Speech in the Glade, 50th Day of Childwinter, 526 M.E. (Betelgeuse): It was an extraordinarily pleasant 75° F today. Due to a late start, I only got in a 5.8-mile Quincy, a short distance given the weather, but wearing a t-shirt and shorts. 

Other than today, however, this has been an unusually cold Childwinter, as was the Hagwinter before it. I've seen lower temperatures in Atlanta before, but the lows this season were nearly as cold and have lasted far, far longer than in years past.

While I'm thrilled to see the warmth return, I also know from past experience that when the air gets this warm this early in the season, the air mass become unstable and we get severe thunderstorms and even tornados. Too much moisture in the air in too close proximity to adjacent cold-air masses, and, well, you do the science. 

The global climate is nearing so many tipping points, and it's probably crossed many already, even without the Stable Genius' recent recission of the Endangerment Finding (or the "Engagement Rule" as Bill Maher called it). Several environmental groups have already sued to challenge the recission, and they might even win, but we were still well on the path toward climate collapse and its consequences. 

We're going to be facing a decade of increased hurricanes, severe thunderstorms, and tornados, along with alternating periods of drought and flooding. The remaining trees around my house, that is, the ones that haven't already fallen or I had taken down, are healthy, but I may have to take them all down. There's still way too many tons of timber way too high over my head and home for me to be comfortable with knowing the weather that's coming.