A vital cog in what makes Virginia so beautiful is our abundant foliage, and the lifeblood of that is of course rain. Yet, we sometimes seem to get so much rain for days on end (and this occurs frequently over the course of a year), that we can grow a little weary of the dreary.
With an annual average of well over 40 inches of precipitation, our region certainly falls in the top percentiles for rainfall nationwide. Keep this in mind next time we go through a drought. Nature always compensates eventually.
What’s your opinion? Do you love the rain, or would you prefer a climate more akin to Phoenix?
Posted by Jim Duncan
NBC12 Weather Blog 
Scattered thunderstorms aren’t that bad, but when the storms stall over us is when it gets bad. I’d much rather have a quick (10-20mins) storm than a long 3 day fog and drizzle type of storm.
Heck if you build an ark you’ll have to include all the creepy crawly bugs and snakes (although) a few black snakes would be okay.
I enjoy, even relish, the idea of a good rainstorm.
I am not so enamored with precipitation that I am ready to move to Seattle, but the amounts we get are perfect for me. Right after a good soaking,when trees and grass turn electric green and the pavement has a cloud of water vapor gliding just inches above , everything seems still and calm for few minutes. It’s the perfect ending to a hot and humid day!
heck with it….I’m gonna build an ark……:-P
I love the rain and cloudy days we have here. Just one of the many reasons I enjoy living here! Cloudy days make me happy.
I LOVE rain. For some reason, rain makes me happy! It takes a good solid 2-3 weeks of it to make me wish for sun. 🙂 I also like thunderstorms, but not the kind that are severe an spawn tornadoes.
Yes, the rainy days do get tiresome: the basement leaks; the dogs don’t want to go outside; and there’s no time to cut the grass! Yes, sometimes I think Phoenix would be nice, but I do love the luscious greenery in Richmond. Besides the humidity keeps your skin from drying out – great for us graying Southern Bells!
I don’t mind the rain. It’s the lightning bolts and loud thunder that I don’t like
I hate the rainy days. I can’t do anything outside. If it’s not raining, then it’s muddy! I can’t wait until this rain stops
I’m with Seamus. I love rainy days!
First we say its to wet, then we say its to dry, then w.e say its to hot, then we say its to cold. My mom had this saying: “Man proposes God disposes.”
How about the abundant mosquito population that all of this rain has made imminent?? I’ll complain about that! We’ll get rid of the swine flu epidemic just in time for a West Nile scare!
Good heavens no! I lived in Phoenix for 7 hot years, moved there from Denver, so I missed trees & seasons changing, hated the Phoenix climate. This climate is the best! Denver had too much winter, Phoenix weather was hot or hotter. Here we have 4 seasons, all in the right place, I love it. What’s to complain!
Way to go, Jimbo! A 35-minute solo Powerpoint presentation! Put yourself down for a local Emmy and a free Kroger’s weather radio!!
GO BACK TO THE SHOW AFTER YOU ANNOUNCE THE NEWS!!!!
Nature always compensates eventually.
Jim you nailed it. That statement is a breath of fresh air in “crisis mode” weather coverage we get these days. A week without rain and we hear dire warnings of the lengthy drought. Thanks for putting things in perspective.
I am glad we have gotten the rain, but I wish it only rained overnite or just for a couple of days and have some bright, warm, sunny days. We all need our shot of vitamin D.
I am loving this weather. I don’t think the grey/blue stormy looking sky is dreary like others seem too….I actually think it’s cool looking. It’s rather soothing. I like the fact that it’s cooler rather than warmer (because I hate hot) and I LOVE THE FACT that it seems to keep the pollen washed down!!!
Rain, rain, go away . . . I have forgotten what the sun looks like. The kids are driving me crazy! My 2 year old tried to put on her bathing suit so she could go outside and play! Too much rain!
I love the rain because two of my children have allergies and all this rain washes the pollen away! They suffer less on rainy days. 😉
Rain may wash the pollen away but for me the mold causes my asthma to act up, and I have to stay indoors.
I absolutely love this weather. My luscious green lawn loves it more than I do. Hopefully we’ll get a small break with some sunny days this weekend so I can mow the lawn and give some spring fertilization. Then another day of nice slow rain to move it into the soil. On another positive note at least no one needs to be wasting water on their lawn.
The rain is one thing but the consistency of overcast skies is the thing that gets me most, especially in the morning – it’s like a cloud blanket that makes it that much harder for me to get up and feel alert during the day! Plants and trees need the rain to feel/look alive, people need sunshine for the same reason, and we both need each other to sustain life – I guess this is just one of nature’s built-in compromises.
Bring on the rain….yeah it sucks and we haven’t seen the sun in over a week but i can deal with it because this rain will help us get through July/August/September with litte rain and hot hot days!
Some people’s memories seem short. In April last year we had 8+ inches of rain, then a very dry summer. I had to point out to a co-worker that Richmond gets more rain than Seattle — seems to be a little known fact. This being said, it’s time for some sun and some consistent nice weather in the mid-70s!
I do like rain but not five days in a row, all the rain at one time can drown farmers crops, and you probably can expect vegetable prices to go up if we continue to see this pattern. A good rain every week suits me!
I know that not everyone is a fan of rainy weather but I am always glad to get it. We are actually in a minor drought (D0 as of 4/28 according to the US Drougt monitor) and we are several inches behind normal for the year to date. As Jim pointed out, this is the norm in Central Virginia (either too much or too little) and things balance themselves out over time.
PS I think the channel 12 weather team does a great job
I’m ready for a drought.
The rainy, dreary days get tiresome. I just pop in a Jimmy Buffet cd and try to think positive, sunny thoughts. We forget that it is usually like this for a while in the spring…some springs more than others. Once it gets hot and dry in July and August we will wish for days like this! I guess you always want what you don’t have.
Rainy pattterns like this are very common in May around here. This can often be the rainiest month of the year due to fronts frequently stalling in these latitudes. Our version of a monsoon.
Heck with the rainy patterns. How come we can’t have snowy patterns like this in the winter?
Cold and clammy! Yuck. I preferred Monday’s weather to today’s. I think I’ve said it on here before, I’m not really comfortable until it’s 80-85 with no hint of coolness in the air. It will be here soon enough I hope. Days like today are miserable, still gotta wear long clothes, too cool to open the windows. What a whiner! 😉
It is spring and it is supposed to rain in the spring. After the past 2 dry years it is good to see green grass for a change.
One thing that I hate about the weather pattern in Richmond are these long periods of clouds and rain. The spring is the most common time of year for this set up and thats why I always say we get the worst weather of the year during the spring. I think nothing is more annoying than when we get 2 or more days of a steady rain with no sunshine at all. This weeks pattern of showers\storms at least involves some breif periods of sunshine and is not quite as bad. The nor’easter type coastal lows that move very slow during the winter are probably the worst, unless its cold enough for snow of course. One thing I always look forward to in May and June is that we usually lose the all day rain and light showers to scattered thunderstorms, which usually occur on days that have plenty of sunshine before and sometimes after the rain, but as long as we get them the storms give us all of the rain we need for an avg month in a few hours.
Rainy days and Mondays always get me down.
Enough rain for this week, I need to get the pool cover off.
Not too hot, not too cold, no flooding, no sunburn, plants happy, adds to ground reserve, I would buy one of these days later in the summer.
I wouldn’t mind a happy medium. 1 day and maybe an overnight of rainfall, then 2-3 days of nothing but sun and those fair weather clouds. The one thing I dislike about the rain especially in the late spring and summer is the humidity that accompanies it. I hate the sticky, closeness of the air. Although I should be used to it having lived in Richmond my entire life!
I find a rainy day a good thing every now and then. When we get amny multiple days it gets a little old. But I know we need it. We live in a rural area and get our water from a well. It is very necessary to our life.
Why do fronts typically stall out for so long over us? It is really depressing when it is 80 degrees an hour south of Richmond & we seem to ALWAYS be stuck in the 60’s with drizzle!!!