Saturday in Washington seemed like a confidence-building day. It suggested that winter need not be feared but could be withstood and even enjoyed, because Saturday had its pleasant hours, and in those hours Saturday was normal.
At 1:32 p.m., Washington’s high temperature was 46 degrees. That is the normal high temperature in Washington for the 27th day of December, a day that was the sixth full day of winter,
It was pleasant in Washington for much of the day. As the day went on, the morning’s great gray blanket of cloud seemed to recede and slide back, much like the retractable roof of a sports stadium.
That revealed a bright blue sky. It allowed sunshine to flood into the area. Before that deck of cloud slid shut again in late afternoon, it allowed the uplifting sight of the sun. The sun shone on streets and roads, and it came through windows and into homes.
It found and illuminated Washington residents where they were, at home on a Saturday, ensconced in winter quarters.
It was a winter sun, and something of its winter weakness seemed in evidence. But it was bright enough to demonstrate how much it may be missed when all that appears aloft is gray overcast.
There may have been a chill in the air, but when the sun shone, its radiance provided comforting warmth. It was almost possible in Washington on Saturday to find outdoor comfort without deploying quantities of cold weather gear.
Comfort and outdoor ease could be found in Saturday’s winter sunshine without flapping arms, slapping chests and bouncing up and down in a desperate December effort to generate heat.
As it fell on walls and walkways, and brightened tawny shrubs and plants, the light of the sun seemed somewhat paler, or perhaps tinged with yellow and orange, than when at the peak of its summertime power.
But Saturday seemed attractive and beguiling, and perhaps all the more for being no meteorological unicorn but instead a normal day.
The morning’s low temperature was a little above normal, and may have given the day’s warmth a bit of a boost. The morning low was 35 degrees, three above the normal low of 32.
If this be winter, many may have mused, adapting an oratorical phrase associated with a famous Virginian and the approaching 250th anniversary of the United States, let us make the most of it.
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