Does anyone else ever notice that the weather forecasts for Berkeley never really seem to reflect any truth? The forecast will say that it’s 54 degrees and cloudy so you wear a cozy winter-y outfit. Then, as you’re walking through a sunny part of campus, you think to yourself that you would have been better off with a pair of shorts and flip flops. Sometimes this weather confusion has you feeling feverish, given your hot flashes and sudden chills. We know that this phenomenon is probably due to “Karl,” the fog rolling in and out of the Bay Area, but we at the Clog have devised a few tips to help you interpret what the weather forecast really means.

If it says it’s sunny and 75, expect large classrooms to feel 150 degrees.

Yeah, we know this weather seems nice, but trust us, you’ll feel like you’ve been plopped in the center of the Sahara Desert when really you’re in Pimentel Hall. I’m sure we don’t even have to tell you this, given that we’ve gotten through the heat of early fall in Berkeley.

If it says it’s cloudy and 54, expect sunny patches of campus to have you sweating through your sweater.

We’ve never really understood this phenomenon, but it’s probably just random pockets of sky that fog isn’t covering — a really scientific explanation. Do yourself a favor and wear a zip-up jacket so you can quickly whip it on and off randomly at different parts of campus. Trust us, it’s much better than having to awkwardly lift up a sweatshirt, which inevitably drags up your shirt, baring your winter paunch (we are Bears after all). Probably not a good look …

If it says it’s raining, expect to be lugging around rain gear for what seems like no reason

We feel like every time the weather forecast predicts rain all day, it usually actually rains for about 15 minutes. Even though this might be because of El Niño, it’s still a shame to walk to class decked out in your rain boots, rain jacket and umbrella when it winds up clearing up by noon. In these cases, it becomes real obvious who had to leave for class at 8 a.m.

It’s boiling hot, and you have class in the Valley Life Sciences Building.

If you’ve had a class in VLSB, you know that this is probably the coldest lecture hall on campus. Perhaps it actually is equipped with air conditioning … a strangely foreign concept here. It’s really a struggle when you dress for a hot and humid day but have to sit in subarctic weather for the duration of your class.

We at the Clog wish you good luck dealing with the madness that is Berkeley weather. If we could recommend one thing, it would be to wear layers.