A Storm's a Brewing on the Horizon

I mentioned yesterday that the weatherman is forecasting rain next week. As Meg pointed out, this already has us Southern Californians stressing. I mean I don't even know where my umbrella is! And this is the honest truth - my son had driven a year before he had to drive in the rain. How are we all going to live through the week?

Honestly, the one thing that *does* have some of us concerned is the forecasted size of the storm. According to the forecast, as much as 8 inches of rain may fall next week. I realize for most of the country, 8 inches of rain is no big deal. Heck, south Florida can receive a quarter of that in an afternoon! But, we are just not capable of processing that amount of water out here. You need to keep in mind - the typical year's worth of rainfall here is around 14 inches. Here's what 4 inches of rain over three days did back in 2005:


If you look about 45 seconds into the video you see that the rescuers are laying across what looks like a divided trail? Well, those are the trails that a lot of us run on here! Of course - this isn't Mother Nature's fault. We're just not used to it, so we don't do things like realize that we *should* be sticking to higher ground.

The forecasters are saying rain is starting Sunday night. This time it must be for real. I went running last night (a quick and easy six miles) and got these pictures of the leading edge of the storm:

So, fellow Southern Californians - take it easy this week. If you are going to run in the rain, stay out of the flood channels (like the Los Angeles River, San Diego Creek, etc.). Stay off of the trails that run next to creeks. And take caution - just because it isn't raining where you are doesn't mean that the stream isn't channelling water from way upstream. That's water folks. Notice how it's sunny outside:

Let's be smart this week!