La Niña, a periodic weather phenomenon in which the central Pacific Ocean around the equator cools by at least 1 degree below normal, appears set to once again bring severe winter weather to the Midwest, including Indiana, as it did last winter, associate state climatologist Ken Scheeringa said Tuesday.
[. . .]
Michael Koch, a forecaster for the National Weather Service in Indianapolis, said he also sees the La Niña pattern playing a major role in the forecast for the state again this winter, driving storm systems -- and above-normal precipitation -- farther north into Indiana.
Whenever I'm outside sweating and cursing the hot sun in August, I make myself stop and realize how much more I hate winter. In summer, no matter how hot and miserable it gets, there is always a day or two when everything calms down and the weather is perfect. That never happens in winter -- you are suddenly not going to have a day or two in Janurary or February when you can run around in a T-shirt.
Lot to be said for hibernation.
