Endless Summer

Cycled to the music fountains, on the northern side of Lake Park, and met Brian for some frisbee throwing.

At one point I had to get over the bushes around the fountain to fetch the frisbee floating in the water. As I stepped in into the water, and I touched down on the blue bottom of the moat, my slipslops banana'd under me, but I somehow managed to just do a rapid motion crazy drunk dance and then skid my way to the frisbee and then carefully get out. Good thing 'cos my iPod was in my pocket and I doubt whether they're fall-in-the-water proof.

A little boy stood around, fascinated by what we were doing. We both included him in the game and sometimes it seemed like he was getting the hang of it. At one point his mother returned from a nearby cafe and gave him two ice cold cans of cooldrink. He ran up to Brian and then ran up to me and gave me one too. A lovely way to start the morning.

After about two hours worth we went to Sandpresso and had smoothie's (I had some tomato spaghetti too - only W2 900). Saw David and Katherine walking across the road while we were sitting there. Called out to them but they didin't seem to hear. Today is really hot. Hotter than the same time last year. We ought to be well into Autumn by now. The hike, scheduled for two weeks from now, is in mountains meant to be resplendant in autumn reds and golds. If this heat continues the trees are going to get really confused.

Abnormal gorgeous summer lingers on for a little bit longer

(Grand Rapids, September 9, 2005, 7:25 p.m.) The Celebration on the Grand begins Friday in Grand Rapids. The weather for the event looks spectacular.

The official start of autumn is less than two weeks away. But this weekend's high temperatures for West Michigan are forecasted to be in the mid 80s. That is ten degrees warmer than what's normal for this time of year, making this the sixth warmest summer on record.

Although the warm weather allows us to enjoy summertime activities, like going to the beach, farmers are suffering.

"It's kinda tough to go for a trip and see nice crops everywhere else. It seems like we're being singled out for some reason," Ottawa County dairy farmer Bob Gruppen told 24 Hour News 8.

Many lakeshore residents are tried of looking at their brown lawns. "Every other day we're able to water. We can't water every day with the restrictions now, which is a bit frustrating," says homeowner Jim Query.

For one of the cloudiest places in the United States, this summer has broken the mold here in West Michigan.

We have had 78 percent of possible sunshine. Usually it's 62 percent. We only had 56 percent of sunshine last year.

While this summer has been great for days at the beach, our minds now transition to autumn and winter. What will our dry, sunny summer mean at the end of 2005 and the start of 2006?

The five warmest summers have produced three winters above normal, two slightly below; nothing bitterly cold.

One thing we do know is it will affect fall colors. Dry summers often cut down on the volume of leaves. The leaves will not be bright and brilliant without rain. Instead, they will be yellow, quickly turn brown and die.So is fall color doomed thanks to the drought? Not necessarily. The peak of West Michigan's fall colors is mid-October. We could still get rain and save the beauty of fall.