Foreword Our Obsession With the Weather by David Phillips Canadians have always been interested in and concerned about the weather. Weather has shaped our geography and history, our character and folklore. Weather goes to the heart of our identity as Canadians. It''s our birthright, our passion, our national soap opera. Talking about the weather is one of our great national pastimes -- well ahead of politics and hockey. Canadians discuss the weather going up or down the elevator, across the backyard fence, at home, at work and on the Internet. Weather is a safe topic of conversation, a way to avoid difficult or controversial subjects. We talk eagerly to friends and strangers alike about black ice and blizzards and in turn listen intently to their stories of frozen pipes and frostbite. "How long did it take you to get home last night?" "How much did your heating bill cost last winter?" "How thick was the ice on your windshield this morning?" Canadians love and hate the weather (sometimes at the same time!) -- and everyone wants to know what it''s going to do tomorrow. We have a profound respect for and a passionate interest in meteorology, not because we talk about it more than any other subject but because it''s so important to us -- always has been and always will be. Part of the appeal of weather is that it is real. No subject compares to weather for its pervasiveness. No other factor, except perhaps our health, looms larger in our daily lives and so directly affects our ac