While walking the kids to the bus stop this morning, I noticed that the yards appeared to be very dry. The yards that were cut short look like they’re withering in July heat, but it’s only May and the weather has been cool. Today’s Roanoke Times has an [article](http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/66409) about the lack of precipitation this spring and last winter. The article states that rainfall in Roanoke is 7.3 inches below normal.