Ahhhh!

 It was pretty nice outside yesterday, though dry, and a bit windy. It just won't rain. 

Sometimes...

 Sometimes it almost looks like it might rain. Almost. It never quite gets there. I had nothing to complain about yesterday. Steady as she goes, far from the madding crowd. Lots of work to do. There are many possibilities 

Warmer And Warmer

 Windier and windier and dry as an old bone, with no chance of rain. Nada. You've just got to wonder. Those cotton farmers are going to be hit hard again, if this goes on. Dryland farming is impossible if it's TOO dry. Transitioning from semi-arid to arid? 

We used to get updates on the state of Lake Meredith and Lake Alan Henry but nobody mentions them anymore. It's possible to check lake levels online. I ought to do that. Maybe I should provide links here. We'll see. 

Past The Cold SNAP

 And now we get into a much better pattern. Maybe someday it will rain. Someday. Some DAY. Maybe. And maybe not! 

Every day feels a bit off, and somewhat strange. 

Warming Again

 I'll be happy to see the last of winter. It didn't get cold enough to damage any vegetation. But it didn't rain either. Rain won't help the city's wells, that water is under a caprock and they won't recharge. You can think of our aquifer as a container for fossil water. I believe most of the small towns around here rely on a water table on top of the caprock, and those can be recharged by rainfall, but slowly. But that water is easily contaminated. Surface reservoirs can and do go dry, and most of those become very salty as the water levels decline. In my humble opinion, this area is being asked to support a non-sustainable population, and we hit the wall much sooner if droughts become the norm. And I know from experience how hard it is to maintain the wells drilled into this aquifer. It is saturated sand. Pump impellors get eaten up. The cones of depression that form around each well decrease pumping efficiency over time, and they refill very, very, slowly when a pump is taken out of service. High maintenance operation. Lots of sand to deal with. It was common practice to shut down the Bailey County well field and send front end loaders into the reservoir to remove accumulated sand. The wells pump water AND sand. Not an ideal situation for a city with delusions of endless growth. If it rained more, the surface water reservoirs would be a good supply. But it IS NOT raining enough to sustain those reservoirs, and if drought becomes the norm, eventually you are completely reliant on well water. That isn't going to work indefinitely. That's NOT sustainable. You can, of course, try magic, rain dances, and prayer. Good luck with that. Nature doesn't give a shit. 

 

Let the good times roll. Sha Na Na Na Na-- live for today...