“No bought potpourri is so pleasant as that made from one’s own garden, for the petals of the flowers one has gathered at home hold the sunshine and memories of summer, and of past summers only the sunny days should be remembered.”
~ Eleanor Sinclair-Rhode

Yesterday was the 4th of July – Independence Day – the grandest birthday party of the year; or maybe Christmas should be considered. The birth of a nation or the birth of a baby is worthy of celebration. With clear skies as the backdrop, once again the Crescenta Valley Fireworks Association put on a spectacular show. The moon’s light at 67% tried to steal the show. Try as it may have, nothing could put a damper on USA’s 242nd birthday!

July seems to mark the time when summer gets down to serious business. Up goes the thermostat and here it remains stuck for the duration of the summer. Often summer’s heat lingers well into fall. I don’t recall a summer in which the heat went un-noticed.

“Back in the day …” air conditioners were not a given home accessory; they were considered a luxury item. For us common kids, a wading pool or a garden hose provided relief. In-ground swimming pools, other than public ones, were a “luxury item” for many families. So, sweat it out we did.

According to the 2018 July analysis of global temperatures by scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York, the period March-April-May (of said year) was the fourth warmest spring recorded in the Northern Hemisphere (NH) spanning the 138 years of modern record-keeping. Noteworthy: in 2017, the NH came in second.

The differing opinions as to the rise in temperature have yet to reach a mutual conclusion. One side claims global warming while the other side claims normal fluctuation of climate change. Conclusion? We are all in this grand adventure of life together and have one common chore: We must keep our planet clean or we’ll get in big trouble!

Beginning today, warm turns to very hot as winds shift direction and turn to a northerly and easterly type. The influence of cooling ocean breezes will slacken. Predictions Friday and over the weekend suggest an escalation of the heat. Temperatures over 110 degrees are forecast for the coastal and inland valleys! Next week, the thermometer will drop a few degrees.

Be it an air conditioner, a pool or even your garden hose – try to stay cool!

Sue Kilpatrick is a Crescenta Valley resident and Official Skywarn Spotter for the National Weather Service. Reach her at suelkilpatrick@gmail.com.