The weather, my nemesis

At 9 AM this morning I was supposed to go flying in Winter Haven with a flight instructor I have been talking with for some time now. Despite the fact that Florida is rumored to have more flying-friendly days than almost any state except Arizona, today I was rained out. Observe the large threatening blue area with a scary red eyeball over central Florida:

(Image stolen from NWS.NOAA.GOV)

The last several days saw a frantic flurry of emails between my CFI and I discussing the weather, and last night we decided to cancel today's flight and reschedule for Tuesday the 8th of December.

Excited as I am to go up on Tuesday, I would be lying if I said I was not disappointed that I couldn't go up today. I really like to fly, but instead I'll sit and watch the rain and hope for better weather on Tuesday.

On the bright side, the fact that my CFI is in-tune with the weather and willing to cancel a flight rather than push through into potentially hazardous weather is reassuring. I would rather learn from a cautious and reasonable pilot than from somebody reckless or overconfident. Overestimating ones capabilities to operate in any conditions, let alone foul or potentially foul weather, is a good way to get frightened or seriously hurt.

So I will wait for the weather to pass. I have hot coffee and a warm house, and I can watch the rain go by and wait for Tuesday. Soon enough I'll get to go flying. I guess today just wasn't the right day.