The Mountain Weather Man
My parents tell the story that my first words were not mama or dada but the word 鈥渟now.鈥�
As a toddler I loved to crawl over to the window to see the outside. I became fascinated with seeing the falling snow and would point and say 鈥渟no.鈥� I am told I also loved rain, sunshine and even an occasional thunderstorm.
As a child growing up I was truly fascinated with anything weather. At the library, I read every book and article on the subject of weather but my love of the subject came from my dad.
One evening we were walking to the store and dad told me it was going to snow overnight. Next morning five inches of snow were on the ground and when I asked him how he knew he told me that the droning of the airplane suggested there were heavy clouds loaded with moisture and with temperatures in the 20s snow was likely.
He also had been watching the home barometer falling all day and into the evening and this indicated that a storm was on the way. He also sniffed the air and this told him the wind was from the east. Had it been from the south, the temperature would have warmed and we would see rain rather than snow.
Not bad for a steel worker and decades before any satellites or radar.
I loved to ride the trolley into downtown Pittsburgh and visit the Weather Bureau. They were always nice to me and I loved looking at all the weather maps and hearing the teletype giving the weather conditions from different cities.
I became a subscriber to the daily weather map which came in the mail. By the time I received it the weather on the map had moved on, however I was able to watch how the storms would form and move across the country.
Several years later I became a member of the 146th Air Weather Flight and while on active duty during the Vietnam War our weather unit was responsible for providing weather information for the flights bringing the wounded to the various military hospitals across the country.
I was fortunate in that we were stationed in Pittsburgh and I frequently got to work my shift in the weather tower at the airport. After our tour of duty, my Colonel, who was also in charge of the Weather Bureau in Pittsburgh, asked me to set up a weather station in the mountains.
Forty years later I was awarded a pin for my volunteer services. During this time I also was heard on WMBS and frequently provided other stations and local newspapers with weather information from the mountains.
I became known as The Mountain Weather Man and even today people I meet tell me how they listened for information on school delays and cancellations.
Five years ago I was asked by the 缅北禁地 to write a weekly column on the weather and the outdoors as people are always fascinated by the weather, especially if they spend a lot of time outdoors. With the floods, droughts, fires and storms ever increasing there remains a need for weather information.
This past week has been hot and humid, however this coming week promises to see temperatures in the 70s with some rain to ease the dry spell we just had.
Mother Nature is getting ready for her annual fall spectacular and this presents some nice opportunities to get out and enjoy the beauty of our area.