Temperatures will climb briefly into the lower 40s during the coming week, and I expect those will be the last readings in the 40s we see this year. Nighttime temperatures should remain above freezing through the first part of the week before beginning their descent.
The warmer weather will bring rain and sleet, followed by snow as the colder air settles in. By the time my next column appears, Grand Marais should once again have about an inch of snow upon the ground. A southwest gale will also accompany the change, driving heavy waves into the harbor and reminding us that Lake Superior has entered its November disposition.
The village council has now considered the future of the weather station. The village and county have decided that the expense of rebuilding the weather tower and WGMW will not be undertaken. The question of my own appointment as village weatherman has been tabled until the council’s December meeting. In other municipal business, a request for a fire pump to help make a skating rink this winter was approved.
Thus Grand Marais will proceed without a radio station but with excellent prospects for ice skating. A community must establish its priorities.
I am informed that the Romans regarded the Ides of November as a suitable occasion for honoring Jupiter. I shall turn fifty on that same date. Considering Jupiter’s association with the sky and thunder, and my own recent experience with lightning, I am uncertain whether to regard this coincidence as auspicious or as a warning.
Regardless, I have also been informed that Miss Fjell has arranged a surprise party for me at The Wigwam. I am not certain how a party remains a surprise once the guest of honor has been informed of it, but I have promised to appear surprised at the proper moment.
Miss Fjell also intends another attempt at teaching me to dance. She has been remarkably persistent in her belief that fifty years of evidence can still be overcome.