"Life is Like a Weather Forecast"     by G. Thomas Windsor   
                 ( Lessons learned in the storms of life and in storm chasing )


Introduction

Hardly a day goes by that we don't hear of some weather related phrase or cliche.  We may need to "weather  a new  economic storm" or  beware of some new global crisis that will hopefully "blow over"    All this can make one feel a little "under the weather" with "clouds hanging over our heads."  Perhaps even lead to being " in the doldrums."  It is in those times I think we  all  hope for "blue skies smiling at me".

The literal  weather affects us all, our scheduled lives and almost half of our national economy.  We endure its heat waves, cold snaps, severe storms, and so the picnics and parades get rained on.

The sky above us has done everything from inspiring artists to changing the course of history.  Decisive battles have been won or lost  literally in the fog of war.  Now, not only do we have to deal the affects of weather, but we grapple with the debate on how we are effecting the earths climate with global warming.  Mankind, it seems,  has  always been at the mercy of, or battling, the elements.

One of  the earliest written accounts in history is of a major weather related event: the flood.  Since ancient times, weather and the heavens above us have always been a concern, and a reason for deep pondering in the human psyche.  Many cultures have viewed the celestial as the mysterious spiritual realm.  

So why does weather provide such good analogies and metaphors in life?  Why do the plans of life change like the  weather?

In our modern times we now know the atmosphere is one of the most complex chaotic systems in nature.  Contained therein are a staggering amount of interactions involving individual air molecules and organized areas all affecting one another.   Predicting the weather,  even with super-computers (trillions of operations per second) still can not show how weather systems will ultimately unfold.  With all modern technology and days of warning we still have the hurricane Katrina type of situations.

So it is with  human relationships and interactions in the world we live in.  These involve very complex dynamics, a huge interconnected  networked  system  of people we relate to:  our  family, friends, coworkers, acquaintances, etc.   This is very similar to the  dynamics in  the atmosphere above and around us each day, each minute.  One thing  affects the other and so forth.  As this book will explore, there are good scientific reasons why life is  truly like a weather forecast.  

The  two new branches of science that relate to all this are called Complexity Theory and Chaos Theory.  This book will also introduce these and touch on them in a non-technical way.  In the last few decades these theories have  been applied to many different studies.  This has led to some principles that help to understand the world around us, like the formation of clouds,  the flow of water, and to areas like stock markets, the population growth,  even how your brain works and heart ticks.  Of course, one of the main areas to which these theories are applied is in weather forecasting.  That sometimes elusive desire to predict future storms.

Speaking of the weather,  one of my part-time pursuits for the last 15 years has been storm chasing.   It has forced me to constantly restudy the complexities of storm prediction and forecasting. The more I've learned, the more I encounter just how intriguing the natural heavens are. Though I suppose most people would rather go to places where plenty of sunshine comes their way, the storm chaser plans for and seeks out the times and places of greatest storminess and instability in the atmosphere.  The ultimate goal in storm intercepting is to witness some things most have never seen, some of the largest tornadic storms on planet earth.  (From a safe distance- most of the time ! )

This book isn't just about storm chasing or weather unpredictability.    Most who read this will not aim to purposefully head towards a storm.  However, the same knowledge can be used to be a storm avoider literally and figuratively.

 It is almost a given that life is filled with unpredictability and uncertainty.  It may seem like stating the obvious to say, "life is like a weather forecast," but when we delve into the question of "why" it yields what I believe are helpful principles

Everyone  is in some way  "life forecasting"  (health, finances, relationships, relocating, you name it.)  This book will explore just what a good forecast is and how to recognize those never-before-experienced, unprecedented "perfect storms " that come along in most people's lives.  Those that we must live through, as I will share from my own life.  

Hopefully, it will help us fine tune our "radar," our understanding of life's weather charts and to keep looking up.   Oh , and remind us not to forget the umbrella.


New Book Publishing  Date 1/16/2010   ( WhirlWinds Publishing)  ISBN # 9780982365922