Weird Weather of '09 #13

I'm glad to hear that it sounds like most got through last night's storm OK. I had compared the trees in the winds the other night to Gods dancing....last night is was more along the line of vengeful dieties! It was once again scary here...more wind than I have seen in a LONG time, and from a more northeasterly direction, which is odd. As Pony mentioned, we lost power at almost nine. Fortunately, we do have a generator, so we can run TV and lights OR water OR heat....take your pick. Last night was warm enough that lights and TV won the race, and power was on again by the time I had to take a shower this morning. HOORAY!

We didn't lose much in terms of trees that I could see from the driveway in the dark...still need to be able to walk the yard in the light to see what might have come down on the outskirts. Happily, I drove the BEAST today, and the few trees that fell over our road were small enough to drive over. I may be a trooper about walking through a garden in the rain, but running a chainsaw in the dark, in the rain, before I have had my first cup of coffee.....not so much!

Glad you are safe and no big trees blocked your way.

The BEAST looks like it could drive over just about anything. hehe.

He he....Yup, and believe it or not, that 8000 pound truck could do around a 12 second quarter mile. I feel so cool driving it, as long as I can keep it on the road! One of the perks of marrying a "Tim the Tool Man" type of guy. Wasn't much fun in today's monsoon on I-5 though!

What I couldn't figure out was why it was so warm with that storm bearing down on me from the northwest. It was 74 degrees when I fired up the truck to head for LC, lights & dinner last night.

I heard today it came from Hawaii, must have swirled around to come from that direction. It was really warm here too. Quiet tonight, no thunderstorm. I'm off to bed hoping to sleep through the night. lol

Here's what Cliff Mass, our local PNW weather authority, has to say:

http://cliffmass.blogspot.com/

His blog is focused on Washington, but his radar photos, etc. show the whole Pacific Northwest. He is referring to our latest rain phenomenon as due to what we call the Pineapple Express, which corresponds with what you heard, Sally.

The link for our local news station also frequently has weather writeups that expalin in layperson terms what is happening with the weather

http://www.komonews.com

In November of 2002 my family celebrated my folks' 60th wedding anniversary at the ocean in Newport. We all took lots of warm weather gear and the temperatures ended up being in the 70's. Thank goodness my SIL and brother made us all t-shirts; otherwise we would have been sweltering in the sweaters we'd brought. It turned out to be an amazing weekend.

In the early '80's we would go to Harrison Hotsprings for a 4 day golf weekend in March. We always had beautiful sunny weather. Lot's of dancing, dining, hot-tubbing, and golf.

Where's that, Patricia? Sounds pretty nice. How's DH today? And how is Amber?

In Canada. Not to far across the border above the Skagit Valley. The hotel is quiet old and had a live band and a lighted glass dance floor. Amazing food. And of course the hot tubs. On a big Lake. A nine-hole golf course. Flat and easy to walk.

Both of my babies are doing good. We all went to Port Orchard so I could get my yearly eye-exam. Just got back and I had to drive with my eyes dialated. By the time we got home it was raining and almost dark. Not fun.

This message was edited Nov 18, 2009 5:10 PM

Thanks, Katie, for the links. I'm trying so hard to learn everything possible about my new environment -- it's all new, nothing like Montana, Florida, Pennsylvania or Illinois, my previous locales.

The lowest temp here so far has been 39 degrees -- so that makes me much more tropical than most of you, right?

I was up on Lewis and Clark pass the last few days and it often blows there. I had to change the direction my truck was parked during the night so it wouldn't tip over Mon PM. Quite windy. Here is a picture in the AM up on top. I got sun burned though and had a ball with the beautiful climb to the top.

Summer, you are definitely more tropical than Sharon, Lynn, and I. We are definitely not the coldest on the west side...I think that depending on the system, Katie59 and Katye are colder than us, but we have been down to 29 degrees one night here so far. It was 34 when I left for work this am, and with the wind that is starting again tonight........BRRRRRR! Hopefully this blow is a lighter one! Day off tomorrow, so I get a chance to inspect the edges for possible damage from Monday's wind. Hope that it isn't any worse than I have seen in the immediate house area!

Steve, Beautiful pic! The west side has NOTHING compared to the east when it comes to wind! I can imagine what you were going through that same night where the wind has nothing much to slow it down! I have visuals in my head of the truck move.........

I enjoyed it and only had a hard time opening the driver door so went to passenger side to get in. I stayed awake a while listening to the trees roaring their songs to me. The wind didn't stop when I climbed the ridge and I had to stay bundled up to keep the face warm. It was interesting to see the route that the buffalo were hauled up and down.

Patricia, I'm glad you got home safely!!

I'm drinking wine ( nice Cab) tonight and marvelling at how we can converse from our diverse locations. I was just talking with the neighbor and reminiscing about the days before television remote controls. He remembers his dad laying on the floor and turning the channel on the TV set with his foot. I remember adjusting the rabbit ears and having my brothers ask me to stand there for a minute to watch the last football play because the reception was better when I was holding on to the antennae.

Aaaaaanyway, SK, it is pretty interesting how our individual ecosystems vary, as well. Being in the foothills, just south of a weather convergent zone (the point at which weather systems collide, creating precipitation - this isn't static, but moves around a little, depending on the weather system). I may be a little colder than Julie, Lynn and Sharon's, but they always get hit with more wind than we do. That sort of break in the mountains around Mt. Rainier provides ample opportunity for air pressures to equalize and it sucks air through at a pretty dramatic rate. I continue to be impressed that you uprooted yourself for a whole different part of the country.

Steve, you're such a man of extremes. It doesn't surprise me that you were up there enjoying the sun and wind!

Oh thank you Katie. But it was so worth it. The occasional days of gut-wrenching confusion, loneliness & even fear are long past. I'm just so loving everything here. Even the rainy season -- it's so exotic, like living in a waterfall, thrilling.

It's reaffirmed my strengths & confidence, too. My brother, who gallantly drove with me cross-country, was just saying how impressed he was by the number of people who showed up to help me pack, and he was marveling that almost a dozen people are joining me for my first Thanksgiving here. He can't figure out how people get drawn into my life so quickly.

All that makes me feel like a good person, which we all need, right?

But it will be awhile before I'm really COMFORTABLE, i.e. understand the tides & weather & local flora.

But part of this is about NOT feeling comfortable, right? That's what I admire. Anyone can seek comfort . . .

It's marvelous that you have attracted new people for your Thanksgiving. It's almost as though they were waiting for your arrival. That sounds like fun. Are you cooking for a gang?

Hey Summer I spent 22 years in the Pacific NW. You need to remember to put a lock on your pistols, shotguns, rifles, medicine cabinets, and any other suicide devices in the winter. Come end of Jan to early Feb the lack of sun gets you real bad. Hence my move to sunny (and cold) Montana. Otherwise it is essential to "go south" to a beach at least by Valentines day. A sun lamp is essential for survival if you do not "go south".
Kathy you are always thinking when you discuss our social interaction with those around. The Biosphere is quite varied even in our little corner of the world. This is why I find it so blessed. I think you too appreciate all of what we have.
These are animals I saw on the beach in Alaska 2 weeks ago. Nessie was visiting from Loch Ness, Bulwinkle too got a look at me, and the others you will have to see for yourselves.

Nice primitive art, Steve. The artists who drew at the caves at Lascaux have nothing on you! I love it.

Yes, I think and rethink and rerethinkthink. That's definitely my MO . . .

It was great for those visitors to 'visit' you.

I know I am Neandertal with my art but it was too beautiful to spend much time etching with my boots. And I only had 4 hours to experience that moment and the miles of beach waiting for me to explore. And I had the percussion of the ocean to give me music.

Oh, Gerate picture, Steve.

No, I meant Primitive, with a capital P. In the genre of art that's called Primitive. I like those simple drawings, especially when they're fresh in the sand!

Great pictures Sofer. That's something to look forward to in winter, your pictures!

We're back to our usual rain and the winds have stayed away luckily. The winter blahs even got to me last year, seems like spring started way too late. Usually I don't care, I have many hobbies to keep me occupied. Without the garden upkeep I have much more time for them. Got DH one of those sun lamps a couple of years ago, they really do help.

One of my neighbors is a pediatrician and she got one of those lamps, and in the evenings you can see the kids doing homework by that lamp. Yes, when I walk the dog in the dark I look in windows.

Cold here today and expecting more rain. It feels colder that the weather report but maybe I'm getting old!

Blah for me, too, Sally. I'm counting the days to 12/23 and I'll be counting the added hours of sunlight after that . . .

Judi, I do that, too. I think the scenes they represent are little Norman Rockwell drawing . . .

Well, at least the forecast has changed for the better! We were again thinking we would have to spend the weekend getting ready for below freezing temps. Guess the plans for thinking "38" are getting set in motion. I cetainly hope so.

On the other hand, Julie and I were having coffee this morning and noticed that the "termination dust" had moved considerably lower. (I am sure Steve and Kathy are familiar with that terminology.)

We've got one little patch on a nearby hill, I just noticed it today. We've got a wind advisory again. Until tomorrow morning. Goes up to Portland too, so batten down the hatches again.

Very very wet in Portland. Hard rain all night continuing this morning. Also windy, but not too bad.

Where is Redchic?

I hadn't heard that phrase, Sharon, though I'm familiar with the concept. :-)

Yeah, where the heck IS Redchic? I'm guessing that she hasn't replaced her computer yet . . .

Hard drizzle this morning, but, despite the gray skies, we didn't have rain the rest of the afternoon. I got my brother's roof cleaned off and the gutters cleared out today. Yippee!! That just makes me feel so good . . .

I hope you are being extra careful. Wet ladder rungs can be treacherous.

Yes, I am most careful with the ladder part - especially now that I'm not such a spring chicken. It just seems that you need to wait for the first big rains and winds to make this effective. Thank you, Holly.

You're right, you would just be cleaning the gutters out all over again if the wind hadn't blown most leaves and stuff down already.

Of course now I have to think about getting those Christmas lights up. LOL

Nasty cold winter weather. That about sums it up. Still don't have my lights up, there's been a bitterly cold wind since Thanksgiving. The high for today was 43. Tomorrow is supposed to be better, hopefully I can get them up.

Hope everyone is well and managed to avoid the flu bugs going around.

It's very cold here, but the sun is out. Maybe I will get lights up this weekend. Or maybe not!

Got very cold here last night....still have frost in the back yard...but at least the sun is shining.

Got up at 6:45 and went out to get the paper. Everything was covered with frost and a huge big moon shining over all. Really cold and beautiful.

Cold here, too!! And the sun this afternoon has been beautiful.

Everybody in Oregon, remember that tomorrow evening is the Civil War football game in Eugene. Get your errands done early to avoid the heavy traffic.

Go Beavs!!

Driving home from errands yesterday in Newport, I was trying hard not to crash while sneaking peeks at the sun setting into the ocean. And then a traffic-stopping full moon crested the hills ahead and everybody just about crashed into each other. It was shockingly beautiful.

And last night was our first frost of the year, the grass crunching under my slippers as I hotfooted it to the shed for more firewood. So pretty & clear -- I still have the doors open & no heat on because I love the air so much.

And five straight days of sun here on the coast!!! Why does everyone complain so much about PNW weather?