Hey, MOVErs!
I’d like to take this opportunity to formally thank CoMo’s crazy weather for being a perpetual source of small talk. You see, dear reader, for people like me who, in lieu of the gift of gab were given the curse of “oh no these people are talking to me what do I say can I take the physical challenge send help,” the weather is always a safe bet for casual conversation.
It’s something relatable — everyone’s affected by the ups and downs of Mid-Mo meteorology. It’s not a deep, complicated topic — even Karen from “Mean Girls” could tell when there was a 30 percent chance it was already raining. And it’s always relevant, because it’s [always changing](http://move.themaneater.com/stories/2014/3/18/downtown-declassified-weather-you-it-or-not/).
But idle chatter about the rain and the sun and the _holy crap, is that hail?_ can only sustain you for so long. Eventually, those shallow topics act as segues into deeper topics — _Why_ does it suck that it’s raining? _What_ were you doing that had to be cancelled because of the snow? _Where_ should we go to escape this insane heat? From there, you end up chatting about school, friends, life, the universe and all its mysteries. This infuriating weather, like those filthy journalists, facilitates conversation.
So maybe instead of mumbling profanities at the sky and griping about having to pack an umbrella _and_ a sweatshirt _and_ sunscreen _and_ sunglasses _and_ an Arctic-grade parka, we can (try) to see the silver lining in these rain/snow/hail clouds and milk it for all that it’s worth, conversation starter-wise. Who knows, maybe the person commiserating with you about the flood will share his umbrella with you and take pity on your drenched self and buy you coffee.
Or maybe you’ll strike up a conversation with someone about the awful heat, and she’ll tell you how it reminds her of that time she got lost in Arizona and thought she was going to die of heat stroke right there in south Phoenix. Or maybe it’ll be too cold to go outside, so you’ll stay holed up in a coffee shop and chat up the cute hipster working on his screenplay.
Or who knows, maybe the weather will cooperate one day and be so entirely predictable that you’ll reminisce about That Time The Weather Did A Thing, and everyone will have a story to share.
At least we’ll always have something to talk about.