I learned a long time ago that Rochesterians will put up with just about any kind of weather during the winter season — but if you “mess” with their spring and summer seasons, well, it will be a problem.

That problem has been a lack of consistency to the dry weather. This past week is a good example. The rain gauge at the Rochester airport shows that this past Sunday we had almost an inch of rain due to some heavy downpours. However, through the rest of the week it has been relatively small amounts of precipitation. As a result, even though it has been rainy, there has been little to no flooding in the immediate Rochester area. Again, it is the frequency of the rain that is the main concern.

The longer term shows a different kind of pattern and this is best observed when looking at the data on a month by month bases. This is best accomplished tabulating the percent of possible precipitation compared to the amount we actually measured for that month. In other words, how does rain for each month compare to what we normally measure at the Rochester airport? February only had 30 percent of the possible precipitation, and March was just 78 percent of the possible precipitation. A significant deficit for those two months. Then the pattern changed. Rochester made up for dry conditions, with April coming in at a whopping 145 percent of normal and May measuring 110 percent. We do not know where June will finish, but the trend so far is for a wet month.

Some would say it has been “good” weather for the flowers and the ducks. But the question some of us could be contemplating: Is the frequency of rainfall going to be lowering? The answer is to be looking for the heat. If the heat arrives, the frequency of the rain will diminish. That could start happening next week.