Lebanon's weather has always been unpredictable, and it's that irregularity that has become the basis of proverbs passed down through the generations.
Here's a collection of some of the best sayings, as handed down to us from our grandmothers and grandfathers.
1. Shbat shabat w labbat w rehet el sef fee - February kicks left, right and center and smells of summer
February, also known locally as Shbat, is the month of year when the weather is so erratic that it's quite common to sleep through a chaotic storm and end up waking up to a bright sunny day.
2. Shbat ma fe 3ala kalemo rbat - February is a month you cannot trust
February is that time of the year when the weather is so unpredictable.
3. Khale fahmatak el kbar la azar - Save your biggest lumps of coal for March
Save your biggest lumps of coal for March ... because believe it or not it gets pretty cold some nights.
4. Senit el zarazeer kheir kteer; Senit el hamam frosh w nem -- When starlings roam the skies, winter is afoot
When starling birds are roaming around the sky, the coming winter season will most likely be clear and smooth.
When pigeons start flying in circles, that's when you know it's time to hit your bed -- because let's face it, sleep and rain go hand in hand.
5. Iza toli3 "suhail" ... deer belak min al sayl -- When this star shines, expect floods
If you see the Suhail star (Lambda Velorum) light up in the sky, expect some heavy rains.
6. Bi tamooz el may bteghle bel kooz -- In July, water boils inside tree cones
July is that time of the year when water is said to "boil" inside tree cones.
7. Abb el lahaab -- August the scorcher
August is burning hell. Literally.
8. Bein teshreen w teshreen seif tani -- Between October and November comes a second summer
Referring to the Indian Summer, a period of unseasonably warm, dry weather that takes place during the fall in parts of the Northern Hemisphere.
9. Shareq gharb nam 3ala al darb, qible shmal fik al fadan -- Look to the rainbow for signs of rain
When the rainbow rises from east to west, you can sleep outside because rain is no longer expected.
But, if the rainbow rises from south to north, get ready to put your plows away -- because heavy rain is coming .