Tornado warnings in Raleigh. 45 Days Away from Tropical Weather Outlooks from NHC 2022 Hurricane Season! Are You ready?

 

Another day.

Another set of watches and warnings.

Earlier we had a Tornado Warning.

Possible rotation was up the road from my house.

Now we are demoted to a Watch.

To the West of me.... 

...radar showed possible debris.

Will see later.

Heavy rain though.

Yellow puddles from the rain...

Pollen Rain ;)

Pine Pollen is popping tree by tree.

As for me it's annoying DURING a Tornado Warning when local channels go on the air giving information on a possible tornado that has been sighted and rather than give fast information where it is they start showing canned video of the difference between a "watch" and a "warning" because if it's seriously a danger.... give the info, tell people to take it seriously and explain the definitions later.

It's become a hot topic among mets as to whether people understand the difference between a Tornado Watch (means watch out a tornado might form in your area) and a Tornado Warning (duh...warning warning get to your safe room) and I've discussed this at lectures and asked people if they know the difference and to be fair they all knew the difference. Often they ignore a Watch as it's across a wide area and they live in denial, but when someone says "tornado WARNING" they get scared and take it seroiusly. Never has anyone old or young ever told me they didn't understand the difference. Obviously if English isn't their first language there may be a problem, but when all the devices go off in your house with a whirling, buzzing sound with the warning a tornado is in your area... they kind of get the idea. Honestly, the phones went off so loud I thought Russia was attacking................

The Tweet above by the amazing Brad Panovich in nearby Charlotte is the best illustration I've seen for anyone who doesn't understand the difference. Ingredients are there in the atmosphere that is ripe for development and a Warning means a Tornado has formed or a Snowstorm will be seen in your town. It's clear cut and I've shared it often during the Hurricane Season. All my life growing up in Miami we understood a "Watch" meant we could be in the path of the Hurricane, a Hurricane Warnings means we should see hurricane force winds in our area. 

Most people I have spoken to on this who didn't leave Miami for Andrew or didn't leave New Orleans for Katrina all said they just didn't believe it would really hit. In Miami, of late, hurricanes have cruised by just offshore turning sharply before making landfall. From Matthew to Dorian they all turned and curved away and this sense of false security sets in the way it did after Hurricane David turned away in 1979 and a little over a decade later when Andrew made a beeline for Miami and the National Hurricane Center insisted it would make landfall... many people I knew couldn't believe it would because "they all turn away" but it didn't turn away.

This is a common problem in areas that don't take direct landfalls from Major Hurricanes, yet get sideswiped often by hurricanes turning away or weaker storms that don't blow their house down. They pick up a few limbs, try to put the Ficus Tree upright or complain the screening around the pool got blown away. They just can't believe a Major Hurricane is about to make landfall, no matter what warnings the NHC put out. And, sadly the remedy for that denial is being hunkered down in the bathroom while the house around you sounds like it is exploding as it did to many people I know who lived through Hurricane Andrew. Trust me the moment there is a Hurricane Warning they book the first flight out of town they can no matter the cost or jump in the car and drive North as fast as they can. 

Now may be a good time to mention there are 45 days until we begin the daily Tropical Weather Outlook from the NHC showing us if there is any yellow circle somewhere in the tropics or that there is nothing expected to develop in the next 5 days.

So my question to you is ............... are you ready? Are you prepared for the 2022 Hurricane Season? Do you know whether you need to evacuate if one is headed your way? Do you know where the shelters are in your area? Did you know you have to often sign up for the shelter in advance?  Now is the time to start thinking on what you will do if a hurricane is headed your way. 

And somewhere, someone will be in the path of a potential deadly landfall and knowledge is power. 

Watch for a warning. A Hurricane Watch means a hurricane may be coming your way, a Hurricane Warning means the NHC feels you WILL have Hurricane force winds! If you don't believe me ask Google.

Link for the day:

https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/help/tcp.shtml

Check it out and read up on what you need to know because before you know it ... it will be Hurricane Season and we may even have a named storm in May.

Besos BobbiStorm

@bobbistorm on Twitter and Instagram

Ps a cute song I used to love and still do. Sometimes those things and people you love you love in some way forever. And, now that I live in NC during Pollen Season I stare at the yellow colored puddles and think of this song.  Yellow is such a pretty color.... kaledidoscope like in puddles on a gray background. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyLvA90KdTE link to video below.

Life in the Fast Lane. Spring 2022 Mean & Wild. Twister Chase Season ON ... yet Heavy Snow Causes Deadly Pile Up in PA

 

I took this picture on Monday morning while stuck in traffic in Downtown Miami when I realized that's the pool deck where my kids live where I love taking pictures of the new Miami Skyline! I watched the sunset there the other day while wathcing them set up for the Ultra Music Festival this past weekend in the nearby Bayfront Park. 

Yes, Miami has changed and it seems at times the whole city is one large construction site. Though to be fair in Raleigh it seems the whole city is being rebuilt in real time as well. Corona may have destroyed Malls, department stores and many boutiques that were not able to make it. Restaurants closed down unable to find people to work as servers, yet whole blocks of older homes have been bought, torn down and become construction projects as newer homes go up and tall Condos reach up towards the sky with cityscape views both in Miami in Brickell and Midtown there or in the fast growing Midtown area in Raleigh. The one constant has been construction dust blowing in the wind.

Speaking of living in real time. I went with my husband and my kids to Costco to buy some Matzah and see what Passover products they had on Sunday and noticed everyone was buying water and toilet paper. Visions of March 2020 danced in my head.  And, when I say that I mean I saw 4 carts in a row coming out with only water and toilet paper. I was pretty sure there was no hurricane on the horizon, but as a life long Miamian when I see that much water being bought my mind goes there. Some online friends suggested it was out of a concern of WW3 going down. But, I spoke to several people as well as my kids who actually go to Costco to buy water and no it's just life in Miami. Note the water often tastes from chlorine so it's not just a bouchie thing not to buy bottled water. My daughter-in-law said it is cheaper to buy the 48 size water than to buy 24 bottles in Publix. But in the middle of my brief few moments of checking my Twitter feed, Twitter felt the need to tell me the Stars "hit the red carpet" which is ironic in retrospect as the red carpet was nowhere near as watched and rewatched as the nonstop replays of the uncensored slapping, hitting the face of Chris Rock by Will Smith later in the evening.

It's one of the first Oscars I have not watched and yes have even been out there years back Oscsar Weekend so generally unless it's Passover I usually watch. Note living in LA Oscar week is worst than living in Miami near the Ultra Music Festival.  That said apparently Rock and Smith have had a long running, off and on feud like the one between Kanye and Jay Z --- so was this really a surprise? Kind of messy and everyone has an opinion but it's not the Oscars of the glam days of the 1930s nor was it as shocking as the streaker in 1974. There was talk then that the streaker was planned but who knows what was planned last night; the joke was not in the rehearsals and by the way they rehearse endlessly (I know that) so perhaps he adlibbed or just added something in the last few minutes. A lot of that adlibbing at the end going around it seems.

Who did it better?

Coming during the word "divulge" seems planned..

Hey .... That's Entertainment!

I was at a Dinner Party at my daughter's Sunday night she made for me and then I got busy with other stuff and didn't watch the Oscars. My kids have big screen TVs they use to show their toddlers videos on or they use for gaming or watching NetFlix so just ignored it until my family WhatsApp Group that is pretty quiet exploded with videos of the big event and discussion on whether it was planned or a too spontaneous reaction of Will Smith to a bad joke made concerning his wife's medical condition. Who knows... but it did sort of sully the rest of the awards. Years from now will anyone remember the Best Picture award or Best Producer or just the moment when everyone in America remembered the Oscars were on TV? In 1974 the Best Picture was The Sting and indeed the streaker may have been a funny sting for the viewers!

Lastly on a weather note there has been a lot of talk about how cold it is this March and records have been set for the high LOW Temperature in NY and other places, one record that held it's place in  history since 1892 felt to 2022, go figure. Heavy Spring snow, which by the way is really heavy, froze an Interstate in Pennsylvannia when 60 cars piled up or rather slammed into each other and killed 3 people sadly.  So of course my first thought after "damn that's sad" was to google the 1892 Hurricane Season and check it out to see if it could be an analog year for this year or not. Yes, I'm getting closer to that April period when everything reminds me of the ongoing hurricane season

.

To be honest this looks similar to a few pre-season maps that some of my hurricane specialist friends have made for possible landfalls. Many say it's a Florida season, but does that mean landfalls up in the Florida Big Bend catching fronts or hurricanes taking aim at Florida and recurving offshore as the local Floridians expect every hurricane to do until one like Andrew comes along.

Time will tell and pretty soon I'll be back in Raleigh writing about the 2022 Hurricane Season. My tip for now is if you have a Costco card, go buy some water! 

From a hotel bed in Jax where we spent the night ...on my way back to Raleigh.

Besos BobbiStorm

@bobbistorm on Twitter and Instagram

Ps When I was a kid and studied dance I had a crush on Gene Kelly. Every kid dancer loves either Fred Astaire or Gene Kelly the best, well until others came along. So I'll just add...Oscars is really all about entertainment!

Spring Brings Beautiful Blooms Busting Out All Over...............Also Brings Dangerous Spring Severe Weather Storms with Rain & Twisters!

 

This is not an art project by your grandchild after you gave them a pack of crayons and a map and told them to color the squares in. I taught kindergarten once upon the time and I'd do that on rainy days, the kids would make crazy patterns across state lines.  Every kind of weather danger on the map other than a hurricane!

Cells exploding.

Spring is busing out all over.

The beauty of trees in bloom is stunning.

But the ugly side is severe weather warnings ....

...busting out all over!

It's serious trouble and the trouble has begun. The trouble will be moving East tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. Spring is here and Spring Severe Weather season is also here and looking to be a potent for this month, next month and possibly the month after.

What this image above shows is that we are still dealing with fronts moving across the United States with the threat of late season winter weather to the North and wild, wicked storms that could include tornadoes.  This will continue until Tropical Weather appears and around the same time the fronts subside the tropical waves drift WNW until the reach up looking for a late season cold front to ride across Florida. Those years provide the Florida Panhandle with a target for early May trouble!

I'm still in Raleigh as my mother-in-law fell and broke her other hip and needed surgery again so we drove up to Baltimore to check on her. We celebrated Purim in Baltimore where I have several good friends and we had a good time. Zinnia, my mother-in-law, is hopefully healing but she's not a Spring Chicken anymore. She's actually been a Vegetarian her whole life. Packing for Florida where my daughter had a baby boy on Purim and where other family and friends live so I can touch base, give hugs and breathe in deeply the balmy air while staring at palm trees sway in the tropical breeze and watch tourists on rented boats going up and down the river. The locals do have boats but they rarely go up and down the Miami River ;)

The WAR rages on in Ukraine and it's difficult to watch and worrisome to wonder where it goes. In times such as these I give thanks and try to enjoy the day and live in the moment!

Purim is a fun, dress up holiday!

This year it hit on St. Patricks Day!

I really adore Batsheva, seen above, waring a green hat and a huge smile celebrating our Jewish holiday of Purim. I inherited her from my daughter who was friends with her in Atlanta and after moving to Miami she and I became buddies. I wore a green skirt, green leggings, green bracelets and a crown that's kind of slipping because she gives the best hugs.  As much as I wanted to be in Miami for Purim, being in Baltimore had it's benefits. I also saw a friend who used to go by Happy Harry for lunch at the new sushi joint. Gotta find the joy where you can find the joy. 

Find the joy! 

Even if you have to search for it and keep smiling!

Besos BobbiStorm

@bobbistorm on Twitter and Instagram

Ps.... The map above reminded me of the bus in this music video and it's a fun, happy song by a good friend of the family... him, his father, his Aunt, his ... oh my gosh can't even begin to count how many ways I know Benny Friedman... my oldest son produced his first albumns... proud of him!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aii3fDdZnrM  link if anyone's computer doesn't load this music video. 

Meir, who produced this video, also is responsible for the Super Bowl parties for homeless or any in need. You can read about them here. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANcjb4uPH0w

If you aren't into praying, do a good deed and try to help someone... in times such as these it's good to do good deeds and smile and find the joy!

Rainy Days in Florida with Storms ... Spring Equinox Coming Down the Road....Then... Hurricane Season Approaches. Start Putting Together a Go Bag NOW with Inflation at a Record High... Prices Going UP. Dollar Store Now $1.25 Store!

 

Frontal energy still holding strong.

Won't be long before Hurricane Season.

But today we are still in Winter.

Spring Equinox coming soon.

Yesterday I watched an array of warnings go up for the Florida that got hit with tornadoes, severe weather and rain. Generally October through March is the Dry Season with the months of January and Februrary seeing blue skies and breezy beautiful days. A random cold front makes it down the state but otherwise it's the best time of year for people who love sunshine without high humidity to fly down to Florida.  

My son got married years back in Miami in February. He used a friend's beautiful waterfront home and expected an incredible tropical view for the diners of the dinner, dancing and of course the ceremony. Days of rain showed up in February, he called me up and said "it's NOT supposed to RAIN in February" and I said "well weather happens, sorry" so he erected a large tent...which was good because even though it didn't rain the winds were crazy strong with small craft warnings up.  You just never know in Miami, it's not LA where we planned whole events without even a back up location because it really, rarely rains there certain times of year. 

This time of year I watch patterns as we move towards the Hurricane Season to see what may or may not develop in the Pre-Season, those early May storms that sneak in under the wire.  It's too soon for me to go into this now, but come April I will. 

I asked Brian McNoldy a question and he was nice enough to respond. He's an expert in weather and especially South Florida weather as I watch as he records data and observations always on Twitter. Wetter this year, but not as much as last year it seems. When you get rain in Florida in the Winter it usually means you get to wear Winter Clothes more as usually it means cold fronts sweep through then end up stationary or move back up at some point. Rain can hover annoying the Bureau of Tourism but often locals enjoy some touch of winter vs "where did the Winter go" and rain is good, unless you have too much of a good thing.

I'll start speaking about the Hurricane Season soon. For now, my plans changed and we are going to Baltimore for Purim vs Miami, to be followed by a trip to Miami for a new arrival in the family. My mother-in-law fell and broke her "other hip" as she fell last month and was just recovering. I have family and friends in Baltimore so Purim will be there not down in the tropics. Different wardrobe to pack, but also not sure when I'll go to Miami and from where so packing is really complicated. In truth I keep a stash of summer clothes there when it's Winter in North Carolina and luckily I fit into my daughter's clothes so I can borrow from her if I need.  

Oh my gosh. You plan and you plan and then plans get delayed and rearranged. While packing and unpacking as I really don't need so much it hit me on those refugees trying to pack their important remnants of a life into one suitcase or a bag. I watched on the news a lady in transit who had just crossed the border saying how her husband had just remodeled their home after the addition and everything was so beautiful, but they had to grab what they could and run for the border making that expression of "whatever, when you gotta go you gotta go" and she tried to smile as if to say "life goes on" and it does for them but I'm sure they will never be the same in some ways.

We pray in our own ways from routines to "thinking good thoughts" and we try to send good energy (if we are not overly depressed and fatalistic) for a solution to end the war or as Putin says "military operation" and in truth a military operation is a form of warfare. You can play with words all you want but when bombs blow up and missles rain down from the sky slamming into any target they hit be it a barn or a hospital or an apartment building...well life is hell for anyone in the war zone.

I'm praying. You do your thing and I'll do mine as the old saying goes.

Will update from the road. Again I'll say this and I'll say it again and again. Hurricane Season is coming and if you live in Hurricane Country (Texas coast to Maine and lots of places in between far inland) please start putting away hurricane supplies now. Inflation is on the rise big time. The Dollar Store is now $1.25!!! If that doesn't get your attention nothing will. If you see things on sale, buy them and put them away because Lord only knows how the dollar will be in three months and if you in a place where you will need to evacuate you will need money for gas to get out of a low lying area somewhere in Texas, Louisiana or Florida and by then the Dollar Store may be the 2 Dollar Store!

Hurricane Preparation is what you need to think on now in the "slow times" and say a little prayer for the War to end and for peace.

Besos BobbiStorm

@bobbistorm on Twitter and Instagram.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8Tiz6INF7I

Winter Fights Back .... Last Sunday 80 Degrees in Raleigh ...Today it's Feels like 18 degrees! Hurricane Season on the Horizon Begin Storing Food Now as Inflation Will Only Make it More Expensive in May. Ukraine Rescues and Frigid Weather

 

As we see from www.spaghettimodels.com Winter is still alive and well after playing possum for a few weeks.  A very cold blast or wintry air blew through Raleigh yesterday including delivering snowflakes and a bit of sleet. Snow nor sleet were nowhere in the forecast, though they said we might get tornadoes (didn't) and severe weather.  In Fairfax Virginia where my son and grandson spent the Jewish Sabbath there was a ton of snow and my daughter in Monsey was less than thrilled with the time it took to scrape off the windshield after hiking through snow. From Maine to Tennessee to the Carolina - Virginia border snow fell like winter was back in style.  

This morning our wind chill was 18 degrees in Raleigh. I wouldn't know what it actually feels like as I'm typing this from in the bed under the covers sipping a Nespresso. It will warm up fast later this week here, but I'm heading South  anyway where it is way too warm for my liking as I have a family event and I'll be celebrating Purim  the a celebratory Jewish Holiday commemorating a miracle in Persia years ago in Miami. Meanwhile I am praying hard for a miracle in Ukraine, it's my time I can spend it however I wish and that's what I'm wishing for...

Amazingly this year Purim falls out on St. Patrick's Day as it does every once in a while. I'm going to a party at a Brewery and as Purim is a dress up holiday I'm either going to be a Flapper or a Gypsy or maybe an Irish Gypsy. My best friend and I are discussing the possibilities! 

https://www.kveller.com/im-jewish-and-irish-how-i-celebrate-both-purim-st-patricks-day/

I don't like to talk in March about the Hurricane Season, there's a lot of good reasons and I don't like to add to the confusion on how strong an El Nino might develop or if it will just be a Neutral Season. You can Google that,

but I figure if you are reading this blog you know what I am talking about. It's just too soon to tell and the signals sometimes get mixed, like when it's 80 degrees last Sunday in Raleigh and there was a huge pool of warm water off the Carolina coast and this morning I'm under the covers debating if I want to get out of bed to make another Nespresso.  Oh and that warm pool of water off the coast last weekend dropped in temperature quite a bit since last Sunday's Fake Summer like weather.

Spring in Raleigh is always bipolar, honest and you know not to put away the winter clothes even though you took out sandals and your Spring/Summer favorites!

Worth noting it's unusually cold in Ukraine this week and people are going without heat for over a week so enjoy the heat if you have it or the AC and give to whatever organization you know is honest and will be able to deliver the right goods to those in need. Many good faith based groups are on the ground and large organizations such as the Red Cross are best at times such as these able to quickly get the aid where it is needed. And, people will need for a long time as try to restart their lives so give what you can or just keep good thoughts or prayers. It's nice to decorate the yard in yellow and blue but it's not going to provide help for those huddled with the clothes on their back as they make it across the border to safety. Solidarity is nice, but money talks and even a little money given by many people can mean a lot.

One of the best organizations on the ground now is United Hatzalah providing aid at the border of Ukraine they are currently there and set up, working round the clock both in the rescue process and helping refugees with goods as well as training people in make shift shelters there on how to handle first aid situations. When my daughter began working for them in Miami her job was to put on fundraising programs, introductions or whatever was needed to fundraise be it house parties or large fundraiting Galas. United Hatzalah goes to emergencies in Israel (and around the world) and helps anyone in need with their goal of getting to the scene of an emergency within 2 minutes. If you can get to an accident or stroke victim within 2 minutes you extend their chances of life before fire rescue gets there and this is extremely important in remote areas. In densely populated cities in Israel there are often Hatzalah workers in each apartment building that jump into action immediately to give medical help before the government EMTs have to weave through traffic. They  are a trained network of men and women including Jews, Christians and Arabs working together to save lives and now they are on the ground helping refugees from Ukraine providing services on the ground. My daughter feels good she's able to help in some way even from Miami and I'm proud she can make a difference.  www.israelrescue.org The videos this week I've seen are truly inpirational.

If you're still reading, thanks...another amazing short story that did me in last night is linked to below. In a world of chaos the thoughtfulness and caring that can take place in that void of chaos...is truly beautiful and inspiring. How much easier is it for us to help another here either by deed, action or charity or even just giving a lending hand with a smile!

https://collive.com/one-small-suitcase-and-the-care-of-ukraine-shluchim/

Keep smiling, keep praying and keep enjoying the day to day life and whatever weather you got!!

Much love, 

Besos BobbiStorm

@bobbistorm on Twitter and Instagram

Ps... Remember you're never really dressed without a smile!

Give it a few minutes, apparently Harry needs to warm up.......

Serious Winter Storm in Parts of the Country Bringing Spring Dangerous Weather ... Wind, TStorms and Snow. War in Ukraine .. All About Weather, Geology, Geography!

  

I'm just going to write and fill in the images later. Blogger is wierd this morning. Is it the wind? Perhaps it was hacked for political reasons ... gee I feel like that would be low fruit and silly but who knows what goes on in today's world. 

I woke up at 4 AM to odd noises that were vaguely familiar and after feeling a bit disoriented (was it a dream? was it Parkay? Butter? Margarine?) I finally realized it was indeed the wind. The windows were open and it was howling for a little while. About half an hour later I realized I was definitely not getting to sleep.

So, there's weather to talk about today and it's all sorts of weather. A strong late season cold front is mixing it up with very warm, humid air rushing up from the South as it dives down clashing with said warm, moist air and that's why there were deadly toradoes in Iowa yesterday. Too warm weather mixing with extremely cold, windy weather is never a recipe for Rice Pudding or Flan.

In Miami yesterday my daughter called to tell me the wind was so crazy that as she was driving with friends on Collins Avenue the girl in front of her was on a motor bike and the wind picked up the girl, the bike and tossed it to the ground. They pulled over, helped her up to make sure she was okay and obviusly my daughter was blown away. Yes, she's seen hurricanes but a random wind warning in March seemed crazy to her.  After waking up this morning to the wind here in Raleigh, I get where she's coming from or in this case where the wind is coming from.........

Check your local weather and be aware of what the weather has in store for you today. Mother Nature seems like everything else this year so far and it worries me a bit what the hurricane season will be like for several reasons I'll go into as we get close to May and the start of the Hurricane Season.

Yes, I've been quiet as weather wise there hasn't been much to talk about that interests my tropical weather friends. I'm obsessively watching news on the War in Ukraine. I've said this on the blog many times, but it's true and even more so today as one of my degrees is in International Relations with emphasis in Russian Studies. I was happy to study meteorology, geology and oceanography as I love Earth Science, but I'm really a geography nut and my degree was heavy in Geograhy, Demography and History of Politics and Warfare. 

It's called Geopolitics and if you Google that Wikipedia will tell you that it's about the study of how geography impacts politics as you can see below. For instance, America is lucky as it has two oceans on either side that both separate it from other lands while allowing our shipping (imports/exports) to help make us a strong nation. The warm moist air that rushes into the Mississippi River Valley feeds our crops giving us a huge "breadbasket' that is way bigger than Ukraine has and as you have heard it is the breadbasket of Europe and Russia. The wealth of minerals embeded in the earth such as oil, gas and the ever popular rare earth elements can make or break a nation and at times give a neighboring country an excuse to invade to attain that resource. Since time began Geopolitics was what drove nations to invade another nation (need for a warm water port) or simply good, fertile growing fields.  It's all about weather, geography and a little geology thrown in there for good measure. If England did not have the warm water of the Gulf Stream it would be a cold, frozen island in the North Atlantic. True. If you never understood this, war in the Ukraine and Russia's invasion should drive that point home. It's true.......Russia says Ukraine was always part of Russia and it was that is true for a good period of time, but it's a land many tribes and nations tried to conquer in search of more arable to live, plant crops and to reep the benefits; easier to grow crops in Ukraine than in the desert, mountains and most of Russia is not that hospitable weather wise and it's all about weather as always!!

"Geopolitics (from Greek γῆ gê "earth, land" and πολιτική politikḗ "politics") is the study of the effects of Earth's geography (human and physical) on politics and international relations."

Besos BobbiStorm

@bobbistorm on Twitter and Instagram

Twitter mostly weather and Instagram whatever.

I'll add in the images later if and when Blogger is feeling better!