Everybody talks about the weather — and likes to read about it, too
You’re welcome. Our pleasure.
If you’re tired of the summer weather salsa — one step humid, two steps heat, turn with afternoon thunder clap — we’re taking credit.
Nothing changes the rhythm of July like a well-planned party meant to embrace our sweatiness.
We started planning more than a week ago for The N&O (Nautical & Oceanic, mind you) Summerfest, a mixer for our talented summer interns disguised as a culture-celebrating get-together for the newsroom.
So, the rumbling clouds and pounding rain that awakened the Triangle on Friday morning? You guessed it — that’s when Summerfest was scheduled. One step humid, two steps rain, turn with thunder claps and transfer weight to umbrella tilt.
I love summer.
And weather.
Southern ways to say it’s hot
Both are topics that resonate with news consumers because everyone has an opinion.
Anyone who has lived in Florida or Texas thinks all this talk about North Carolina’s summer humidity is quaint and, well, whiny. Anyone who moved here from the Northeast thinks North Carolina is Florida AND Texas.
The folks who oversee Nature’s brand marketing astutely made sure we’re always thinking about weather. Hot or cold, they’ve convinced every generation that extremes are positive things. Hey, I’m just chillin’! Whoa, you’re looking HOT in that beige leisure suit! (OK, maybe no one has ever said that.)
Props, too, for European tourism agencies, recognizing that Americans pay more attention to weather than math. If you’re watching BBC News and they mention how it’s a sweltering 35 degrees (Celsius) somewhere in Europe, you start longing now for that Air France flight from RDU. Do the math — you won’t need a coat.
When temperatures and the humidity level climb, readers annually migrate back to a story from enterprise reporter and columnist Josh Shaffer on 86 Southern ways to say it’s hot.
When I asked Josh which was his favorite saying, his response said as much about y’all’s affinity for talking about the weather : “Holy cow, I wrote that thing in 2018. Amazed it still registers. I would have to say my favorite is ‘Hotter than a June bride in a feather bed.’”
Mountain snorkeling with Josh Shaffer
Josh should be on your must-read list all the time. He’s recently written about karaoke in a bait shop and the Blue Ridge Snorkel Trail.
This is Josh reporting on snorkeling in Western North Carolina. The visuals ooze from his wordsmithing:
The Blue Ridge Mountains have no coral reefs, no white sand, no charter boats, no sun-baked tourists and no sharks, but they do present a rich biodiversity and a sense of regional pride that delivers the same rewards for anyone willing to visit face-first.
Maybe that’s why I love summer. We continue to report on stories that reflect traditional interests, especially watchdog and public-policy matters. But you don’t mind when we take a road trip, as The N&O’s Martha Quillin and Travis Long did with the Cruising Across Carolina series.
Y’all love summer travel. And ice cream.
Kimberly Cataudella’s story on how the nation’s best ice cream has a North Carolina flavor features Cary-based Andia’s Ice Cream, which N&O readers voted as the Triangle’s best ice cream last summer. Their current menu choices are cool and chillin’ with an extra scoop of attitude: Bite Me. Birthday Cake, Butter’d Beer, Freckled Mint, Lemon Lime Sorbet, Malted Twix, Summer Blues and Thai Tea.
Not everyone embraces summer, which may explain why another Martha Quillin story has resonated with The N&O audience.
Will we get snow this winter? Martha asked Nick Luchetti of the National Weather Service in Raleigh. Here’s how Martha reported the moment: “My gut feeling?” Luchetti said Wednesday, wandering uncomfortably from the world of knowledge into the realm of conjecture. “I don’t know. But I think we’re due.”
Block the sun by lowering the shades, cue up a “Game of Thrones” binge watch and crank up the AC.
Time to chill out. Winter is coming.
Bill Church is executive editor of The News & Observer. He wears tropical shirts most weekends.
