Today

Today was a day of sunny skies and cold temperatures. Not uncommonly cold, but chilly enough for a good sweater or light coat. The leaves are still falling and Fall is phasing into the months of Winter. There are hints of Winter in the mountain air, but even here at the ocean, there is a crisp nip of cold in the air.
Those of us who live in this area, are not fooled. We have been here, before. We have been deceived by the nip and tuck of the cold. Here today and gone tomorrow. Already our visitors and those who have recently relocated to this area are looking and longing for a "little bit" of snow, like they had back home. They forget that this is not, "back home." This is North Carolina. A state centrally located on the Atlantic Seaboard. An area, controlled by changing tides, unpredictable weather patterns and a western boundary of the state encompassed by the Blue Ridge Mountains.
A meeting ground between North and South. A place of "old world, southern comfort," and "new world vision and upscale trends. Known for in its time, for Azaleas, Magnolias, sweet tea and tobacco. A world founded by old world kings, full of new world charm. Pirates and princes. Also a place of Lattes, espressos, leather and lace.
The weather here is as unpredictable as the wave patterns of the ocean. If you live here long enough, you can learn to read the wave patterns in sets of the waves, as the roll along the shore.
The weather in this area, can be the same. You just have to have an idea of the signs to look for. The basic weather consensus of most "ole  time Carolinian's" goes something like this: "Whether the weather is fine, or whether the weather is not. Whether the weather is cold, or whether the weather is hot; We'll weather the weather, whatever the weather, whether we like it or not."
So, if your a newcomer to this wonderful place, just put on a smile and endure the pace. If you do, sooner or later the weather will change, one way or another to your liking and another persons right to feel out of place.

--RM