It’s Cold in Iowa

According to a KCCI-TV meteorologist, after this week the average temperature in Des Moines starts to rise. A glance at The Weather Channel’s web site confirms this. Of course, with 8 degrees Fahrenheit forecasted for Saturday’s high, history may be of little comfort to city residents. According to The Weather Channel, January is the coolest month, July the warmest, and June the wettest. The lowest temperature on record is -30 deg. in 1884; the highest is 110 deg. in 1936. According to the National Weather Service’s Climate Summary, 2007 in Des Moines was the 12th wettest, the 5th snowiest, and tied for the 24th warmest on record.

There is one benefit to this seasonal cold. Three ponds in the city are now open for ice skating. A green flag means skating conditions exist; a red flag means the proper conditions do not exist. You can skate at Greenwood Park, MacRae Park, and Gray’s Lake Park. The first two are open sunrise to sunset. Gray’s Lake is open 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

In just over two weeks, the Des Moines Winter Games will begin. These are designed for fun with a low entry-fee for participants and opportunities to watch the activities for free. If you are enjoying the exercise, remember that Wednesday, February 6th, is the 22nd Annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day. The theme this year is “All In.” One of the organizations holding activities around the day encourages people to wear sports attire of their favorite team. In Iowa, we have competitive teams in roller derby, soccer, and football. There is also Granny Basketball for women over 50, but they take referees of all ages. There is a tryout for Granny Basketball on Thursday, January 24th, at the DMPS Central Campus, at 1800 Grand at 5:30 p.m.

Chinese New Year, Groundhog Day, Michaelmas, and Imbolc are some of the celebrations that take place as mid-winter approaches in the early days of February. Chinese New Year (Gung Hoy Fat Choy!) will be celebrated on February 7th. It will be the year of the rat. For those who prefer Michaelmas, Ash Wednesday is on February 6th. I’m never sure whether to think of the blessing of the candles as a thank you for providing light through the long winter nights or as a plea for them to last through the last few weeks of winter weather.

I like cold weather but there is something about Des Moines that makes it worse than any other place where I’ve lived. The day I had to photograph Des Moines at mid-Winter as part of my seasonal environmental art project was not pleasant. This was in February 2006 and the temperature was not too bad; it was in the 20’s with some sunshine. Yet, by the time I finished the last shot, caught the bus, and made it back to my apartment, I was chilled through to the bone. It took more than two hours for me to warm up.

M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa.