Tropics and Thunderstorms Over Miami In July.... Chasing Storms with my Best Friend

There's a decaying frontal boundary draped across the SE.

Convection flares up in the Gulf of Mexico.

Across Florida always but agitated more so by the nearness of the old front.

Off the SE coast there's convection.

A beautiful wave traveling Westbound low towards the Islands.

This is really seen best at night on this satellite image.

During the day there's much to look at.

At night only the strong stuff remains.

Anchored in place.

Check out the BOC.... 

Close in to Florida.

And oh those African Waves.....
...not expected to develop.
Much conversation online on that.

Well, that sure does look interesting. A product of the strong CCKW perhaps? @MJVentrice @webberweather pic.twitter.com/57jrp8nqUN

— Mark Sudduth (@hurricanetrack) July 26, 2019

This is July in the tropics.

Late July as that wave is very much alive.

But nothing is expected to form for the next five days.

We can check back later and see how that verified.

I had an awesome day yesterday.

Spending time with close friends and family.

Oh and chasing severe thunderstorms.

My best friend and I often chased storms.

Miami has crazy monsoon storms.

That take up the whole sky .... 

...roll across the sky to where it was once sky blue.

This image is facing East out doors the ocean.

Behind those palm trees is Haulover Beach.

Note how dark the squall line was moving East.

Bal Harbor.

Little white apartments dwarfed under the picturesque palms.

A few blocks further down and a few minutes later.

Darkness rolls in.

I lived on Miami Beach for many years, in ways I grew up there and started my adult life there before moving for a decade or so to California and then coming back to Miami Beach again. My best friend Sharon and I chased many storms, spent hours at the ocean before various hurricanes taking pictures and recording the weather details while capturing photographs that would stay alive in our mind forever. Small storms that no one remembers as well as watching Andrew hours before dark, before we hunkered down for it's assault. It's always awesome. Often a huge thunderstorm complex actually has more weather than a long forgotten tropical storm that's name remains on the list to get it's chance at infamy down the road.

Collins Avenue near Bal Harbor has wonderful places and hidden hideaways to catch the storm's arrival and that's what we did after an incredible lunch at a nearby Israeli restaurant. We managed to get to Haulover on the Bay side in time to watch it roll in, feel the wind, watch the palms dance and then the rain began. Oh, there were a lot of deadly lightning strikes with this storm... craziest lighting I've seen since I've been here. Beautiful Then we went back to the high bridge to get a better view as it rolled East and South over the ocean and Miami Beach. https://www.subresgrill.com/

It was so dark the street lights all came on.

You really can't beat chasing storms with your best friend.

Note Phil Ferro's post on the amount of lightning.

Noisy afternoon across Broward and Miami-Dade with over 11 hundred lightning strikes over a 30 minute span. pic.twitter.com/7q7dYtlq8q

— Phil Ferro (@PhilFerro7) July 25, 2019

I'll be back soon. 

Not much more to say.

Enjoy your day.

Besos Bobbistorm

@bobbistorm on Twitter and Instagram

Check back later today.

Maybe I'll do a surprise Ps ;)

Have a birthday breakfast to be at soon.

Oh and again sorry for any typos.

I'm late for a very important date!

Snow Seattle & Maine & Places In Between... Will the South Get a Winter Storm? Stay Tuned...

Seattle won the Snow Raffle.

A rare Christmas snow blanketed Seattle last night.

How beautiful is that?

I have a daughter-in-law who does not love snow as she lived for many years in Postville Iowa. It gets really cold there in the winter.... as it currently warmed up today to 5 degrees!  But she has a father who lives there and 2 children on vacation who are going to go see their grandfather and see what a real winter is really like again. They grew up in Iowa, however they have been living in Seattle where it is ironically quite warm considering it's at a far latitude North. Palm trees grown in Seattle and there is a nearby rain forest in the mountains; the pine trees though make it look like a warm Winter Wonderland all year round. This year.......she got snow thrown in her face before going to Postville that looks more like the Ukraine this time of year than America. My son loves snow and most types of "weather" so he's over the top to see Seattle covered in snow!

A good video of Postville in the Winter. If you want snow you can usually bet it is there in the winter, however it's a long ride to get there from any airport. Don't say I didn't warn you! And..dress warm!

That's how I dress when in Postville...

But I'm in North Carolina.

Wishing for snow.

Or some sort of winter weather...

Trying not to buy too much online today.

Had Indian food for lunch ;)

So Maine and Washington State got their snow wishes today and places in the MidWest saw snow.

Later this week the Snow Fairy takes a vacation to the South!

How far South is a question.

And who gets snow vs freezing rain?

Yet to be determined.

Stay tuned!

I hope you all got what you wanted today and if not it's probably on sale somewhere online for free shipping and 20% off so treat yourself to whatever you want the most! I know a few friends who have their new grandchildren this year so they are in 7th Heaven ;) and I know a newborn baby going home this afternoon from the hospital so I know quite a few happy people today. One of my best friends had her 2nd Great Grandchild today and no she's not that old... but she started young and so did her daughter and her daughters ;) A pic of me and Malka celebrating the engagement of my son just a few years ago. Love her. 

Family can be awesome....

.....but they can also drive you crazy sometimes.

Friendship is golden!

If you have a good friend... you're blessed.

I'll be back tomorrow with weather info.

News on the next big storm.

TWC is on all day talking about weather.

So.... you can bet I'm watching carefully.

Check back for more As the Weather World Turns.

Besos BobbiStorm

@bobbistorm on Twitter

Ps Leaving you with a song a mutual friend loved ... he used to call Malka "Blondie" so here's to friendship and love.

TS Arlene - Surprised or No Surprised Formed Today Early in April.

Note I said earlier this morning I wouldn't be surprised.

http://hurricaneharbor.blogspot.com/

I'm sort of surprised anyone is surprised.

Truth is the fuel was there (warm water)

The center was definable.

Models were iffy and disagreed.

I figured a girl's got to do what a girl's got to do...

Honestly from a meteorological point of view not surprising.

But the NHC Discussion seemed surprised.

Rather than decreasing in intensity...

(as per earlier discussion)

Arlene developed with 45 MPH winds today.

Discussion below states their surprise..

See yesterday discussion when it was still Subtropical.

The point is ...

Things happen fast in the tropics sometimes.

Remember that later on in the season.

Nice tight little storm.

Found it's sweet spot.

Nice wardrobe .. lots of convection.

Then sailing away into history.

Losing the reds tonight.

Happens.

Arlene might just be a footnote in the 2017 Season.

Folding, evolving.

Weather is awesome.

Might have an interesting PS to this named storm.

Suggestive discussion in the wind.

Long day by me. Went to see my father-in-law who is frail, but still kicking. Spent time with some family members than went to the beach with a best friend who lost his mother last month. Surf was whipped up quite nice at Dania Beach and down by Hollywood Beach. Cool air, warmish water and a steady breeze. Walked around the nature center in Dania. Sipped a Pina Colada on Hollywood Boardwalk. Talked. Trying to enjoy every minute. Life is short, politics is crazy, the news is nuts and often people are nuttier. You got to savor the moment. And I did. Sorry for the late update...

Frothy beach for Miami.

Looked more like a Myrtle Beach... beach.

Windy, rough surf. Seaweed.

But blue skies and beautiful.

I'll update in the morning.

Arlene feels like a prankster.

Stay tuned...

Besos BobbiStorm

@bobbistorm on Twitter

Easter. Passover. Seasons.

Today is Easter Sunday and Passover for many people reading this so going to talk a bit about the seasons and holidays. The weather is in general okay, however you still need to be on guard in some parts of the country for severe weather to blow up as we are headed into record warm temperatures in many areas. Nothing like the Tornado outbreak in 2000, but somewhere it might rain on your Easter Parade.

This post today is about the seasons on parade. The march of time, of humanity, of Uncle George and Great Aunt Samantha and possibly your second cousin once removed Melinda who shows up at your family dinner totally wasted talking on Wicca and you wonder "oh my gosh where are her pills??" Someone told me once they had an Aunt who thought she was a lighthouse and occasionally climbed onto the roof and stood there trying to ward off ships from the reefs. That was sweet of her, but they lived in Nebraska so.... well....yeah we have all been there. You fall asleep in Church or at the family Passover Seder. Awkward.. But life does go on even if you have to change churches or find a different family to go to next year for the seder..

Sometimes it's an experience you remember forever...



Whatever holiday you are celebrating or not ... enjoy the day, enjoy the seasons, enjoy your family or friends or quiet time. Perhaps you have dogs or cats or a fish. Maybe you have a fake fish.... whatever rocks your boat. Pray for what you want, desire, need and remember to breathe. To everyone there is a season and I sincerely pray you are enjoying yours.

Seasons:



For some people the holidays feel like this song above...........

Seasons come and go like the holidays. Each holiday is layered upon another holiday memory that adds up in our brain like some colliding collage of good times and bad times. Happy holiday meals and quiet conversation and times when that strange lady who married into the family spoils the fun or Uncle Gary wakes up at the table and starts trying to relive some wild battle from World War 2 and there are times we pray there is no World War 3 around the corner.



The seasons turn... time turns.... weather seasons turn from one to another. Winter, Spring, Summer... then comes Hurricane Season.

Old timers remember a time when people put on their Easter Bonnet and took to going to parade their clothes like it was a fashion show for Coachella now days.



Times change and yet climate doesn't really. Yes, we move from Ice Age to Warming and one thing can throw it possibly out of balance (meteor, nuclear war, invasion of the body snatchers maybe) but we roll with the punches. You raise the house up if you think the street will flood. You move inland. You build a bunker, you make love, you sip coffee and try not to put the news on....



You hide from Crazy Old Aunt Mary who wants to lecture you on life and you pretend Peter Rabbit is not hiding in the bushes with a basket of Easter Eggs that are some sort of practical joke. You lay low or you put on your Easter Bonnet and stride through the park while looking for portals while playing Ingress or looking for a Geocache somewhere in a forested dell. Or you pray like crazy in Church for the people out playing Ingress on Easter Sunday.

On Miami Beach in 1927 people gathered together to pray to have a good year, to rebuild the structure of life after the 1926 Hurricane the September before. They went on.... they prayed for a new future stronger than the past one that was blown away and they started over. As a good friend likes to say pragmatically "life goes on" and perhaps in a way Easter Sunday is part of that process. Life goes on, the trees come to life and they rededicate their lives to God, to their family and to their future. It's about looking back and looking forward.

Life goes on and on and on (well we pray it does) and there is always that chance, that dream of tomorrow being better than today. Of grabbing the brass ring or catching the girl you always loved or finding the perfect man or the perfect wave (not the first wave ever ...) and being blessed with an incredible sunrise on Easter Sunday for many is like winning the spiritual lottery.

http://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2015/04/2/world-war-ii-vet-recalls-jewish-prayer-service-in-liberated-german-city.html

In Europe after World War 2 people got together and made a Passover Seder. It's human nature to go on, pick up the pieces and move on or rebuild. To bless the new season, new growth, young love and to watch the waves breaking onto the beach as the golden sun slowly rises from it's night time Neptunian Mists hidden away while we sleep .....waiting to wake up and start again at sunrise.

Passover is about freedom....



After freedom there is a measure of freedom trust me. We go back to life as it was .... or perhaps as we wish to paint the future. How do you want to paint your future and who do you want in that future and do you want mountains or beaches or both?

Besos BobbiStorm
@bobbistorm on twitter... I'd say follow me but I'm in hiding mode right now ;)

Ps.... Dear Stephen I'm sure that Barbara is out there somewhere in an Easter Bonnet!

Cat 2 Hurricane Otto Making Thanksgiving Day Landfall. And My Thoughts On Being Thankful!!

Impressive.

In motion. Incredible

Don't mean to bring you all down but this is a Killer Hurricane.

My friend Jim Williams would point out the deaths were from flooding.

Yes, so true. Flooding caused by Otto.

Rare to see this misery there in November.

But it does happen. Martha 1969 

5 fatalities. November.

Landfall in Panama not Nicaragua tho both got weather.

Otto is a dangerous hurricane.

Usually M N and O storms are a problem for the Caribbean.

Mitch for instance. Matthew caused trouble as well.

Jamaica keeps getting lucky.

Jamaica has much to be thankful for.............

Wow, wow Otto... Look at Otto! Cat 2 and running out of room while he tries to make Cat 3. He should stay where he is now, however he was not forecast to be a Cat 2 just a minimal 75 MPH hurricane so let's see how the day plays out. As for me I'm typing this while watching the Macy's Day Parade with one of my daughter-in-laws who is online. I used to watch the parade with my baby brothers in bed making a lot of noise annoying my mother who wasn't much into parades. Actually, my mother wasn't much into Thanksgiving. My Aunt made big meals or we went out to eat somewhere. My father would take me out to a Cafeteria usually around Thanksgiving so I could enjoy a "real meal" you know with the dressing and mashed potatoes and gravy. When my kids growing up I made huge meals, decorated the turkey and we had fun. Meyer kids generally have fun, just saying. But now I'm online with my brother in Greece listening to the song he sent me and talking to my daughter-in-law on messenger!! 2016 ... so much to give thanks for!!! So much!!!!

We can watch hurricanes on satellite imagery with incredible models that help in early warnings for areas that years ago had no warnings before they were slammed with deadly storm surge. I think that's something to give thanks for ...

And I can talk to my kids on Whatsapp, Snapchat, FaceTime and regular old messenger from Facebook while doing anything except handling dangerous equipment. Who knew the Internet had so much in common with Dimetapp? That said... I can watch the parade, sip Nespresso Latte and write while in bed under the warm covers as I balance the phone on one knee next to the laptop. Later we can be together on Facebook Live. Gotta love 2016 on so many levels for the ways we stay in touch on Twitter after "migrating" from AOL :) (for u know who you are...)

I think you get where I'm going.... There is so much to give thanks for and as always it's what you focus on in life. I was taught my a spiritual mentor friend a saying from a Rebbe from years back. In spiritual matters you look up at people who have more than you to be more like them spiritually on any level even New Age "just think happy thoughts" or pray to the Lord whatever works for you. My additional thoughts here. And on material things you look at those who need and have less than you. Obviously to help them and give charity and be thankful for all you do have in your life.
www.redcross.org <--- charity="" feel="" give="" need="" p="" should="" suddenly="" the="" to="" you="">
If you spend your time always upset because you don't have as much as the next guy or gal... you are never happy. I remember growing up in Miami Beach in a very wealthy area or more so an area where some people were very wealthy and others like us lived in old, affordable mini Roaring 20s mansions that needed much work but I loved that house. We were told we had structural damage from the 1926 Hurricane that would never be fixed completely. But some neighbors lived on North Bay Road and near by Pine Tree Drive. So there was this nice kid who came over often to play with my kids who lived in a big, beautiful home on North Bay Road but it was on the landlocked side of the street (means he had a backyard not on the water) and all day from his fancy, beautifully decorated, expensive house he'd look out across the street at the larger mansion ON THE WATER that looked out on Biscayne Bay. We'd remind him he had a beautiful house. He's look sad and say "yeah but it's not the same" and I'd giggle and pray a bit that when he grows up he will look back and appreciate all he had back then on the wrong side of the expensive street.

The point again here is what you focus on ..............

People need rain in parts of the country that are in drought, that's a NEED not a want though they be wanting rain bad. People go through a whole winter and barely get snow and are sad. Some people I knew growing up would cry as kids when a hurricane turned away from making landfall in Miami. And speaking of Miami "Hey how about those Dolphins??"

Just something to think on if you are here today reading my blog on Thanksgiving. We go through years of no hurricanes and then El Nino leaves and the switch is flipped. I do think La Nina is here in some way and we will have a strong winter in some areas. I know that sounds vague, but we have to see how the storm tracks play out in real time.

And some people are already focusing on whether Paula will form...

So stay tuned and be very happy for what you DO have and maybe next year you'll have more of what is on your wish list!

Happy Thanksgiving from Raleigh where the temperature is supposed to hit 71 degrees today. Now I'm thinking we should have gone to Myrtle Beach. But making a quiet, sort of romantic candle lit dinner for tonight and planning on relaxing from the crazy whirl of social events a few days ago in Brooklyn.

I'll update later today after landfall. And landfall is coming soon. Worth noting they have it decreasing in intensity down to 70 MPH at landfall. That would mean it makes landfall not as a hurricane but as a tropical storm. Despite the climo and weather history of the region I'm not convinced it won't be hurricane status at landfall. Otto has been an over performer since day 1.

As always time will tell.

And a special thanks to Mike from Spaghetti Models

www.spaghettimodels.com

Loved the Facebook Live during Matthew.

As we move forward with no ways to communicate.

Communicate, educate and sometimes entertain you.

That's what many of us try to do.

Knowledge is power!

Besos BobbiStorm

@bobbistorm on Twitter... look me up!

Ps Be Safe.. no operating the toaster if you have made too many toasts ;)



And some musical epicurean delights from when my old house on Miami Beach was young ;)