EVERYONE'S ASKING, WILL WINTER ARRIVE?

Barry Williams took advantage of a warm afternoon off work Wednesday to take his son to Capaha Park.

The 2-year-old and his two older brothers swung on a tire swing and jumped on a swinging bridge without the burden of caps, heavy coats and mittens.

"I never would have thought we'd be doing this at the end of December," Williams said.

He and everyone else is wondering: Where is winter?

Temperatures have topped 50 degrees every day since Sunday. Temperatures have been in the 50s or 60s on 16 days in December.

But it won't last: The weather is predicted to turn colder by the weekend; lows are expected to drop into the teens by Sunday.

The mild weather has proven a boon to golfers and builders and a headache to winter-goods retailers.

A threesome from Sikeston was among 16 groups to tee off within a half hour Wednesday morning at the Cape Girardeau Jaycees Municipal Golf Course. The weather was perfect for golf, said the Sikeston men, who were dressed in windbreakers.

But impending cold weather won't keep them off the links. "I come out here and play in the snow," one of them, Jimmie Chadd, said.

The game is much more pleasant on a sunny 50-degrees day than in the snow, said another, Ronnie Bryant. "We like to see where the ball hits."

Golf coordinator Kimberly Laws said business has been so brisk it has posed problems. The course is on winter greens, which means only nine holes are open instead of 18.

Some days, a long line has formed at the first hole.

"We normally have players through the winter months, but nothing like this," she said.

The day after Christmas the course was bustling. "We had 85 rounds of golf," Laws said. "Last year we had 33 rounds."

Warm weather has kept building contractors busy.

"The weather has been pretty nice to us," said Lonnie Dohogne of the Drury Co. "I'd like to see two more months."

Rain has caused some work delays. "But we can work around the rain better than a long extended cold spell," he said.

The company lists the Hampton Inn in Cape Girardeau and Southeast Missouri Hospital among its construction projects.

Typically, winter construction work is spotty at best. During a normal winter, "You can work today but not for two days," Dohogne said. "We've been able to work right through."

Shoppers Wednesday browsed downtown wearing sweatshirts and no coats. Retailers said the warm weather means winter merchandise sits on shelves.

Customers at Dollar General Store, 20 N. Spanish, can choose from a selection of hats and gloves.

Store manager Debbie Wallace said: "Normally we're sold out and can't keep them in stock. I still have plenty left over."

Predictions for a cold snap sound good to her.

Snow shovels, heat lamps and pipe insulation are waiting on shelves at Sander True Value Hardware in Town Plaza.

John Sander knows a cold snap will bring a wave of customers. "Usually we have the first wave by the first of December," Sander said. This year he is still waiting.

"We've sold items, but not like we would if it was 20 or 10 degrees outside," he said. "Once that temperature hits, those cold-weather items will move."