Look at these two images from NOAA:
The data at the top says that, nationally, the U.S. temperatures for October year-to-date is about "normal" or average for the 1895-2008 timeframe. What does the bottom image tell you for that same timeframe? It tells me that the ranking scheme that says most of the nation was either normal, below normal, or much below normal equals "normal." So I guess normal must equate to "much above normal."..