Living without Seasons

Us hanging out at the airport
during our journey East

We arrived in Bangkok at the end of July escaping a heat wave in Philadelphia which was making me sweat at 4:30 in the morning when Megan and I originally left for the PHL airport. 

Yep... that's only about 13 minutes
with no air conditioning for me

Since arriving in Bangkok I have not stopped sweating for any extended period of time.  In fact every day seems like summer – because that’s what the temperature reflects (76 as a low and 91 as a typical high) and almost every day there is a threat of afternoon rain.  And since it’s the rainy season there is always the chance of a deluge occurring at any point in time… and by a deluge I can only try to describe how much it pours – often within a 30-50 minute time period it will rain 6-7cm (nearly 3 inches).  So to recap, if I even stopped sweating I’d likely be soaked by the rain for the remainder of the day.  So while I sit here in perpetual summer and see friends post photos/comments of fall colors, cool mornings, digging out sweaters, and everything pumpkin (ale, latte, muffins, or even actual pumpkins) I have to consciously wrap my head around the possibility that others are actually in the season, let alone the months, of fall. 

Yep... that could be us one day :)

Photos of us in Maine last year

Last year, almost to the day, Megan and I went to Maine to see the fall colors and nearly froze watching the sun rise over Bar Harbor - now we can only turn down our AC to create excitement for long sleeved shirts. 

(Note: we also found we were the youngest people sightseeing by at least 40 years which leads me to wonder what we’ll do when we hit retirement one day)  With these memories, a glance at a calendar, and/or seeing friends posts I have found that I really miss the change of seasons and to an even greater degree I miss reviewing weather and weather patterns. 

To many reading this blog you may already know that if I go back and do everything over again I would want to study meteorology and become a meteorologist.  Not to be on TV or anything and definitely not to be this guy to the right.    I’m just fascinated by the weather and since moving here have found that there is no regular daily weather report or updated radar I can look at to see where the rain’s coming from and how long the storm may last – it’s not because they couldn’t add these details to their news reports or actually create a detailed weather webpage…it’s just that the weather is nearly the same every

day and when it does rain people take cover and wait for it to end (It’s like Groundhog day – without the snow).  Without significant seasonal changes there’s clearly no need for a daily detailed weather report.  At the very least the one aspect of the weather cycle I get to appreciate everyday are the massive cumulus clouds that fill the sky before they release all their moisture.

Nevertheless, I hope all who are in regions that experience seasons appreciate the fall colors and final harvests.  And for all of those of you who are in climates where there is not significant seasonal change and you actually like it that way… I pity you J

Final Note to readers… although I said “If I could do it all again I’d go back and study meteorology I definitely WOULD NOT change falling in love with Megan!  Hi dear J