Anna Morgan didn’t mind getting wet.
On the day she got caught in the rain without an umbrella, it was the books in her hands she was concerned for, she said.
In an attempt to save them, Morgan, a 20-year-old UF English junior, crouched down on the sidewalk and created a “body shield” with a friend.
Just as she thought the books would be ruined forever, a man came up to them and offered to share his umbrella.
“I posted a thank you to him on Facebook later that day,” said Morgan. “I said, ‘To the nice gentleman with the umbrella: You’ve saved not just me and my friend, but also all of these books that people love.’”
Even though it seemed like you got caught in the rain every day, August isn’t really the rainiest month.
The rainiest month in North Florida is actually June, with an annual average of more than 7 inches, WRUF’s chief meteorologist, Jeff Huffman, wrote in an email.
“The rainy season continues through early October, which is why there is more frequent rain during those first few weeks of class,” he wrote.
Gator fans encountered the rain during the canceled football game against Idaho on Aug. 30.
Allison Kane, a 20-year-old classical studies junior and member of the UF marching band, was face-to-face with the storm.
Kane was not allowed to play her clarinet in the rain because woodwind instruments cannot get wet. However, many of her fellow band members played instruments that could withstand the downpour.
“I lucked out,” Kane said. “A lot of the brass had to stand out in the rain, and their uniforms got soaking wet, and they were cold.”
As the marching band was adapting to the rain at the game, so were the students in the stands. For Gabriel Martins, it was an unforgettable season opener.
“This was going to be my first Gator game, and I’m a junior so it’s kinda bad that it was my first,” said Martins, a 20-year-old UF computer science junior.
Despite the rain, Martins had fun.
“I was enjoying the rain, partying in the rain and doing Breakfast Club moves on the bleachers,” said Martins.
[A version of this story ran on page 9 on 9/11/2014 under the headline "Rain, rain go the eff away"]
