No White Christmas

With Christmas only a few days away, temperatures were in the 50s Sunday with sunny skies.

And temperatures aren't expected to drop much, said Jon Dissauer of the KFVS12 Storm Team, which means it's unlikely Southeast Missouri will get a white Christmas. Today, the first day of winter, forecasters are calling for highs in the 50s.

"It takes one inch of snow on the ground to be considered a white Christmas in meteorological terms," said Dissauer. "There's pretty much no chance of that."

Dissauer said that highs have been slightly above normal this month, but that's not unusual for December. The average high for Dec. 21 is in the lower 40s, but the record is in upper 60s, he said.

While some may dread the high temperatures that destroy the romance of a white Christmas, others welcome the warmth.

"I would prefer it to get no colder than this," said Wesley Roberts of Cape Girardeau. Roberts took his grandson to Capaha Park on Sunday to enjoy the sunshine and play with the ducks.

"I'd rather be able to take my grandson out like this than have it really cold," he said.

Linda Lynxwiler of Cape Girardeau was also enjoying the weather at the park with her granddaughter and her dog. "It really doesn't matter if there's snow on the ground or not," she said. "It's the spirit that makes it Christmas, not the weather."

Lynxwiler, a former resident of Ohio, said she's seen her share of snowy Decembers, but prefers the kind of weather that visited Cape Girardeau on Sunday.

Highs are expected to stay above freezing for the rest of the week, Dissauer said, but there remains a lot of uncertainty in the forecast.

"There are a lot of question marks right now," he said. "None of the computer models are agreeing with each other."

msanders@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 226