Entry tags:
Been a While Since I've Done One of These
Interesting sky...
Interesting sky...
Entry tags:
Today's Beauty
Although it never got warm today, the sun did stay with us all day long and it was pretty outside. Say what you will about this weather it does give us what I term "interesting" sky:
Beautiful, isn't it?
Beautiful, isn't it?
Entry tags:
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow....
(03-09) 13:33 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- San Francisco could be in for a dusting of snow.
Forecasters with the National Weather Service said today that as much as an inch of snow could fall on Twin Peaks as a cold storm moves in tonight and Friday morning. The landmark hills are a mere 920 feet above sea level.
Accumulations could be substantial in the highest reaches of the Bay Area, the forecasters said. As much as 6 inches could fall on Mount Hamilton (elevation 4,213 feet), Mount Diablo (3,849 feet) and other local hills, the weather service said.
A snow advisory will be in effect from 9 p.m. tonight to 4 p.m. Friday for areas with elevations of 1,000 feet and higher, thanks to a storm system coming down from the Gulf of Alaska that is teaming up with cold air flowing down from Canada.
Entry tags:
a new day
In all the personal chaos of last night, my mood was barely helped by the change in weather. I noticed, as I came home from that we were getting "interesting sky" which always means rain. I've enjoyed this sunny respite we've had for most of a week. When I looked at the webcam for Berkeley and then at the weather forecast sure enough it said rain for the next two days. When I walked the dog at 10pm it was sprinkling on us. Never hard enough to warrant an umbrella, however.
About midnight the report changed. Today would be mostly sunny it said with a chance of rain again at night. That I don't mind so much. It can rain all night if it wants. I love sleeping in the sound of rain. It's slogging through it in the day time that I dislike! Sure enough, I just got back in with Dork doggie and our morning walk happened in cool sun, with tattered fog already mostly gone. As I sit down to the computer with my morning cup of coffee I couldn't help but admire how clear it is.
Last night it looked like this:
This morning, like this:
Maybe the rain will do a turn and head up to Seattle instead :) I hear they need rain--they haven't had enough--nearly drought conditions! < / sarcasm>
About midnight the report changed. Today would be mostly sunny it said with a chance of rain again at night. That I don't mind so much. It can rain all night if it wants. I love sleeping in the sound of rain. It's slogging through it in the day time that I dislike! Sure enough, I just got back in with Dork doggie and our morning walk happened in cool sun, with tattered fog already mostly gone. As I sit down to the computer with my morning cup of coffee I couldn't help but admire how clear it is.
Last night it looked like this:
This morning, like this:
Maybe the rain will do a turn and head up to Seattle instead :) I hear they need rain--they haven't had enough--nearly drought conditions! < / sarcasm>
It's Raining...it's not...it's raining...it's not...it's--I'd better get a life jacket.
The silence woke me at 5am. The total absence of wind or rain. It was too quiet and my eyes popped open. Everyone but me was sound asleep. I do this a lot actually, wake up because things are too quiet. Noise wakes me up too, but my sleep fogged brain can identify most sounds in a matter of seconds and I simply roll over and drift right back to sleep. It's silence I can't handle.
After a while I got up to take the dork dog out for her morning walk. Everything was still wet. There was standing water in yards, hollows in the sidewalk, low spots in the street. But it was still and quiet. Looking up I could see the waning moon. Dottie was happy for her walk and we walked an extra block to make up for being cooped up inside last night.
A half hour later I was leaving the house for work today. I needed to dash across the street and pick up a new bus pass. As I did the heavens opened up. It poured as I ran into the store. It poured while I slogged to the bus stop. It poured while I waited...and waited...and when I got on the bus, I was already soaked to the knees. It was raining so hard it was bouncing off the pavement and on to me. It blew around and up underneath my umbrella. Three miles later, as I exited the bus at MacArthur and waited on my connecting bus...
The sun was out.
What. The. Fuck.
So here I am at work, damp, disgruntled, the heater blasting, coffee half cold.
Please tell me today gets better?
Oh and there's an appraiser at my house in 10 minutes. Sigh.
After a while I got up to take the dork dog out for her morning walk. Everything was still wet. There was standing water in yards, hollows in the sidewalk, low spots in the street. But it was still and quiet. Looking up I could see the waning moon. Dottie was happy for her walk and we walked an extra block to make up for being cooped up inside last night.
A half hour later I was leaving the house for work today. I needed to dash across the street and pick up a new bus pass. As I did the heavens opened up. It poured as I ran into the store. It poured while I slogged to the bus stop. It poured while I waited...and waited...and when I got on the bus, I was already soaked to the knees. It was raining so hard it was bouncing off the pavement and on to me. It blew around and up underneath my umbrella. Three miles later, as I exited the bus at MacArthur and waited on my connecting bus...
The sun was out.
What. The. Fuck.
So here I am at work, damp, disgruntled, the heater blasting, coffee half cold.
Please tell me today gets better?
Oh and there's an appraiser at my house in 10 minutes. Sigh.
Ethel, get that Ark Ready!
I woke several times last night as gusts of winds battered the cottage. News alerts this am tell me of gusts up to 77 mph have pushed through the bay until just about 20 minutes ago.
The rain seems to have gone through and we'll get a dry out now for a few hours, but the rivers, especially in Napa and Marin counties are still rising and have already broken all known records for flooding. Flood stage along the Napa river is typically 15-25 feet. We're now seeing 25-45 feet, well over the banks. And even if the rain ends, the run off will continue to swell the rivers making that situation worse. :( Mudslides and such are not quite the same problem here that they are in Southern California, but they do happen.
I am fortunate. I am not in the high Berkeley Hills north of campus, but I'm not in the flats near the marina either. I'm on relatively high ground. My house sits up 3 feet from street level and as you saw in the photos I posted the weekend before Christmas, my street tilts downhill and even when the drains aren't draining the water is swept by mostly by gravity. There is no flat spot near me for water to gather if the rain stops. While it is not impossible, I think the weather will have to be more catastrophic right over my head before I have to worry about seeking higher ground for me and the animals.
While Marin, Napa and Sonoma counties are gorgeous spots to live, a winter like this is a good reminder to me why I wouldn't live there.
Just to keep things interesting, levees are weakening, one breaking in Novato and we're having unusual high tide. So ringing in the new year is going to be very interesting.
The rain seems to have gone through and we'll get a dry out now for a few hours, but the rivers, especially in Napa and Marin counties are still rising and have already broken all known records for flooding. Flood stage along the Napa river is typically 15-25 feet. We're now seeing 25-45 feet, well over the banks. And even if the rain ends, the run off will continue to swell the rivers making that situation worse. :( Mudslides and such are not quite the same problem here that they are in Southern California, but they do happen.
I am fortunate. I am not in the high Berkeley Hills north of campus, but I'm not in the flats near the marina either. I'm on relatively high ground. My house sits up 3 feet from street level and as you saw in the photos I posted the weekend before Christmas, my street tilts downhill and even when the drains aren't draining the water is swept by mostly by gravity. There is no flat spot near me for water to gather if the rain stops. While it is not impossible, I think the weather will have to be more catastrophic right over my head before I have to worry about seeking higher ground for me and the animals.
While Marin, Napa and Sonoma counties are gorgeous spots to live, a winter like this is a good reminder to me why I wouldn't live there.
Just to keep things interesting, levees are weakening, one breaking in Novato and we're having unusual high tide. So ringing in the new year is going to be very interesting.
Flood Advisories
Lovely. And, if you could see the rivers running down my street right now, you'd sip your coffee, nod your head and mutter "damn, for once those weather people got it right!
And I *still* have to get out in this soup today. I have two errands I can no longer put off: Berkeley Bowl and Target. Out of the two, I think Target is easier even though it is farther away. Berkeley Bowl is six blocks from here, and it means a long walk in the rain lugging groceries home. (Whine, whine, whine).
Still, once they're done, I can hide in my little cottage by the bay, cook, wrap gifts to ship tomorrow, and hide from the weather. I just hope that I don't freeze to death before then!
And I *still* have to get out in this soup today. I have two errands I can no longer put off: Berkeley Bowl and Target. Out of the two, I think Target is easier even though it is farther away. Berkeley Bowl is six blocks from here, and it means a long walk in the rain lugging groceries home. (Whine, whine, whine).
Still, once they're done, I can hide in my little cottage by the bay, cook, wrap gifts to ship tomorrow, and hide from the weather. I just hope that I don't freeze to death before then!
Entry tags:
The Big Chill
The high pressure ridge remains over the West and so our wonderfully summer-like weather in November continues.
It's great, but...
Our fire danger here in the Oakland/Berkeley hills is high. Ventura county, down in Southern California, is experiencing the same thing with the Santa Ana winds. I call them that here too, but of course we lack the Santa Ana range and here they are simply called an off-shore flow.
Wind and sun. There is no fog, no moisture in the air to speak of. The nights are crisp and cool but they are not damp. Damp is what gives us our winter green after the long burnt umber of summer. Our rainy season is what washes all this pollen out of the air so my sinuses will behave. Rain is what gives us the snow pack in the Sierra, which is what supplies our water in the dryer months. No rain = no snow = drought.
So, while I have to admit I am enjoying the mild mornings, warm days, and cool nights...I worry just a bit.
I sat last night, spinning through 120 channels of nothing-much-to-watch when I came upon a program on the History Channel called Little Ice Age|Big Chill. Did anyone else happen to see this? Now, I profess to have a bit more than a passing knowledge in history--and not just American history. If it weren't for music, I might have pursued a degree in world history. It has always been one of my most favorite subjects. I learned of the little ice age and its impact on the middle ages. What I did not realize and I swear I was not taught this, is that the little ice age lasted 500 years. Yup, it ended in 1850. So it was a contributing factor still to such events as the French Revolution, Washington crossing the Delaware, and The Irish Potato Famine. I honestly had no idea it lasted that long. It has been a while since I sat absorbed in the boob tube for something other than a movie I wanted to watch. A refreshing night of decent TV, for a change.
As for...the rest. Well, my birthday week ended with a whimper, but really, perhaps that's how it should be and perhaps a week of birthday is just a bit more hubris then I should have allotted myself. These situations have a way of balancing themselves out I suppose. I'm better, the Enigma is better, and with a cloak of sadness and regret we all move through our regular day to day existence because it is what we do, what is required of us, and because in the end, death is always hardest on those who survive. Afterall, we are the ones who must keep on living.
It's great, but...
Our fire danger here in the Oakland/Berkeley hills is high. Ventura county, down in Southern California, is experiencing the same thing with the Santa Ana winds. I call them that here too, but of course we lack the Santa Ana range and here they are simply called an off-shore flow.
Wind and sun. There is no fog, no moisture in the air to speak of. The nights are crisp and cool but they are not damp. Damp is what gives us our winter green after the long burnt umber of summer. Our rainy season is what washes all this pollen out of the air so my sinuses will behave. Rain is what gives us the snow pack in the Sierra, which is what supplies our water in the dryer months. No rain = no snow = drought.
So, while I have to admit I am enjoying the mild mornings, warm days, and cool nights...I worry just a bit.
I sat last night, spinning through 120 channels of nothing-much-to-watch when I came upon a program on the History Channel called Little Ice Age|Big Chill. Did anyone else happen to see this? Now, I profess to have a bit more than a passing knowledge in history--and not just American history. If it weren't for music, I might have pursued a degree in world history. It has always been one of my most favorite subjects. I learned of the little ice age and its impact on the middle ages. What I did not realize and I swear I was not taught this, is that the little ice age lasted 500 years. Yup, it ended in 1850. So it was a contributing factor still to such events as the French Revolution, Washington crossing the Delaware, and The Irish Potato Famine. I honestly had no idea it lasted that long. It has been a while since I sat absorbed in the boob tube for something other than a movie I wanted to watch. A refreshing night of decent TV, for a change.
As for...the rest. Well, my birthday week ended with a whimper, but really, perhaps that's how it should be and perhaps a week of birthday is just a bit more hubris then I should have allotted myself. These situations have a way of balancing themselves out I suppose. I'm better, the Enigma is better, and with a cloak of sadness and regret we all move through our regular day to day existence because it is what we do, what is required of us, and because in the end, death is always hardest on those who survive. Afterall, we are the ones who must keep on living.
Entry tags:
Whither the Weather
It is cold as fuck out this morning.
How cold is that you ask? FUCKING cold that is!
Smart ass.
This will teach me to chat about morning temperatures with![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
amok_about_sex now won't it! Sheesh.
Last night the rains came. It started just as I got home at 5pm and rained long and hard, finally tapering off about 1am when I lay down to go to sleep.
It was lovely last night, sitting curled up on the chaise lounge in my living room with the animals sprawled here and there. Of course I had to launch the dork dog out the door with a catapult now and again. She hates going out in the rain.
The trick to living in an old and drafty cottage is to only heat where necessary so you don't waste electricity or gas. I have an electric oil portable heater with a digital thermostat. It sits in my living room near the space where I spend most of my evening time. It goes on when I sit down to read, write, or watch TV. It goes off when I go to bed. It keeps the living room at 71 degrees, at least in my seating area. The windows are always 20 degrees colder and once the heater is off the temperature of the room drops pretty rapidly.
I have a pile of down comforter on my bed. I love sleeping in a cool room. I even have one window that is always cracked, even in winter, even when raining so that I can get fresh air. Between the comforters and 3 furry bodies that can generate enough heat to make the devil sweat, I sleep very well.
Last night, just before bed, I threw the dog out one more time. The thermometer read 56 degrees. When I woke this morning to throw the dog out again, I opened the door to a startling WOOSH of arctic air! The thermometer read 41. How did we loose 15 degrees over night!?!
Standing there in a blustery morning fit for Winnie-the-Pooh, I know the wind chill was in the 30s. My nose may fall off. My feet are pressed so hard against my desk heater they may push through to the other side!
In spite of the brisk and gusty winds, the clouds seemed to come apart in tatters and blue sky was in evidence all around me. This cheered me a great deal as I stood dealing with my first wintry morning and a late bus. A half hour later, as I stood waiting for the connecting bus, it POURED on me for 5 minutes then stopped, like someone had turned on a faucet, or flushed a toilet. Fortunately I had brought my umbrella with me, but still.
Winter, my dear, has arrived. No question about it.
How cold is that you ask? FUCKING cold that is!
Smart ass.
This will teach me to chat about morning temperatures with
amok_about_sex now won't it! Sheesh.Last night the rains came. It started just as I got home at 5pm and rained long and hard, finally tapering off about 1am when I lay down to go to sleep.
It was lovely last night, sitting curled up on the chaise lounge in my living room with the animals sprawled here and there. Of course I had to launch the dork dog out the door with a catapult now and again. She hates going out in the rain.
The trick to living in an old and drafty cottage is to only heat where necessary so you don't waste electricity or gas. I have an electric oil portable heater with a digital thermostat. It sits in my living room near the space where I spend most of my evening time. It goes on when I sit down to read, write, or watch TV. It goes off when I go to bed. It keeps the living room at 71 degrees, at least in my seating area. The windows are always 20 degrees colder and once the heater is off the temperature of the room drops pretty rapidly.
I have a pile of down comforter on my bed. I love sleeping in a cool room. I even have one window that is always cracked, even in winter, even when raining so that I can get fresh air. Between the comforters and 3 furry bodies that can generate enough heat to make the devil sweat, I sleep very well.
Last night, just before bed, I threw the dog out one more time. The thermometer read 56 degrees. When I woke this morning to throw the dog out again, I opened the door to a startling WOOSH of arctic air! The thermometer read 41. How did we loose 15 degrees over night!?!
Standing there in a blustery morning fit for Winnie-the-Pooh, I know the wind chill was in the 30s. My nose may fall off. My feet are pressed so hard against my desk heater they may push through to the other side!
In spite of the brisk and gusty winds, the clouds seemed to come apart in tatters and blue sky was in evidence all around me. This cheered me a great deal as I stood dealing with my first wintry morning and a late bus. A half hour later, as I stood waiting for the connecting bus, it POURED on me for 5 minutes then stopped, like someone had turned on a faucet, or flushed a toilet. Fortunately I had brought my umbrella with me, but still.
Winter, my dear, has arrived. No question about it.