Rain, Rain, Go Away!

As kids we used to sing the cute little jingle, Rain, rain, go away come again another day. Well, I think all those times we wished the rain away were all saved up for this storm. The prediction for this first storm of the year is that it's supposed to dump an excessive amount of rain in the valley areas and more in the mountain regions. In Southern California we can see and feel a rain storm coming days before it starts. It begins with the smell of rain in the air, then the clouds move in gradually over a period of a few days. For it to rain the sky has to be as dark as mud and then it sprinkles and finally rains, until it pours and pours. We are at that point now, it is sprinkling. The first rain storm of the New
Year is here.

The SFV has had its share of big rainstorms that have left a lot of destruction and water behind. There have been a number of big record rainfall years the most memorable in 1992 when the Sepulveda Dam overflowed and people had to be rescued out of their cars. In 2005 we saw over 33 inches of rain in California. The greatest amount of rainfall in recorded California history was in 1883-1884 with 38.18 inches.

The rain is desperately needed to feed our thirsty vegetation and replenish our water
supplies but, a storm this early in the year means more trouble for all those regions burned by fires last October. There hasn't been enough time for new plants to regrow and that means mud slides in the mountain regions. It's hard to imagine those people who had to flee their homes by the threat of fire will now have to flee their homes because of the threat of mudslides.

Here's some song titles appropriate for the first rain storm of the year 2008.

It Never Rains in California, it only pours and pours. (Albert Hammond)
All I Needed Was the Rain (Elvis Presley)
After the Rain (Matthew and Gunner Nelson)
Funeral in the Rain (Chris Isaac)
Over the Rainbow (Rosemary Clooney)
Rain, Rain, Go Away! (Bobby Vinton)
Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head (B.J. Thomas)
Riders on the Storm (Doors)
Smoky Mountain Rain (Ronnie Milsap)
The Thunder Rolls (Garth Brooks)
Slip Sliding Away (Paul Simon)
Who'll Stop the Rain (Creedence Clearwater Revival)

All of these could have been recorded by multiple artists, but I just picked a few that were memorable with these artists.

Stay Dry!

~Valley Girl~