Douglas: Nice Friday; mostly sunny, mostly dry weekend ahead

“But Paul, it’s a DRY HEAT!” Uh huh. And I’m fine, nothing’s wrong. And I only had one beer. And I’ll call you right back. Yes, it was on sale!

Phoenix just experienced a record, incomprehensible 113 days in a row above 100 degrees. Thirty-one consecutive days above 110. It was a suffocating summer across much of the southern U.S. Friends who live there tell me that, increasingly, they are starting to dread the summer months.

Thanks to fossil-fueled CO2 pollution, summer warmth is pushing deeper into autumn here in Minnesota. MSP has warmed 3.6 degrees F during fall since 1970.

After storms today, we’ll salvage a nice Friday and a mostly sunny, mostly dry weekend, although a stray thunderstorm can’t be ruled out late Saturday.

Clouds increase over southern Minnesota on Sunday with a chance of a soaking rain Monday; maybe some 1-inch-plus rainfall amounts over southeastern Minnesota. The latest Drought Monitor shows dry soil up north with moderate drought into southwestern Minnesota.

Yes, let it rain. But only on weekdays.