A dry 2013 turns into a dry start to 2014

Happy New Year! I hope everyone has a safe, joyous, and prosperous 2014! Well, it's official: California saw its driest calendar year on record. I honestly don't know how much precipitation Chico ended up with for calendar year 2013, but downtown Sacramento saw less than 7 inches of rain for 2013. I would say Chico saw less than 10 inches for 2013; we normally receive 26 inches. Let's hope 2014 doesn't end up as dry as last year. Unfortunately, we're kicking off 2014 on a dry note, as there is still no rain in the forecast for at least the first seven days of this year. High temperatures will be way above average by as much as 10-15 degrees, bordering on record territory. We should be around 53-54 degrees for early January, but Mother Nature must think it's early March. Highs will be in the low to middle 60s through this coming weekend. A slight pattern shift will result in cooler temps for early next week, but it will remain above seasonal averages. Here is the dry and spring-like seven day forecast for Chico from the National Weather Service: New Year's Day Patchy frost before 10am. Otherwise, sunny, with a high near 63. Calm wind. Tonight Patchy frost after 4am. Otherwise, partly cloudy, with a low around 34. Calm wind becoming north northeast around 5 mph after midnight. Thursday Patchy frost before 10am. Otherwise, mostly sunny, with a high near 66. Light and variable wind. Thursday Night Patchy frost after 4am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low around 36. Calm wind. Friday Patchy frost before 10am. Otherwise, mostly sunny, with a high near 65. Calm wind. Friday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 33. Saturday Sunny, with a high near 63. Saturday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 30. Sunday Sunny, with a high near 62. Sunday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 32. Monday Partly sunny, with a high near 60. Monday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 32. Tuesday Partly sunny, with a high near 57.