Looking & Feeling More Like Spring as We Finish February!

Wow! I think it may have been the warmest 31 degrees I have ever felt. That was Lafayette's official high today. Keep in mind that is a shade temperature taken about 5 feet above ground level. In the sun this time of year you can add about 15 degrees to the temperature. So our 31 was more like 46 especially with the light wind. Yes, 31 degrees this time of year feels much better than it did in January due to the stronger sun angle. Our sun is almost as strong as it was way back in September. Remember the month that produced highs in the 80s and 90s! Tonight we will talk about actual temperatures reaching into the 50s with some spring thunderstorms possible. It is fitting since Sunday marks the first day of meteorological spring. It will be a frenzied finish to February but it looks like it will be the warmer days dominating more than the cold days for once. I look forward to seeing you tonight on the news with our glass more than half full as always! I will also have more signs of Spring for you coming up!

The plunging temperatures will finally give us a break and speaking of plunging I want to congratulate WLFI's very own Julie Krizen and Sue Scott. They both helped raise over 1,500 dollars for the Public School Foundation by partaking in the Polar Bear Plunge this weekend out at Tapawingo Park. They braved bitter wind chills in the teens along with snow flurries. Julie Krizen, above won the best costume. She dressed up as the Florida Sunshine since she was born and raised in Sarasota, Florida. The Sarasota Sunshine girl told me she has never been so cold and she was still shaking two hours after the big plunge, even after a 30 minute hot shower. This is the same girl that wore winter boots for the first time in her life this year. Julie Krizen has come a long way and is well on her way to becoming a true Hoosier. This was a big test she passed and most of all it was for a good cause.

Overall this event raised over 5,000 dollars that helps award grants for teachers in the classroom. They can do fun things such as teach kids in ways that really motivate them. I heard one story of a teacher using a grant to set up a CSI crime scene for her kids! This is great stuff! It is a great feeling when you can give back something to your community that makes a difference. Julie and Sue were "shining" examples of this on Saturday.


Our future is certainly bright like the sunset over Wolf Park on Sunday. Monty Sloan took this picture from the Wolf Den. This red sky at night certainly did turn into a Hoosier delight on our Monday. It was a great start to our week and it will only get better from here as polar high pressure moves out, a warm Pacific flow moves in. In other words, a taste of Spring Fever is on the way!