Talk of the Town: Weather forecasting made easy

Move over television meteorologists and zany weathermen and women! Quick and Simple Magazine offers these helpful hints about predicting your own weather forecast:

Wondering whether or not to grab your umbrella for an upcoming monsoon? Besides using your nose to smell the precipitation, you can often guess whether it will rain soon by watching the birds! Check to see if our feathered friends are perched in protected spots, like under a tile in the rooftop or on the branch of a tree with lots of leaves as protection.

Scientists say that birds can sense a storm moving into the area due to the low air pressure which can influence their flight —so they take cover and head for the hills.

Now if you see birds hiding in areas that will keep them dry, grab the old umbrella, because it just might rain!

No thermometer? You might want to guesstimate the temperature outside by using the very loud and sometimes pesky creature called a cricket.

If there’s a boisterous Jiminy Cricket in the vicinity, you’re set! Just count the number of chirps the cricket makes in 15 seconds, and add 37. The sum you get is probably close to the current temperature in Fahrenheit! So, if you counted 45 chirps in 15 seconds, the temperature would be about 82 degrees Fahrenheit.

What if you want to figure out how far away a thunderstorm is? Look for a bolt of lightning! Then, immediately count the seconds until you hear a clap of thunder. For every five seconds between the flash and the thunder clap, the storm is one mile away. So if you count 30 seconds between the lightning and hearing the thunder, you can guess that the storm is about six miles away.

If you want to predict what the weather will be like tomorrow: Look westward, young man! Most weather conditions across the United States move from west to east. Moving weather conditions are due to wind patterns across the earth. In any given place, a clue to tomorrow’s weather may be found by looking at the weather of the area to the west.

The Green Valley Elks Lodge No. 2592 have been very busy indeed, giving back to the community in so many ways.

The Arizona Elks Major Project, supported by the local Elks, too, exists to support children’s health by providing funds for research to help find cures for juvenile diseases and premature birth.

In Arizona, Elks help children in two distinct ways.

They sponsor ongoing research at the University of Arizona’s “Steele Children’s Research Center” and since 1991, have donated more than $4 million in funds. Elks also remodeled and modernized the “Arizona Elks Clinic for Children and Young Adults” providing funds for an endowed chair in neonatology (medical care in newborns).

Arizona Elks are also very proud of its Elks Youth Camp in the Sierra Ancha Mountains in Northeast Arizona. This camp is open and available to all youth groups throughout the state for a nominal fee. The camp provides youth with life experiences that build self esteem, teamwork and family values.

To raise funds for the major project, the Elks sponsor a statewide raffle every year.

The drawing was May 10 at the Elks State Convention in Tempe.

First prize winner, collecting $12,000, was Charlotte Strauman of the Green Valley Lodge.

Second place of $3,000 was Arlene Blanchard of Big Lake, Minn. and third place, collecting $2,000, was Stan Bye of Worley, Idaho. Both purchased their winning tickets at the Mesa-Buckhorn Lodge No. 2656.

Fourth place winner of $1,000 was Claire “Skip” Merfeld of Sun City Lodge No. 2559 and fifth place was James Loveland of Green Valley, who took home a $500 prize.

Thanks to Green Valley Elks publicity person, Carol Sturdevant, also chairperson of the major projects for the Green Valley Lodge and Southern District representative of AEMP.

Carol Sturdevant also reports from the Elks about member Jim Collins, who suffered a heart attack while at the lodge. Elks bartender Lynne Chaney administered CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and was able to sustain Jim until help arrived.

To provide additional safety precautions at the local lodge, the Elks hosted a CPR class in April to ensure that there would always be CPR-trained personnel at the lodge.

The Green Valley Fire District sent instructors Laura Del Peschie and Harry Smith to teach the CPR classes.

Elks Exalted Ruler Phyllis Curran, and lodge secretary, Tom Curran, as well as office secretaries and other staff members attended the class.

The lodge intends to have future CPR classes to ensure safety all year round.

Chapter DA of the P.E.O. Sisterhood in Green Valley deserves a big round of applause for helping a recent local high school grad.

P.E.O. Chapter DA sponsored Sahuarita High School graduate Kathryn Bruno for $8,250 in scholarship funds that she was presented with on May 15 during Awards Night in the SHS auditorium. Chapter DA President Marleen Bell presented Kathryn with her scholarship certificate.

The P.E.O. wrote recommendations and letters to Cottey College to get this scholarship money for Bruno and met with her several times and helped her through the complicated process of applying for money. Chapter DA members who serve on the Cottey College Committee are Chairperson Bonnie Roth, Dee Spear, and Marcia Koshollek.

The lucky winner of a gorgeous 2001 Ford Escort almost missed out on the grand prize when her name was drawn on Sahuarita High School Grad Night.

Seventeen-year-old Ritesa Studevan was camped out in the school auditorium all night in hopes of winning a car in the 5:30 a.m. drawing, but was asleep in the corner when her name was pulled from the fishbowl.

This is the ninth year that the Santa Cruz Valley Car Nuts have donated a car to the annual “Grad Nite” event as part of it’s continuing commitment to the community.

Car Nut Wayne Potter was pulling an alternate winning ticket from the remaining 146 in the bowl when Ritesa walked up and claimed her prize. “I don’t even have a driver’s license” she remarked, but happily accepted the keys.

Ritesa plans to continue her education at Pima Community College and then move on to the University of Arizona School of Journalism.

rford@gvnews.com