Why Does It Always Rain On Me? Quiz

Answer: Warning

Many of these old beliefs about weather have turned out to have some scientific basis. The old verse "Red sky in the night, sailor's delight, Red sky in the morning, sailor's warning" is based on a couple of meteorological facts. When a sunset or sunrise is particularly beautiful and red, and poetic bliss aside, this indicates that particles of dust have been trapped in the atmosphere by a high pressure system. If the sky is red at sunset, this is a sign that high pressure (associated with fine weather) is in the west and fine weather will follow.

However, if the sunrise is very red instead, this is a sign that the high pressure has already passed and a low pressure system (associated with storms and poor weather) is on the way.

Answer: Tis not fit for man nor beast

That verse goes "When the wind is blowing in the North, No fisherman should set forth, When the wind is blowing in the East, 'Tis not fit for man nor beast". This particularly applies in European countries because the direction from which the blows blow there is an indication of the condition of pressure systems.

When the wind comes from the east, this indicates a low is on the way. Those winds can be very hot in summer but bitterly cold in winter. When the wind blows from the north, very choppy sea conditions are indicated.

The best wind to hope for is either from the south, but particularly from the west, for "When the wind is blowing in the South, It brings the food over the fish's mouth, When the wind is blowing in the West, That is when the fishing's best!" and the weather will be fine for all occupations. All these weather sayings have been known to man for so long that their origins have been lost in time.

Answer: Rain is on the way

This piece of folklore is found in the line "When halo rings the moon or sun, rain's approaching on the run". That halo is caused by a refraction of the light of the moon (or sun) as a result of ice crystals high up in the atmosphere. That in turn is an indication that moisture will be dropping down to lower levels and rain is on the way.

It's quite amazing that, simply by observation over many years, man was able to fairly accurately predict the coming weather conditions.

Answer: When windows wouldn't open

The full saying for this piece of meteorological wisdom is "When windows won't open, and the salt clogs the shaker, The weather will favour the umbrella maker". Rain, in other words, is on the way. Moisture in the air, caused by an increase in the humidity, results in wood absorbing a certain amount of same, making drawers, wooden framed windows, and doors harder than normal to open - and of course, with the salt in shakers also absorbing moisture as well and clogging up the holes. Very frustrating when you're having fish and chips. Just in passing, rubbing soap along the joints of wood, and placing a couple of piece of rice in salt shakers, can ease these problems somewhat.

Answer: The next month will be freezing

This piece of weather lore was printed in the Seattle Star newspaper in 1899. Long points on the edges of a new moon - in winter - indicated that the coming month would be colder than expected. The good news though was that if this occurred in summer, the weather would be idyllic. One wonders if the opposite occurred in the southern hemisphere.

This article also informed its readers that fish swim close to the surface of the water before rain is due, but swim a lot lower down before strong winds were on the way. That's interesting when there have been instances taking place from time to time over the world of fish falling from the sky. Perhaps they didn't dive down deep enough and were scooped up by the strong winds.

Answer: Still

If no wind is present, this indicated to man over the centuries that, because of a high pressure area, calm conditions were on the way. This condition prevented the formation of clouds and rains. Sometimes, however, if the overall conditions were very hot, that could indicate that a thunderstorm would eventually make its power felt.

In winter, too, that lack of wind indicated an Arctic high and indicated that it was about to become very cold indeed.

Answer: Rain was on its way

This piece of weather lore goes, "A summer fog for fair, A winter fog for rain, A fact most everywhere, In valley or on plain". Fog forms when the air pressure lends itself to condensation, rather than allowing the moisture to evaporate. For example, for the air to cool off in summer, the sky has to be clear.

This allows heat to be absorbed by the atmosphere. If the sky is cloudy though, that heat will be confined and directed down to the earth. If fog does form in those conditions, it is an indication that the next day will be fine.

However, in winter, the air is more humid over water than land, and if that air moves towards and over the land, it forms both fog and rain together.

Answer: Yes

The saying goes "When sounds travel far and wide, A stormy day will betide". This indication of approaching rain though applies more to summer than winter. While it is true that moisture in the air in summer allows sounds to travel further (any singer without a mike will tell you that), in winter this depends on the temperature. If the air is reasonably warm and moist (indicating rain) sound will travel further, but if sound carries over a long distance when the temperature is very cold, then no rain is in sight. You won't be "Singin' In the Rain" in those circumstances.

Answer: Stand with their bottoms facing east

This is because cows dislike having the wind blowing in their faces. It interferes with their munch? Whatever the reason, whenever the wind blows from the west, Betsy and her cronies will almost always face east, and when the wind blows from the east, around they face in the opposite direction. Westerly winds, meteorologically speaking, indicate fine weather is on the way, while easterly winds indicate unsettled weather conditions will prevail.

The verse associated with this piece of weather lore goes "A cow with its tail to the West makes the weather best, A cow with its tail to the East makes the weather least".

In Australia of course, we're always hoping that Betsy has her rump facing towards the east. A word of advice for those durned city slickers however.

It doesn't work with milk cartons.

Answer: They stay on the beaches

"Seagull, seagull, sit on the sand, It's never good weather when you're on land". Seagulls usually like to sleep floating on water and stay in that environment whenever possible unless pestering the life out of people having beachside meals or picnics.

When gusty winds, indicating rain is on the way, begin to churn up the waves too much for comfort, that's when you'll begin to see seagulls huddling together on the shore instead of out on the waves.