Yes, that was what I predicted in June.

But really, this time the drought has gone too far. Until a few minutes ago, my power was out because of the horrible drought-related rains we've been having lately, and now that it's come back on (God knows how long that will last), my duty seems clear: I must write some sort of post about what I guess can honestly be called weather. (The importance of being Ernesto, perhaps?)

I guess it's now September. I'm trying to be in denial about that because I don't like the end of Summer. If a drought can be wet, can't I go on calling this August, and, like, pretend that today is really August 34 instead of September 2?

That way, the August drought will be even wetter than it was! I like it when the weather breaks records, and of course it's probably all related to the Bush-related Global Cooling-Warming deal. Warming is cooling, which only proves that Cooling is Warming. (Beware!)

During the earlier part of August, the wet drought we'd been having seemed to be drying up. Until last week, when the local shapers of weather opinion admitted that there'd been a "stunning turnaround":

The recent downpours have been a stunning turnaround in the region's hydrological fortunes. Last week, it appeared that this was going to be one of the driest Augusts in Philadelphia's history. Through Friday, the official monthly rain total at Philadelphia International Airport was 0.12 inch.

The weather pattern began to change just before midnight Friday and during the early-morning hours of Saturday, when a violent storm with timpani thunder knocked out power to more than 25,000 homes. A few hours later, a lightning strike from a second storm blew up a tree in Lower Merion Township.

By last night, the official rainfall total for the month had increased 20-fold, to just over 2.5 inches.

The week before that (August 23) an August record was predicted in a headline proclaiming it the "driest in region in over a century":

It's been 110 years in the making, but there is a "decent shot" that the month of August could go down as the driest on record - or at least one of the driest - for the Philadelphia region.

As every brown lawn in the region can attest, there's been only two days of precipitation - you can hardly call it rain - amounting to just 0.06 inches for the month, so far, as measured at Philadelphia International Airport through yesterday. That's far below the norm of 3.82 inches of rain for August.

The low for the month is 0.46 inches, way back in 1896.

The problem is, the chart supplied by writer Jeff Price didn't quite back up his claim. Here it is:

[Price said the "norm" was 3.82 inches of rain for August, whereas the chart says that 2.71 inches is "typical" to date. Unless there's a one inch difference between "typical" and "norm," I'm confused. But for me, that's the norm!]

I don't know whether it's fair to look at three weeks of August in the context of the rest of the summer but as wet droughts go, the one in June was nearly unendurable. Bad weather is always a tough thing to endure (as is reading about it in sensationalized news pieces), but when heavy rains with flooding accompany moralistic lectures about being in a "drought," a certain sensory overload occurs (for me at least). Too much sensationalism mixed with too much manipulation can cause the nerves to become emotionally flooded.

Here's what I said at the time:

I can't even walk in the yard without rubber boots, and Coco is having trouble going outside to do her business. Right now, we're having a few precious rays of sun, but it won't last. The whole area is soaked, and it couldn't possibly be any wetter.

My lawn is a swamp; and I'm urged not to water it? Who's writing the state's water policy? Rodney Dangerfield?

Being from California, I'm used to insane bureaucrats who declare a flood and a drought at the same time, but I never thought the idea would spread across the country.

So what made the drought meme so damned persistent all this long wet summer?

I am so sick of this drought that I'm ready to bail.

MORE: I see I am not alone in having lost power. To imitate the Manolo, the Ernesto, he takes the Power which leaves the electricity Drought. (Except right now, the Manolo, he's more worried about the wearing of the white shoes on the Day After the Day of Labor. He better not ask the Patty Hearst, as the white shoes after the Day of Labor they put her in the Patty Hearse!)

CORRECTION: It has been brought to my attention by a sharp reader that today is actually August 33, and not August 34. Yeah, I guess I did say that. Well sorrrry!

I can't even get it right when I get it wrong!

MORE: Jon Thompson points out that "the 2.71 "to date" in the graph is only the measure of what is average from August 1st until that date, and not through the whole month." I'm sure he's right, as it appears to say that in the chart. My mistake!

AND MORE: While I am unable to locate the tables used by the Inquirer, looking at this table -- "Normal Monthly Precipitation, Inches" which lists monthly rainfall averages from 1961 through 1990 for each state, I get a Pennsylvania August average of 3.589 inches. That's close enough to the number the Inquirer used for the August total to satisfy me.