The weather forecast appears to be stuck. The folks at Sterling must have left the needle on "PERFECT" and headed off for vacation at the beach. We're liking it a lot, but a little rain from Fay next week wouldn't be a bad thing. Parts of Maryland are back on the Drought Monitor map, and some lawns (like mine) are drying up.

Partly to mostly sunny skies and highs in the low to mid-80 will be the mantra throughout the weekend, and on into next week, if the forecast holds up. We will get into an easterly, or southeasterly flow off the Atlantic this weekend, which will bring us some morning cloud cover. But most of it will burn off in the afternoons, dropping the cloud cover from 60 or 70 percent in the mornings, to 40 percent in the afternoons.

So we get some nice sunshine, with welcome intervals of shade as clouds blow in front of the still-strong August sun.

Out at the beach, the forecast is nearly the same for the final weekend before the kids go back to class. They're looking for sunny skies and highs in the upper 70s. Wind and water conditions do pose a "moderate" risk of rip currents, however. So keep an eye on the youngsters.

There's a cold front approaching the region for the early part of next week. But forecasters don't seem to feel it will produce rain for our area.

The next significant prospect for rain will come - maybe - when the moisture from the remnants of tropical storm Fay finally get swept up in the regular flow of weather across the country. Forecasters say the computer models have that rain moving our way by Thursday.

We should be pulling for Fay to pay us a visit. Streamflow in Maryland and ground water levels are down. And the state is back on the Drought Monitor maps in a significant way for the first time since May 13. "Abnormally dry" conditions have cropped up on the Eastern Shore along the Delaware line, and in Montgomery, Howard, southern Carroll, western Baltimore and western Charles counties.

How dry is it where you are? My grass and flowers are drying up, but maybe this weather is good for the veggies.

Here's the map.