January 07, 2009

Argh! Atmospheric Pressure!


Have you ever seen one of these before? Its a weatherglass barometer. What is a barometer? Well I'm glad you asked. :) A barometer is basically a tool that shows changes in atmospheric pressure. How does it work? Well the water level in the little spout is influenced by the air pressure in the room, house... general vicinity of the barometer.

When there is good weather the water in the spout goes down. That means there's high pressure in the air. But when bad weather (stormy weather) comes the water level in the spout goes up. Way up. Sometimes it even overflows. That means there's low pressure in the air.

So why am I writing a post about barometers and air pressure? Well I would like to say its because I'm so scientifically minded but that's just a bunch of baloney. I'm sharing this info because of how I'm feeling today. Believe-it-or-not air pressure directly influences our bodies. And I know this because of a neck injury I suffered in a car accident last year. The pain is back pretty strong. It started last night, out of the blue.

At first I thought I might have lifted something the wrong way or sat in an awkward position for too long. But then, wilst washing the dishes, I turned around and saw this.



Can you see how the little spout is filled to the top? And now look at the bottom of the spout and you can see that the water is actually overflowing. There's a drop ready to fall. Yup. Bad weather was predicted by this barometer last night and the weather stations said that we would have our first ice storm of the winter over night and into the following morning. So... I'm definitely feeling it today. But even my grandmother was feeling really achy, more than usual.

I think these handy barometers were really popular in the 1600s and I know for certain that ships used to rely on these simple barometers many centuries ago. They're a lot of fun to check and really simple to use. You just pour in water, with a few drops of food coloring, up to an inch above where the spout and the main body of the barometer join together. Then you just wait to see what the forecast will be. :)

Well when the aches and pains come on strong I break out the heating pads and take hot showers. I try to avoid taking any pain meds because they always have side effects. But I take heart in knowing that the pain will subside when the weather clears up. And I know that God doesn't let any of his children go through more than He can handle. :)

"Dear brothers, is your life full of difficulties and temptations? Then be happy, for when the way is rough, your patience has a chance to grow." James 1:2 & 3

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

That's very true. Weather has a big influence in our mood.

Why are people in Brazil so lively? Because there's always warmth and sunshine there. The people are outgoing, positive, like to dance, aren't restricted by too many clothes, ...

Today I was reminded of the weather's effect. In the last month there's been some horrible weather here... outside it's very cold, it rains almost everyday and there are dark clouds covering the sun. At 4pm it's so dark that it seems like nightfall. -- And I've been feeling sad and stressed in the meantime. -- Today I was sitting at the bus stop, looking at the "scenery"... and suddenly some clouds clear up and there's SUNSHINE! Woah! It made such a big difference! Everything was grey and depressing, but suddenly it was lighting up! I felt instantly better!

Really... it's been such a looong time since we had a sunny day here... it's a pity!

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

Sorry about the pain but that is a very cute barometer and this was a wonderful post.