Picking Out Clothes With Incorrect Weather Forecast

You’ve probably heard the phrase ‘cooler near the lake’, as in local meteorological weather-speak. But what I want to know is if our little village is considered ‘near the lake’ or not? As far as I can tell, Greendale seems to fall on some magic line dividing inland from lakeside as in ”today we will see highs in the 80’s if you live in Waukesha, but it will only reach 60 degrees in Saint Francis.“

As a mom, I am one of those people who takes watching the local forecast very seriously. After all, I need to know how to dress four kids as they head out the door each day. Or more accurately, what to recommend - since the older ones seem to wear whatever they want even while I’m yelling out the door “Don’t you want a sweatshirt today?,“ as they head off to the bus stop.

Anyway, it’s important to get it right because the kids are gone all day at school, so it’s not like they can just run to their rooms and change if it’s hotter or colder than predicted.

Trying to solve my dilemma, I find myself flipping between the various TV news reports nightly and again in the morning to compare the forecasts of Condella, Malan, Steele, Baden, Haswell and McGinnis. I’ve even taken to comparing them online with the National Weather Service’s forecast.  My husband usually just shakes his head when he sees my obsession over watching the forecast and mutters something like ‘if I could be wrong that often at my job and still get paid, I’d have it made.’

Having worked as a news reporter at WXOW-TV in La Crosse back in the days when my own mom was probably still wondering if I remembered to wear a jacket on any given day, I can tell you that even with all the latest technology, being a meteorologist isn’t as easy as it looks. After all, there are all those high and low pressure systems, cold and warm fronts, changing wind directions, etc. to keep track of.  

Still that doesn’t answer the question: is Greendale ‘closer to the lake’ or not? I guess it depends how strong the lake breeze is blowing on a given day, but until someone can give me a definite answer I’ve decided layers are the key. That way if it ends up being fifteen degrees cooler here than in Brookfield, the kids can just whip out that extra pair of jeans I’ve started stashing in their backpacks.