April showers...and you know the rest.

I live in the Pacific Northwest.  To be a little more specific, do you remember the diagram of the water cycle that you learned in school?  There's some mountains, clouds, rain, and then a river that leads to the ocean.  You know the spot where the water hits the ground?  That's where my house is.  Hrmph.  Last weekend we had stunningly beautiful weather and I was all psyched about spring, and now the rain is back and I'm trying to think about all the May flowers it will bring.

But because I'm thinking of the rain, I'm also thinking about the water cycle!

No, not that kind of water cycle (and for the awesome Spongebob gif...you're welcome).

Um, still no (and by the way, WHY does she need a bell on the bike?  To avoid crashing into masses of other people on water bottle bikes???).  Maybe something a little more like this:

Image by Matt Coleman

Well, you get the picture.  The water cycle basically goes like this: water evaporates from various sources, condenses in the form of clouds, then precipitates to earth, where it is either absorbed by the earth and stored as groundwater, or runs off as surface water to lakes and oceans, where the cycle starts all over again.

Sounds simple, right?  Well, maybe at first glance.  But take a look at the article I wrote called "...And the Award for 'Most Intriguing Cycle' Goes to..." on the Brainy Girls Articles page.  I briefly describe the water cycle, and then talk about human impacts on the water cycle and why it matters to you.  There are some complex aspects of the water cycle, and humans are having an increasingly large effect on some of them.  Can you think of a few?  Leave me a comment and share your thoughts!

But before you go, here's a little comic I found:

 

So for now, I will try to look at the rain as love and joy, and picture all the May flowers that I'll be seeing next month.  I hope this month's rain brings you good things in the near future, too!