The first day of classes came and went with warmth and a nice breeze in the air. What followed immediately was a week of rain and freezing temperatures. Ideally, students expect the weather in spring to be days full of sunshine and heat, with a slight breeze in the air, where we don’t have to worry about wearing big jackets and scarfs every time they step outside.
There were a couple of days that brought this weather before it was quickly replaced with the cold, and everyone was left anxious to have the warmth back on campus. The back-and-forth of sixty-degrees days and forty-degrees days is bringing unwanted whiplash to the students of Union College.
“This week it’s been all over the place,” stated Phoebe Ferguson ’27, “today it’s beautiful: the sun just came out from the clouds, and there’s a nice breeze. Yesterday, it was frigid.”
The term has only just begun and we have already experienced a rollercoaster of different weather phenomena: sunshine on our faces, followed by pouring rain that soaks our shoes, winds that toss us around, and chills that make us want to hibernate in our dorms. All this, in just one week.
As annoying as it can be, spring is known for its confusing weather, with snow in March and cold temperatures that require many, many layers followed by days where just a T-shirt and shorts would suffice. New Yorkers and New Englanders often claim that there is no right way to dress in this season.
When asked about her opinions on how long the snow had lasted previous years and this year, Saniya Dixon ’28, complained that it was “too long. It would be sunny and then randomly… a blizzard. Like what’s going on? That’s ridiculous!”
According to forecasts, the weather does seem to be getting warmer through April. This is concerning as the month comes with many campus events to look forward to. Some of these include Steinmetz Day, ReUnion weekend, and most notably, Springfest, a music festival that takes place around the end of the month and boasts performances from prominent celebrities.
Not only did last year’s Springfest bring artists like Mustard to campus, but also wind, rain and low temperatures. Luckily, if you were one of the many students amidst the large crowd in front of the stage, the temperature didn’t really affect you. For those who didn’t manage to make it to the front, the weather was bothersome and frustrating. Like many other students on campus, I am hoping that this year’s Springfest lands on a day with much nicer weather outside.
Though the forecast seems to be all over the place, the warmth is gradually becoming more frequent within the next few weeks. Union students like myself are crossing their fingers for this weather to stick around for all the important days of the term.
