pluviometer

Sometimes a word comes along and it's love at first...uh...sound? A word that just feels good in your mouth when you say it. Well, "pluviometer" did it for me. Actually, it was something I'd been wishing for, but I thought I was just wishing for a rain gauge. Turns out it has a great name. Of course, I was wishing for one not made of plastic, because if we ever have hot sun again, the plastic won't last long. So my sweetheart gave me one, very pretty and made of glass and brass. The wrapping was lovely - check it out:

Notice the sailors hanging their legs over the side of the box? And pointing to the hunk? So, anyway, there on the box it said "A Portable Pluviometer." I went to the dictionary, and there was "pluvial", the perfect word for the weather we've been having for the past...hmmm, how long has it been raining, anyway? A month or so? I'm not complaining, mind you, but a lot of people are. I am one for cozy weather, though I do love a little sun now and then. And here's the definition of "pluvial" - "a: of or relating to rain, b: characterized by abundant rain," or as a noun, "a prolonged period of wet climate." That would be us.

Late last night we had a powerful thunderstorm which was close by and a bit scary, and it brought another 2 - 2 1/2 inches of rain. (I can't tell you exactly how much rain, because the pluviometer was still on the kitchen table, nice and dry. Instead I measured the old-fashioned way - put my hand in a tub of rainwater to see how high up my hand the water came.) And the weather forecast for today was: "fog and drizzle will give way to a chance of showers and thunderstorms." For some reason that cracked us up.

I went off to my gardening job as usual, in rainpants...rubber boots...and slogged in the mud for the day. And then...the sun came out!!!!! Around 4 pm it got bright and warm and the next thing I knew I was in shorts and bare feet and feeling fine. Bluebirds swooping nearby, and butterflies. The bees came back to the roses. The sky had some blue - oh, how beautiful!