The weather this year in the United States has been anything but routine. Torrential rain with record level flooding, extreme drought with government enforced water restrictions and massive forest fires plus excessively high temperatures cannot be called normal. The Pacific has had more than normal hurricanes recorded. In Europe high water has been disruptive for the ever increasingly popular river cruises.

As we now slip into fall in the northern hemisphere I wonder what will happen with our approaching winter. The past several days have been unseasonably cold for this time of year. Is it a predecessor to an extremely cold winter? Or is it as unusual as the entire year has been?

The Old Farmer’s Almanac has predicted an unusually cold and wet winter for us here in the Midwest of United States. However NOAA, the national Oceanic Atmospheric Administration has stated that due to an extreme El Niño our area will have a mild winter.

Who is correct? Maybe we need to look to the animals. Are the squirrels gathering more nuts earlier than usual? Are outdoor animals beginning to put on their “winter coats”?

All I know is that I am not ready for summer to be over…as the song goes “take me somewhere sunny & 75!”