rain, rain, comes to LA

Here in SoCal, rain is hard to come by. But as I write this, puddles are forming outside my office window faster than they can be consumed by an unprepared (or maybe nonexistent) storm drain. If someone were to ask me what kind of rain this was, I'd probably say its pouring, or coming down in sheets, or describe it in terms of falling felines and canines. Yet, the more I think about it, this is probably just a sprinkle compared to what any other state in the country probably gets. I mean, theres no thunder, lightning or floods yet. But that doesn't mean I can't complain. Thats what we SoCalers were bred to do when the clouds gather.

Please don't take my whining to seem spoiled or ungrateful. We're just so used to our fairly consistent weather patterns here that most of us don't bother to check the weather report in the morning. We never grew up with any consistent 'rainy day' training. As a result, I'm writing to you wearing a skirt, t-shirt, flats, and jacket that wouldn't hold up against a light breeze. My umbrella is most definitely hiding somewhere in the depths of my closet. Oops.

Now I have nothing personal against rain at all. In fact I actually enjoy the rain. At least in the romantic sense. I love sitting in my apartment with a steaming cup of coffee or hot cocoa and a good book while staring out at the misty drizzle. Rain also means snow in the mountains and nearly 24 hours of smogless sky to follow. Though when I think about it in more practical terms, rain really sucks the life out of LA. People practically go into hiding as if a little water were going to melt them like the wicked witch of the west. All too often I've heard the complaint "I did not come to SoCal for this." Sometimes even from my own mouth. Others daringly venture out onto the highways, instantly get some weird case of drivers amnesia and somehow can no longer recollect the basic mechanics of driving. LA drivers are already bad. LA drivers in rain are just plain stupid. As a matter of fact, I would not hesitate to list a rainy day on the 405 as one of the top ten most dangerous places to be in the country. Its right up there with South Central. But overall, I have to give the rain some credit. I mean, it gives us green stuff, water, and duh: super cool rainbows. It's just rain is really more of an anomaly here than a mundane affair.

And there you have it. Contrary to popular belief, it does actually rain here every so often. And when that precipitation starts its impeding descent, you can bet I'll be one of those idiots in flip flops, running for cover.