A very unfriendly weather condition has come to visit Southern California. The Santa Ana winds pay us a visit every year, usually in the fall, and wreak havoc on sinuses, eyes, temperatures, and dry brush. They herald the start of our fire season and have been responsible for some of the worst wildfires we've ever experienced. Santa Ana winds are not fun, no matter how you look at them. The name of this awful weather condition comes from Spanish and means "devil winds." Take it from one who lives through the huffing and puffing every year, that Satan dude is full of hot air!

Today, our temperature peaked at 83 degrees and although it is currently 11 PM, it has dropped to only 78 degrees. As if I don't have enough sleeping issues already, trying to fall asleep in such warm weather is difficult at best. We've got central air in the house, but I find it really hard to justify cranking up the AC in January! I started up the fan that I keep in the bedroom instead, but it was only cool enough to give me a nap.

Santa Ana conditions are extremely dry so add an unusually high temperature to the dry air, and you've got an easy to make recipe for discomfort. Mix in some pollen, dust, dirt, and various other microscopic gunk that the winds kick up, and you've got watery eyes, runny noses, dry throats, chapped lips, and itchy skin. Best of all, we'll have another outbreak of colds and flu within a week after the winds die down.

I suppose that I should be grateful that the winds are howling at under 30 MPH at the moment and that they haven't ignited any major wildfires, yet. The winds will be here for the remainder of the week and although we did have a couple of really big fires in the fall, the long-term drought we've experienced has left the canyons full of chaparral to burn.