Spoiled.

With 329 days of sunshine a year, not one person in LA can say that we aren’t spoiled when it comes to our beautiful weather. Which is why, when it rains it feels so incredibly miserable and people act like nuts (well, more than they usually do anyway).

As in Georgia, where when the forecast even hints at snow there’s a completely illogical run on the grocery stores for milk and bread and other “staples” – and the schools all shut down – when it rains in LA, it’s as though people have never seen water fall from the sky. Drivers are particularly affected (read: lose their ability to drive like normal people in a city filled with cars). But there are some benefits to having rain in a place where people are ill-equipped to function outdoors when it’s wet.

Obviously, rain makes flowers and trees grow – and in a near-desert region (technically we’re in a chaparral zone, which is a Mediterranean climate with hot, dry summers and mild winters), water conservation is critical for us human people, too. But one of the best benefits of being stuck inside (HA – Bart’s family in Minnesota who just had a whiteout and 14 inches of snow will love that I think rain = stuck inside)… Anyway, we’ve been (electively) stuck inside for a few days thanks to the rain and a couple of winter colds, and out of that comes things like the crazy picture above of dad teaching his lovely daughter how to survive if she’s ever stranded in a remote area of Africa (you never know). Oh, and homemade popcorn with kettle corn seasoning. Bart doesn’t like “microwave popcorn” and insisted on the “real thing”, and I’m not complaining!

The not-so-great parts of rain in LA (other than bad driving behavior) include possible mudslides and flooding- in fact, we’re under a severe weather warning right now. And we’ve had basically nonstop rain for the past 3 days. We also just got a new leak overnight. Seriously, after 7 and a half years in this place, you’d think I would have found all the leaks.

Regardless, I can’t imagine living anywhere else (sorry, mom). So here’s hoping for a dry Christmas in Sunny LA, and a fabulous Christmas for you and yours no matter what climate zone you’re in! OH, and feel free to come visit us when you need some lovely weather – but wait a few days ;)