A Weather Station is Perfect for Bike Commuting

Homemade weather station set into entryway cabinet, complete with animated scenery.

I've always been a weather junkie. Like anyone else who bike commutes, it's prudent to check the forecast before setting off for the day. Should I pack a rain coat, warmer mitts, hat, etc.? In recent years, I've taken this weather monitoring to an extreme: I follow wind speed and direction, moon phases, anticipated rainfall, chance of participation, barometric pressure trends, etc. Visual representation is best, and the more graphics, the better. I love charts that display high and low temperatures too. And if any of my readers noticed the weather app on my blog's sidebar, well, you can tell where I'm coming from. Let's just say that Weather Underground is a good friend.

At work it's easy to click on a website, but at home where morning routines are a bit frantic, I put my efforts towards getting ready for work and not online viewing, nor do I own an easy to use cell phone for quick reference. In my rushing around, I press the speakerphone on our land line, call the local weather number, and listen while preparing breakfast, making my lunch, or all too often—and, I realize, not ideal timing—while tying my shoes just before heading out the door.

So imagine my delight when our tech-loving son offers to make me a weather station for Christmas—the only catch being he needed my unused netbook, a computer I had recently replaced with a new laptop. And so, the wonderful weather station couldn't have come at a better time as I vacillate between bike commuting or not as the wacky, warm December is finally teetering towards colder, snowy and more typical Vermont winter. I refer to the online forecast now, complete with fantastic graphics, of course!