My lifelong battle with weather apps
Look, I’m gonna be honest here. I’m done with weather apps. Completley done. It’s not just me either. I polled 214 of my friends last Tuesday and, honestly, we’re all frustrated. We get it wrong alot. And it’s not our fault. It’s their fault. The weather services. The apps. The whole dang system.
Let me set the scene. It was June 15th, 2018. I was in Austin for a conference. The weather app said it was gonna be sunny. Sunny! So, I wore my new linen blazer. You know the one, light gray, looked great with my chinos. By 11:30am, it was pouring. Pouring! My blazer was ruined. Ruined, I tell you.
I was fuming. I called up my old college roommate, let’s call him Marcus. He’s a meteorologist now, works for the National Weather Service. I said, “Marcus, what the hell?” He just laughed. “Weather’s tricky, man. We do our best.” Which… yeah. Fair enough. But my blazer was ruined.
Why can’t we get it right?
Here’s the thing. Weather prediction is hard. Like, really hard. There are, like, a million variables. And the apps? They’re not helping. They’re oversimplifying. They’re giving us icons and little sun clouds. It’s not that simple. It’s never that simple.
I talked to a colleague named Dave about this. Dave’s a tech guy. He’s all about the algorithms. He said, “It’s about data, man. The more data, the better the prediction.” But here’s the kicker. The data’s not always accurate. And even if it is, the apps are still getting it wrong. It’s like they’re using the data to confirm their biases or something. I don’t know. I’m not a tech guy. But I know a bad weather forecast when I see one.
And don’t even get me started on the weather forecast update today. It’s like they’re just making stuff up at this point. I checked the forecast this morning. It said partly cloudy. Partly cloudy! It’s been raining all day. All day. I’m soaked. My dog’s soaked. My house is a mess. And for what? Because some app said it was gonna be partly cloudy?
A brief tangent: The time I trusted the forecast
Okay, so there was this one time. It was about three months ago. The forecast said it was gonna be sunny. Sunny! So, I planned this huge picnic. Invited all my friends. Bought all this food. Made these little sandwiches. You know, the ones with the crusts cut off. The fancy ones. I was excited. I was gonna impress everyone. But guess what? It rained. Again. And not just a little rain. A downpour. A torrential, biblical, “we’re-all-gonna-die” kind of downpour. We had to cancel. I had to throw out all the food. My dog ate the sandwiches. He loved them. But that’s not the point. The point is, the forecast was wrong. Again.
What’s the solution?
I don’t know. I really don’t. Maybe we need better apps. Maybe we need more data. Maybe we need to accept that weather prediction is just a big, complicated mess and move on. But until then, I’m done. I’m done with the apps. I’m done with the forecasts. I’m done with the rain. I’m just done.
So, what’s the alternative? Well, I’ve been thinking about this. Maybe we should just… I don’t know… look out the window? See what’s happening right now? Not what some app says is gonna happen in three hours. Maybe that’s the answer. Maybe that’s the committment we need to make. To look up. To see the clouds. To feel the wind. To be present. To be physicaly aware of our surroundings. It’s a radical idea, I know. But it might just work.
But hey, what do I know? I’m just a guy with a ruined blazer and a dog who loves fancy sandwiches. What do you think? Am I off base here? Or am I onto something? Let me know. Hit me up. Send me an email. Tell me I’m wrong. Tell me I’m right. Tell me you’ve had the same problem. Tell me you’ve never had this problem. I don’t care. I just wanna talk about it. Because I’m done. I’m done with the weather apps. I’m done with the forecasts. I’m done with the rain. I’m just done.
About the Author: Hi, I’m Sarah. I’ve been a senior magazine editor for over 20 years. I’ve written for major publications, and I’ve got the opinions to prove it. I live in New York with my dog, who loves fancy sandwiches. Follow me on Twitter @sarah_edits.
If you’re curious about what really goes on in a dog’s daily life, don’t miss this fascinating article revealing hidden aspects of canine behavior that few people know.
