Here in Northern Florida azealeas and red buds are popping. So far I have dodged the hard freeze.
60.8 °F / 15 °C
Partly Cloudy
Humidity: 59%
Dew Point: 46 °F / 8 °C
Wind: 7.6 mph / 12 km/h from the SSE
Please drop in here often and let us know what the weather is around your particular location and remember in many places if you don't like it right now, wait 15 minutes.
Here's one of Kiska's beautiful Alaskan photos.
If this link's right, old Punxsutawney Phil is not seeing any shadows this week!
http://www.erh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?CityName=Punxsutawney&state=PA&site=PBZ
Cloudy and gray with snow flurries here today
Well, I hope he doesn't. I'm ready to start putting little plants in the garden.
Sidney
We've had an Alberta Clipper move through and two blizzards in the past couple of days.........winter made a comeback.
-6 °F / -21 °C
Scattered Clouds
Humidity: 77%
Dew Point: -11 °F / -24 °C
Wind: 14 mph / 22 km/h / 6.2 m/s from the NNW
Pressure: 30.21 in / 1023 hPa
Windchill: -26 °F / -32 °C
Stopped snowing, almost dark (time too retire for the evening), 41½°(F) - still don't believe it.
Everyone please have a warm, comfortable, safe evening.
Wow, been a long time since I've gotten to post at the top!
Sugar, a perfect picture thanks to Kiska. It really says February. What are you setting out? Flowers or garden?
Lilypon, it's swooping my way. DH has a week of vacation next week so he won't have to try and start his car in the parking lot at 10:00 pm.
Dyson, if it was Friday, your snow would seem cozy.
16*, sun's going down and I have the last bowl of homemade chicken soup. I heard the word FLU and I put a whole head of garlic in it! :))
Thanks, sugarweed; from budding azaelia and redbuds, on up to deep quiet snow; we cover a wonderfully wide range of weather...
It's nearly 4pm and sunny w/ 38*/F.....my 5 year-old GD wondered if it was sunny all over Palmer because "now summer is here." :)
billyporter; chicken soup sure sounds good, flu around or not...
Kiska
Hi Kiska, it was good! Made from real chickens! (DD raises them so they're free range.) Love your mountain. It looks so slate blue. Are there no trees on some of them or am I just not seeing them? Summer is here. That is so cute!
billyporter - now your soup sounds even better...the mountain is rock/treeless...the tree line here is quite low so there aren't many trees on the the mountains, other than at base line.
claypa - cloudy and gray has finally let up here after many weeks...hope it won't last too long for you.
and, Dyson, snow's let up there by now? not dark here; sunset is at 5:01, nearly an hour a week gain of daylight...today's gain is 5m 28sec.
The trees in front of the Matanuska Peaks, looks to me like eyelashes....
Kiska
Nice mind image Kiska
I swear I posted this earlier??
Lo this morning 14*, Hi this afternoon was around 35*
So far no sign of predicted snow showers. ho well.
Kiska, LOL, eyelashes. Maybe a silly question. Does anyone attempt mountain climbing? It's hard to tell how tall they are and my knowledge of Geology hasn't picked up yet. :))
Blooms, I think our overnight low is to be 14*.
Whoops - just posted on the last thread!!
Sharon, that's my first Grandson! I think I'll bring him over here. He got lost over there.
Rootin Tootin!
He's so cute! I love that picture!
Thanks! He's a big boy. Not quite two in this picture. His brother is 4 months.
Awww, thanks for bringing him over. He's a delight. whoop-raring cowboy.
And such a gorgeous sky for a background.
Would you believe the predicted snow has arrived, tiny little flakes and not for long but maybe there will be more. hurrah. my desert needs moisture. what a difference an hour makes.
Blooms, our snow came at 5:15 pm yesterday. I hate it when I wait all day to watch it snow and it waits till it's almost dark! I flip on the light so many times it's a wonder the neighbors don't ask for a welfare check on me. LOL!
42.1°(F) dark
2* outside and dark of course. Will get to 15* and wind chill will be well below zero. Kiska, you would feel right at home down here. Cold and icy with snow covering the ice but no traction at all. lol
DH and I got to meet Sidney last night at Jeremy's free for all! What a treat to meet and spend some time with some wonderful DGer's!
Last night we had rain - storms - lightening - a couple of power outages - but all is well. The bunny rainmeter is registering 2" for us.
Today
Mostly cloudy this morning...then becoming partly cloudy in the late morning. Highs in the lower 70s. West winds 10 to 15 mph.
This is the sky heading to Jacksonville yesterday ... it got worse the farther south we drove! Thought my car sprouted fins for a while! We hit it again coming back to paradise!!
Well I've been spending quite a lot of time trying to figure out just exactly what is causing the humidity over my province and I sure don't like the answers I've found. Please no matter who you vote for make it known that emissions control concerns you.
This map explains why the humidity has been so high over my location...Please look at the link
http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/site/english/maps/climatechange/atmospherestress/greenhousegasemissionbysector
Regional greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by sectors of the economy for 1998 are shown here. The map also shows the regional carbon intensity measured in tonnes of CO2-equivalent to per million dollars of Real Domestic Product. The share of economic sectors in the total regional GHG emissions depends on the region's economic structure and availability of energy resources. The share of greenhouse gas emissions from power generation is considerable in provinces where electricity is generated based on coal and natural gas (such as Alberta and Saskatchewan) or fossil fuels (such as Ontario). Emissions associated with the industrial sector, which include the fossil-fuel production industries, occupy an important share of total greenhouse gas emissions in almost every province.
This link explains greenhouse effect: http://www.adaptation.nrcan.gc.ca/posters/pr/pr_02_e.php
The greenhouse effect is essential for maintaining temperatures within a range that is tolerable for most life on Earth.
Interesting to see where it's been the warmest winter on record in Canada: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2006/03/13/warm-winter060313.html
Open Letter to Ralph Klein (ex premier of Alberta) from the scientists of Alberta Universities:
http://www.publichealth.ualberta.ca/news.cfm?story=46767 "
Temperature records show that in southern Canada, considerable warming has already taken place on the western prairies. Increases in temperature since the early 20th century have been from 1 to 3o Celsius at various prairie locations, including those where increased urbanization cannot be a confounding influence. The resulting increases in evaporation have without doubt aggravated the drought conditions that currently plague the western prairies. With further warming, desertification of these areas may occur.
There has been much publicity about the alleged economic losses that will be suffered by the oil and gas industries if Kyoto is ratified and implemented. But losses that will be suffered by other resource sectors if climate continues to warm must also be considered.
Of particular concern is the fate of agriculture on the western prairies, which contain 60 per cent of Canada's agricultural land. Both historical records and paleoecological studies show that the western prairies have experienced prolonged droughts in the past, at frequencies of roughly 25 years. It is very likely that drought patterns will continue in the years ahead. But this is the first time that other factors will amplify the effects of drought. Climate warming is causing increased evaporation. We have populations of humans and livestock numbering several million in the western prairies, and a large irrigation program. We may already be seeing the combined effects of climate and evaporation on water supply. Predictions are that Canada will be importing, not exporting wheat this year. There is a shortage of food and water for livestock. The effects of climate warming on agriculture in western Canada will certainly cost tens of billions of dollars. Compensation payments and crop insurance payouts this year alone amount to over two billion dollars in Alberta and Saskatchewan. The federal government dispensed 22 billion dollars in farm relief between 1985 and 1991, mostly the result of the 1988 drought, according to Statistics Canada. Such costs can only increase with a warming climate. Recent analyses predict that by mid-century the arid and semi-arid areas of Alberta and Saskatchewan will increase by 50 per cent if climate models are correct. "
We are going to pay a horrible price for what's being pulled out of the ground for the North American market and the effects of it will be felt North America wide. Big industry also has to have emissions brought under control
This message was edited Feb 2, 2007 9:44 AM
Thanks, Pam. It's really scary that so few people are aware and care.
I just accidentally posted on the previous thread instead of here too, Sharon.
In the last 10 minutes it has started snowing here but I think it's too warm to stick.
Thank you, Pam, for finding all of these articles!! They are very interesting and educational - and scary, too!
It's still cool and threatening rain here. I really need to get out and weed.. A bunch of little green plants are popping up under the bird feeder again and clover is appearing all over the rest of the beds. I don't worry TOO much about getting all of the clover... As soon as it gets really hot it all shrivels up and disappears. But in the meantime it's starting to look pretty messy out the window. If the beds would just dry up a little...!
Observation for Houston, TX (KSGR) as of 9:53am CST (22 min ago)
Temperature 41 °F 5 °C
Dew Point 35 °F 2 °C
Humidity 79%
Pressure 30.15 in 1021.1 mb
Wind Speed 13 MPH 11 kts
Wind Dir NW 320°
Ceiling 1400 ft 427 m
Visibility 10 mi 16.1 km
Current Conditions Cloudy
Remarks 6 hour min temperature ending 5:53am CST : 42.1°F / 5.6°C
very scary and the green emissions that is hanging over Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba doesn't stop at the Canadian border. The emissions from the fossil fuel I imagine also follows the same route that the cold does when it leaves Canada. I haven't found a map though that says where the emissions greenhouse is sitting over the States.........I imagine it would be pretty big around the Gulf of Mexico as well (and where ever else the fossil fuels are being refined).
7:30; moonlight; strong winds, 40*F...
Sharon, Must have been a worrisome night down there; power outages, tornado warnings, etc.
billy - what a cutie little GS ready for a ride - As to mt. climbing-strenuous hiking is more like it. There are trails, but most are beyond my ability.
pepper23; traction w/out cleats during this warm-up is very limiting...can't even take one step from the house now...don't you just hate this part of winter?
Blooms - hope you'll get more snow to add to the moisture..my sister/husband love hiking in that area.
darius - maybe it will cool down and the snow will last a bit longer...
Lazy Mt., there is a trail to the top; we live near the base, lower right.
Kiska
Final one..........a month or so ago I posted information about the importance of Canada's Boreal Forest.........here's another map I found that is showing what they predict will happen to it in the prairie provinces : http://www.adaptation.nrcan.gc.ca/posters/pr/pr_06_e.php Remember this forest cleans our air and helps regulate North America's temperatures.
Lilypon, people forget that the water we have on this earth is recycled. Rain doesn't make more. It's created from what we have. Drought scares me the most. No water no food. But you would die of thirst before starving. Small compensation. I'm so glad that they are being forced to discuss and confront this problem. Losing the rain forest is another big influence. It's good to educate all of us. (China has problems too.)
Thanks Kiska, we think he's something special! Lazy Mt. that is so funny!
The houses blown apart in central Florida leave you with a heavy heart. I've been getting the atlas out to try and find where people live. I remembered Sharon saying ''Sugar and I live as far north as you can get and still be in Florida.'' I'm so glad! Houses are just gone. It's terrible.
Groundhog Day. I heard the wind come up around 4:00 am and figured the Arctic blast was here. 0* when I got up. 8*, sunny and windy now. I drug two boxes out of the shed and we made two cat beds for the ferals. I hope they use them. We had insulated boxes with a hallway to the ''bedroom'' while we had our own outdoor cats, but gave them to our SIL after they all died. DH is good at building!
Stay warm everyone and say a prayer for Florida.
Billy, I have been saying for years that we have the same amount of water as we always did... it's just that now we store it in toilet tanks all around the world. Have you any idea how much water that must take out of the available water supply for nature?
p 3 of this report by the United States Department of Energy, 2004 gives the breakdown of greenhouse emissions by country: http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/FTPROOT/environment/057303.pdf
My prayers go to Florida that will feel the effects of this first.............but they also go to the rest of us.
Does this mean that hydrogen-fueled cars are not an answer, since the combustion of hydrogen produces water vapor?
Darius, we don't pay for city water yet. I know I ''waste'' water and try to catch myself before I do have to pay for it. My old washer won't go much longer. I told DH the other day that we need to look into one that uses less water. We only get real dirty in the summer, and it's all organic dirt. :))
Llilypon, I couldn't get the link to load. Tried again. Nothing.
Type into google in quotation marks : "Emissions of Greenhouse Gases in the United States 2003"
http:// tonto.eia.doe.gov/FTPROOT/environment/057303.pdf
or cut and paste the above into your address bar but take away the space I left between the / and the t
I tried all that, but I only get one page of info. Adobe said 14 pages. Might be me. This computer has been acting up for a week.
Keep wanding down (if you can see the cover page).........there are a number of blank pages and then introductory pages with latin numbering and then there is the regular numbering system. It's on page 3 in the main body of the report.
Pam – Thank you for the links. I agree too many people don’t seem to care. We will have one heck of a price to pay for it.
Kiska – you have a beautiful mountain for a back yard! That’s so neat. I love the name as well!
link to central florida tragedy:
http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/topstories/news-article.aspx?storyid=75062
74.7 °F / 23 °C
Scattered Clouds
Humidity: 38%
Dew Point: 46 °F / 8 °C
Wind: 5.0 mph / 8 km/h from the West
Wind Gust: 6.9 mph / 11 km/h
Pressure: 29.76 in / 1007.7 hPa
Heat Index: 77 °F / 25 °C
Visibility: 10.0 miles
MySharona - wow, the damage has been terrible; thanks for the link...I'd heard about the tornados; so sorry for the deaths, too.
This peak, Byers, abuts, to the right, of Lazy Mt., (in previous photo); there's also a trail to the top of Byers. We live at the base of Byers and from the front porch, look out at Lazy.
Kiska
Such an incredible view Kiska. I'd never see it if it wasn't for you.
I better get off for a while and see if DH wants a turn at the computer. That will be the hardest part of retirement. Sharing!
Billy - four words ... wireless laptop for DH!
