Americans who learn that I’m from England often make some joke about the weather, usually something to do with rain. Now in my 20+ years in the USA I’ve experienced all kinds of rainstorms, including a memorable hailstorm while at a trade show in Atlanta which dumped inches of hail in a matter of minutes and left the streets flooded. Nor’easters, hurricanes, ice storms….
But today in California has left me feeling soggy through and through. The Pacific Ocean has simply dumped on the continental coastline. We’ve had a couple of inches in Carmel Valley, but just north of us a town got 6.5 inches in less than 12 hours. Streams everywhere are flooding; Interstate 5 in Northern California is closed by snow….
So lay off England, please. We will gladly cede top spot in the rainfall rankings to the USA. And remember: those tightly-rolled British umbrellas are just for show.