High Speed Internet Withdrawal/Talking to Gene Norman/Norbert and Odile

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
Norbert has weakened quite a bit (but this is partly due to some lower winds measured during reconnaisance). Still, the forecast track should still be that it heads into Mexico on Sunday. It will be fairly weak by the time it hits Mexico. The remnants of Norbert will be pulled northeastward by the approaching cold front which will arrive here on Tuesday. It will be a weak front. But, look for some rain on Tuesday and possibly later in the week depending on return flow and how much moisture hangs around.

Odile is another slightly interesting feature as it is forecast to move northwestward, parallel to the Mexican coast. It shouldn't get very strong however. I am also putting up it's forecast path.

Another pleasant day today with a high of only 82. Took Sarah and her good buddy on a park outing and nice little walk. You just want to be outside on a day like today. Of course there's always something and there were some Ozone Warnings today. It is also ragweed season. I know both of these things make life miserable for folks with respiratory problems.

Humidity will increase Friday. And it will be a warm, humid weekend. Some showers are possible starting Saturday with the most likely day being Wednesday.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY

Today's word of the day is school or escuela, because I am definitely going to school about this whole accent rule thing. It is pronounced s-QUELL-ah. Here a lesson on how to figure out accented syllables from Adriana Gutierrez, well known local Spanish teacher.

"Understanding where to put the emphasis in a word can be as difficult as sounding out the word itself. Fortunately, Spanish makes it easy for you. When a word is stressed on an irregular syllable, an accent mark will appear above the stressed vowel. Accent marks look like this:
á é í ó ú
Pay attention to accent marks! Two words might be spelled exactly the same, but the presence of an accent mark can completely change their meaning. For example, esta means “this” while está means “is.” Llamo means “I call” while llamó means “He, she, or you called.” Accent marks are also used to distinguish how a word is used: for example, dónde and donde both mean “where,” but the first is used to ask a question while the second is used in statements. So no matter what you do, don’t forget the accent!
Where Does the Stress Go?
Rule 1.
Most Spanish words that end in n, s, or a vowel are stressed on the penultimate (or next-to-the-last) syllable. Listen to the examples below, repeat each word in the gap that follows, and note where the stress falls. The stressed vowel sound is underlined to help you.
camisa, blusa, chaqueta, pantalones, hablo, como, llamo
Some words that end in n, s, or a vowel are stressed on the last syllable instead. These words must carry an accent mark to warn the speaker. Listen to these examples and repeat them aloud.
televisión, conversación, pais, inglés, alemán, mamá, papa, comió, escribió
Rule 2.
Words that do NOT end in n, s, or a vowel are usually stressed on the last syllable. This includes most verbs in their infinitive forms. For example…
comer, hablar, escribir, estar, seguridad, español, actor, doctor
When these words are not stressed on the last syllable, an accent mark is placed over the stressed vowel. For example…
lápiz, árbol, fútbol, vóleibol"

Thank you Adriana. Did I get it right on es-QUELL-ah?

Tomorrow, I will show you how my mom (National Spelling Bee coach) explained it (unless she tells me not to after reading what Adriana wrote). Ha!

Only 2 and half months until Christmas!!! I know...can you believe it. Be proactive, bypass stress and get an affordable, fun and beneficial gift for the youngsters in your life. Purchase our award winning DVD Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco, Volume 1, a Dr. Toy Top 10 Educational Product of 2008. You can buy it at http://www.frankandpaco.com/, Ventura's Educational Supply, Dolo Publications, Carlex Inc., The Curious Mind Store, amazon.com, bestbuy.com, and barnesandnoble.com.


AND MORE
With my frustration with Comcast, I considered working off my wireless Internet modem forever...well let me just say...DON'T DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is so slow...almost as slow as my old dial-up modem and it disconnects frequently. ARGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

Okay, I feel better.

Say...anyone know a good high speed/home phone (local/long distance)/digital Cable company--besides Comcast?

Gene Norman and I are long time friends (I would say old friends but I don't like that word old). He is the one who actually got me my first job at KFDM in Beaumont. You see, Gene and I knew each other from the local American Meteorological Society. At the time, Gene was working for the Space Flight Meteorology Group at NASA. But he was also working in Beaumont on weekends as the on air meteorologist at KFDM. Well, when Doug Johnson left Channel 2, and Frank Billingsley opened a slot at Channel 13 by filling the spot Doug Johnson vacated, I contacted Gene and told him he needed to fill that opening at Channel 13. Well of course, Gene was already ahead of me. He had already applied and was waiting to hear back. I just knew he would get the job. So, I told him that when he left KFDM, he had to get them to hire me as his replacement. I also was working full time during the week, but I was doing air quality meteorology. Well, Gene wanted to help but he asked me to bring him a copy of my aircheck (that's inside TV lingo for a copy of your weathercast) to his place. Get this...he wanted it on 3/4" tape (which doesn't exist anymore as far as I know). He wanted that because he had a 3/4" player that his sister had given him. I still don't know why his sister had that.

Well, Gene looked at my aircheck and decided he could feel good about recommending me. So, once he got the position at 13, he walked into KFDM, told the news director he was leaving, and handed him my aircheck tape and said that I was his replacement. And they hired me!!! There is a little more to it than that like the fact that my dearly departed friend Robert Smith called and bugged them and demanded that they hire me. And I can't forget that Greg Bostwick, the chief at KFDM and a fellow Aggie demanded that they hire me even though I hyperventilated during my audition.

Anyway, thanks Gene. You got me into KDFM...a great place to work!

In any event, back to Gene...he is very happy to be back in Houston! He had been the chief at a CBS affiliate in Atlanta for 8 years. I teased him about all the action this hurricane season. But he is definitely a cup half full kind of guy, because he said he had 3 storms Dolly, Edouard, and Gustav to warm up on before Ike hit. Wow! He's got a great attitude. Welcome back Gene and keep up the good work!

By the way, Gene is not the mystery weather celebrity I mentioned yesterday. I can't divulge that just yet. But I will soon. So stay tuned.

Have a fabulous Friday everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman