Douglas: December-like cold expected next week

My new hobbies include stargazing (at 5 p.m.) and reshuffling my closet with heavier coats and boots. I don’t see much snow close to home looking out a week or so, but a pretty good shot of numbing air is on the way. No subzero, Arctic-level cold, but maybe 5 to 15 degrees below average from Thanksgiving into early December, with daytime highs in the 20s and 30s. Certainly cold enough for snow if we can scrounge up some moisture.

Monday’s soaker comes at a very good time, helping to replenish soil moisture before the ground freezes up solid, which I estimate will happen by this weekend. I would get those driveway stakes in today.

Showers taper by Tuesday afternoon, and the first swipe of colder air triggers a little light snow and flurries Wednesday. I anticipate a coating of slush on lawns/fields, especially after sunset Wednesday (4:39 p.m.).

For the record, I still anticipate a colder, snowier winter than last year. But I’m not yet convinced the dreaded “polar vortex” will camp out overhead. I’m pro snow, but 20 below? No thanks.