, get it above 20 percent, but no farther. With the warmer, and damper, days, we’ve enjoyed the moisture along with those warm temps. At least for a few weeks, we’ve been able to avoid the dreadfully dry air we know is coming each winter.
A few nights, we have been lulled to sleep by the sound of rain whispering past our bedroom window at night, a definite bonus. Another boon is the much-lower utility bill we will see when it arrives.
The dogs have taken advantage of the temperatures as well, playing outside and enjoying the unseasonable warmth. Normally they spend much of their time indoors during the winter, avoiding the cold weather just like we do.
Sadly, this lovely winter warm snap will come to a close by the time this edition of the paper hits the racks. Today, Tuesday, is the last day of the 70+ degree days, and last night was the last of the above-40 nights.
We’re headed into two weeks of lows in the 30s and 20s, a bit too cold to leave windows open to enjoy the night air. The days will be closer to the normal range for Clarendon County in January as well, with temps in the high 40s to mid-50s. A few days might hit the low 60s, and maybe we will open windows again for a few peak hours, but the long run of open windows and moist air seems to be coming to an end for the season.
Now we will wait for spring, when once again, we can open windows and enjoy the smells, sounds and sensations of clean, clear air, ridding the house of the dry recirculated air of the winter.
For me, it cannot come soon enough.
