Autumn is Here

Yesterday, we had a pretty big set of thunderstorms roll through the city. It was real weather, with big, splashing rain drops. The roof, which is corrugated steel, was clanging with the force of the drops. The nearest lightning stroke was less than a kilometer (half a mile) from the house. It was a strong storm, with high winds, and it took nearly an hour for the squall line to pass over us. For several hours afterwards, I could see lightning off in the distance.

A few hours past midnight, I woke up to hear the windows rattling and a fierce wind blowing. The house, built to Australian standards, leaks like a sieve, and I could feel drafts as the wind found its way through the house. The trees surrounding the house were creaking and the palm fronds thrashed against the roof.

Overall, a fairly big storm. I assume the jet stream was passing over Brisbane.

This morning, the temperature has dropped about 5 degrees C (that's about 10 degrees F) below normal, and is now in the 60's. There's a chill in the air, relatively speaking, and shorts and T-shirts are gone, in favor of long pants and layers. We're approaching the Solstice, so Autumn is here.

I had just cut the grass, and set out some buckets to collect rainwater. Perfect timing. But, it is kind of funny to think of weather in the high teens/low twenties as chilly, and be disappointed to have to put on long pants and long sleeved shirts. Ah, life in the sub-tropics.

In other news, the Aussie dollar reached over 95 US cents in currency trading yesterday. It's practically on par with the US dollar, and is expected to reach parity within 6 months.