CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Because I have Friday as a 10 on the Alanometer, I thought this is a good time to pull back the curtains a little and write about what this forecasting tool is and how I use it.
Weather is something we all deal with and all feel in different ways. It's highly subjective. One person may think a cloudy/rainy day where temperatures stay in the 40s is ideal (you're wrong :)). Someone else could like temperatures in the 90s with lots of humidity and sunshine (also wrong, ha!). Everyone's weather palette is different.
For me, I like low humidity, sunshine, and temperatures in the 70s. Light wind, too. Because I'm in the unique position to impart my subjectivity in a weather forecast that people consume, through the years I developed the Alanometer.
Scroll to the bottom of the article to see previous versions of the Alanometer.
The Alanometer is not just an arbitrary number I designate on a given day. There is some thought behind it. This forecasting tool is what I use to categorize good and bad weather days, and is an easy way to get my point across -- in my opinion, of course.
High ranking days (8-10) will always satisfy my "Sunny Delight" checklist. (The phrase "Sunny Delight" developed as a simple way to say, "It's going to be sunny with low humidity, light wind, and comfortable temperatures." When you only have three minutes in a TV weather forecast, time is precious, and "Sunny Delight" hits home quickly).
Other meteorological kin may refer to sunny delights as "Chamber of Commerce" weather. A sunny delight is synonymous with the 8-10 rating on the Alanometer. Days that fall outside of my checklist can still rate high on the Alanometer, but this checklist is the gold standard.
It is extremely rare that the sunny delight checklist is fully satisfied in the summer months, the primary reasons being the temperatures are too hot and the humidity is too high. "Sunny Delight Season" (this isn't a thing, I just made it up, but I might start using it?) in the Coastal Bend runs from October to May. It is within these months, that sunny delights are most likely and can come in spurts.
Believe it or not, sometimes, some people think too many sunny delights can be annoying; but I assure you, they are not. By the end of a long summer, I am always eager to forecast for the first sunny delight because it usually coincides with the arrival of the first cold front after summer.
What happens to the Alanometer if the sunny delight checklist isn't satisfied? Glad you asked. I'm a golfer. Golf is a sport that is highly dependent on the weather. So the next question I ask myself is, "Is today golfable?" If it is, the Alanometer will register at least a 5. If it isn't, it's probably going to be lower than a 5, but not always. The Alanometer can drop below a 5 when weather that I personally do not like is expected.
So here's the weather I don't like:
• Strong Wind - 25 mph+ (direction doesn't matter)
• Extreme Heat - Heat Index Values over 110
• Uncomfortably Cold Temperatures - If you're outside for long periods of time and it's lower than 50 (with wind), it can get uncomfortable. NOTE: Cold days can still rank above a 5 on the Alanometer.
• Severe Weather - This just isn't safe.
• Steady rain - When rain is forecast to only be around for a few hours, it's not as bad. Days with rain can still be, and often are, nice.
• Crazy High Humidity - When the dew point climbs to over 70, and especially when it's higher than 75, it just feels gross outside. The air feels sticky and I sometimes call it "air you can wear." This is what we have in the summer and it just isn't pleasant (to me).
I understand that you may not agree with my interpretation of what "nice" or "bad" weather can be. That's the thing about weather. It's like food. Everyone likes different things and that is okay! Variety is the spice of life.
Enjoy Friday's 10!
