Chamber of Commerce Weather/Vegetable Report/She invented "debug"

WEATHER
The jet stream will be riding about 1/2 way down the US over the next week or so...bringing weather mainly through the middle states as small waves moves west to east along it. Coolest area today will be Great Lakes and northeast with highs in 30s. Lots of 40s and 50s for the northwest and middle of the country with 60s and 70s in the south. Some thunderstorms in Utah...a few showers for New York and Boston. Some winter weather advisories for the highers elevations in Utah and Wyoming.

Definitely Chamber of Commerce weather for Houston area next couple days. Cool mornings and mild afternoons with sunshine and low humidity. Some clouds over the weekend and a few showers later half of Sunday with some rain on Monday...not a big washout though and then more pleasant weather in the coming week. I think Spring has arrived. Highs will make it to 70 starting this weekend. Thursday and Friday, highs will be in the 60s.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do invent or inventar, pronounced ehn-vehn-TAR. How would you like to inventar something? Find out about a woman who changed all our lives through her inventions? A hint...she came up with the term "debug". See the AND MORE section to learn more.

The woman described in the AND MORE section was good at math and worked with computers. Research shows that children who learn more than one language score higher on standardized math and science tests. Help your children learn to love language by ordering our award winning DVDs, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco. They are on the shelf (in the education section) at Barnes & Noble stores or you can order them from http://www.frankandpaco.com, http://www.amazon.com, http://www.bn.com, http://www.bestbuy.com, or http://www.ebay.com/. Our ESL (English as a Second Language) version can be found at http://www.frankypaco.com

AND MORE
I tell you what...having a 2nd grader in the house is an educational experience. Sarah is a voracious reader and we go to the library often. She especially loves reading biographies. I picked up one about Grace Hopper. I don't believe I had ever heard of her...had you? Well she was an extremely important computer pioneer. Born in 1906, she was the first woman to earn a doctorate in math from Yale. At the age of 37 (considered too old), she got special permission to join the Navy in 1943 because she wanted to help with the war effort. She graduated 1st in her class. She worked on the Mark I computer which was used to aim naval guns in various kinds of weather. She invented the term with debug when she literally retrieved a moth that shorted out a computer. She worked on the term which developed the Univac I computer. She also created the first compiler to allow English terms to program computers...ultimately helping to create the business programming language Cobol. She was forced to retire from the Navy but then they needed her so much that they made a special allowance to bring her back in and she stayed with the Navy until 1986 (retiring at the age of 79, she was the oldest officer in the Navy). She was a Rear Admiral when she retired. So there you have it...someone who impacted all of our lives and probably most of us did not know who she was.

For more about Grace Hopper, check out this Wikepedia link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_hopper

I also got some of the information about Grace Hopper from the book Grace Hopper Computer Pioneer by Joanne Mattern.

The photos at right are from my vegetable garden. The rain has really gotten things going. We are looking forward to a crop of sugar snap peas and broccoli (2 of my favorites). We have already been enjoying some spinach salads from the spinach plants.

This week's warmer weather has me thinking about spring. And I noticed that we have another time change coming up on Sunday, March 14th. So, enjoy this "full length" weekend, because next weekend we are going to spring forward and lose one hour.

You only have today left to participate in our poll about taxes...have you finished your's yet? If not when will you work on them?

Saw my aunt last Sunday and she was definitely showing signs of her regular self...animated, smiling and wanting to get up and get going. I think that can be harder on the caregivers in a way--they have to keep your resting so you can heal fully. A long time ago, I had some surgery where I was in the ICU and the doctor asked me if I might be feeling good enough to go home. They had never released anyone that quickly from the type of surgery I had, but he thought I was up to it. Well, I didn't like being in the hospital one bit...so I said "oh yes. I can go home". They released me and I soon realized I was a bit premature because I felt pretty bad for a couple days (thinks to lots of TLC from Mom and family, I got through it and was soon back to work). God bless everyone who is ill. Good health is such a blessing!

In my last blog, I mentioned that 2004 tsunami caused about a 1 foot rise in the water levels for the upper Texas coast. I learned about this at The John C. Freeman Weather Museum where they have a 3D globe which illustrates all kinds of weather including how the tsunami affected water levels around the world. The museum offers many educational opportunities including the upcoming Forensic Meteorology course (and lawyers can get continuing education credits by attending) on March 29. Check out all the offerings:
http://wxresearch.org/events/

Have a great weekend everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Wet Start to Week/The Tsunami that Reached Texas/Which Rodeo Show

PLEASE NOTE THAT I POSTED THIS BLOG ON 2/28 BUT DELETED IT DUE TO A DANGEROUS COMMENT. THANKS FOR UNDERSTANDING.
WEATHER
Weather is fairly quiet but a new storm coming out of the southwest will bring rain to Texas later today. Snow for the Great Lakes and northeast with a cold rain mixing with snow in New York City. Highs will be in the 30s for the Great Lakes and Northeast and much of the Midwest. Very nice along the west coast with sunshine and highs in the 60s. Texas will be turning colder with thunderstorms developing and moving eastward. Balmy in the southeast with highs in the 60s and 70s.

Houston will have a wet day...rain and storms during the morning commute and temperatures dropping during the day. Make sure you have a jacket with you. Chilly mornings and cool to mild afternoons and but dry in the early to middle part of the week with next rain coming on Sunday. Gradual warmup during the week...should be very pleasant.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do tickets or billetes, pronounced bee-YEH-tays. Guess which billetes I purchased for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo? Find out in the AND MORE section.

Be sure to tell your friends and family that they can stop at their neighborhood Barnes & Noble store and buy our award winning Spanish DVDs for children...volumes one and two of Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco. We have won 3 awards including Dr. Toy's Top 10 Educational Product of 2008. You can also order them from http://www.frankandpaco.com, http://www.amazon.com, http://www.bn.com, http://www.bestbuy.com, or http://www.ebay.com/. Our ESL (English as a Second Language) version can be found at http://www.frankypaco.com

AND MORE
The photos at right were sent to me by my brother Sam in north Austin and my cousin June in Hutto, TX. They and their kids sure enjoyed our late February snow storm. Sam said that his snowman held together for a day...when he came home Wednesday afternoon...the snowman had lost its head though.

Big brew-ha-ha over Accuweather using the term snow-a-cane for the storm system that brought the snow this last week. Media folks sure do walk a fine line between trying to keep their bosses happy who demand presenting the weather in as enticing and compelling of a way as possible. But, you do have to be very, very careful. There is a glossary of Meteorology. When I studied for my Certified Broadcast Meteorologist exam, I had to study that glossary and as a broadcast meteorologist, you are supposed to use the correct terms. I never would say for example a cool front...no such thing. It's either a cold front, a warm front, a stationary front or an occluded front (the last one...I would never use on air...too hard to explain). But I have heard people say cool front in order to denote that it just isn't all that cold. I prefer to qualify the level of coolness using adjectives. Anyway, is the concern about Accuweather's terminology just something meteorologists care about or do you care about it. I would love to hear your opinion.

Just went through such an ordeal getting a new photo printer that works. I ordered on-line through Walmart and after switching out two times, could not get the printer to talk to my computer. I have connected several printers over the past couple years with no trouble at all. And it takes forever to uninstall and install the printer software. I would not have purchased through Walmart but the printer was only $32. Well, the good news is that it so easy to take the printer to Walmart and exchange it. I ended up with a Kodak printer yesterday which is talking but now the print quality on my regular paper is very bad. I've ordered some Kodak paper and hope that will work...the photos are perfect though.

Please keep my ill aunt in your prayers. She has had an allergic reaction to some medicine that used during the surgery and now she has clots in her lungs and body. This is quite an ordeal for her family and her.

I wrote about earthquakes after the Haiti disaster...that one was a 7.0...this one in Chile many times stronger at 8.8. God bless all who have been affected. Glad to hear tsunami not so bad. The Indonesian tsuanmi in 2004 impacted water levels around the world...increasing the water level along the Gulf coast by a foot about a day or so later.

Just ordered tickets to Selena Gomez off Ebay. Both Megan and Sarah want to see her. But, I had to go to Ebay because I waited to long to check it out. Just wasn't sure well in advance what we were doing at the tail end of spring break. Well, I can tell you that my tickets are going to require binoculars but goodness, there were sets of tickets well over $1000. Yikes!!! Well, will let you know if it was worth seeing her from that distance. Looking forward to the rodeo. Always a good time.

Have a great week everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Weekend Weather/Tornado Safety/Income Tax Timing

WEATHER
Spoke to my father-in-law in Iowa and we were talking about what a crazy winter we have had. He said, "yeah, we got a little snow" this year. Talk about understatement. They are both in their 70s and they said this is the worst they have ever seen. Now they have many feet of snow and are worrying about flooding of their basements in the spring thaw. They've never had to deal with the melting of that much snow.

Jet Stream is above 2/3rds of the way down in the US with some waves that are moving though the southern states about onece every 3 days. It will continue to be chilly (highs in the 20s, 30s and 40s) across the northern 2/3rd with the south mostly enjoying 60s. On Friday, there will be some thunderstorms in the eastern Texas/southwest Louisiana and costal California. Look for some snow showers around Great Lakes and rain/snow mix for New York city and rain for DC.

Houston, we have been and will continue to be on a 3 day rain cycle for a while. It will rain Friday and then again on Monday and then again on the following Thursday. This is due in large part to our El Nino winter. Lows will be primarily in the 40s and 50s with highs in the 50s and 60s...looks like a pretty nice weekend shaping up..althought I think skies will cloud up again Sunday afternoon and there could be some showers by late in the day.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do safety or seguridad, pronounced say-goo-ree-DAHD. For some tips on tornado seguridad, see the AND MORE section.

Be sure to tell your friends and family that they can stop at their neighborhood store and buy our award winning Spanish DVDs for children...volumes one and two of Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco. We have won 3 awards including Dr. Toy's Top 10 Educational Product of 2008. You can also order them from http://www.frankandpaco.com, http://www.amazon.com, http://www.bn.com, http://www.bestbuy.com, or http://www.ebay.com/. Our ESL (English as a Second Language) version can be found at http://www.frankypaco.com

AND MORE
Severe Weather Awareness Week
This is Severe Weather Awareness week in southeast Texas and my topic of choice today is tornadoes. The best place to be is a basement, but since we don't have basements here, the next best place is inside a building, on the first floor, away from glass doors and windows. According to the National Weather Service, there are 137 tornadoes in Texas every year...more than any other state.

The following information is from the Houston National Weather Service web site:

In a home or business, go to the safest place, usually on the lowest floor of the building in a central room away from windows. Get under a sturdy piece of furniture.
Stay away from windows.
Get out of automobiles immediately! They will become flying debris in a tornado. Do not try to outrun a tornado in your car.
If caught outside, lie flat in a nearby ditch or depression.
Abandon mobile homes. Even if tied down, they will offer no protection in a tornado.

To learn more about severa weather safety topics, go to this National Weather SErivce link.
http://www.srh.noaa.gov/hgx/?n=severe_weather_awareness_tornadoes

POLLS
My poll on Lenten observance is closed. 36% said they pray more during Lent. 9% said they do extra volunteering. 18% said they read the Bible and reflect more and 18% said they attend church more. 54% said they give something up. 18% said they don't observe Lent and 0% said they do something besides this list. Multiple answers were allowed. Thankd to all who participated.

My new poll is about doing your income tax...do you get it done right away? I got the idea because my mother-in-law just turned her's in to her CPA today and I turned mine in yesterday. Maybe you file extensions or maybe you get it in right on time. Only one answer is alllowed. Thank in advance for particpiating.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

More Snow for Houston Area! Tue. 2/23

This is a special update because of the snow that is expected in the
Houston area and areas northward today (Tuesday into the evening).
If you want to drive north from Houston, be aware that there
will likely be heavy snow and that areas to the north of
Houston are under a WINTER STORM WARNING--there could be heavy
snow...accumulating as early as late afternoon as temperatures drop. My brother
who lives north of Austin has been getting snow already. For Houston,
there will be a rain/snow mix starting this afternoon. As temperatures
drop this evening, icey roads may develop and this could be a problem for
the morning commute on Wednesday. Heavy accumulations are not likely in the
Houston area due to warmer temperatures...main concern is icey roads for the Houston area overnight and early Wednesday. The following is the official advisory
from the National Weather Service.

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 2 PM THIS
AFTERNOON TO 6 AM CST WEDNESDAY...

AREAS OF LIGHT RAIN WILL DEVELOP LATER THIS MORNING...AND THEN
CHANGE OVER TO A RAIN AND SNOW MIX DURING THE AFTERNOON. MOST
LOCATIONS IN THE ADVISORY SHOULD EXPERIENCE RAIN AND SNOW MIXED
BEFORE 6 PM. WITH THE WARM GROUND IN PLACE...NO SIGNIFICANT SNOW
ACCUMULATIONS ARE EXPECTED DURING THE AFTERNOON. DURING THE
EVENING SNOW MAY BEGIN TO STICK ON GRASSY AREAS AND CAR ROOFS.
THE RAIN AND SNOW MIX MAY CHANGE OVER TO ALL SNOW LATER THIS
EVENING OR AFTER MIDNIGHT. ANY ACCUMULATIONS DURING THE LATE
EVENING THROUGH 3 AM TIME FRAME SHOULD BE MAINLY UNDER ONE INCH
FROM INTERSTATE 10 NORTHWARD. SOME ELEVATED ROADWAYS AND BRIDGES
MAY BECOME ICY ACROSS THE NORTHERN PORTIONS OF AUSTIN...WALLER...
HARRIS...AND LIBERTY COUNTIES.

THIS IS A DEVELOPING WINTER WEATHER SITUATION AND IF TEMPERATURES
ARE SLIGHTLY COOLER OR SLIGHTLY WARMER THAN FORECAST COULD HAVE
TREMENDOUS IMPLICATIONS ON WHERE SNOW FALLS AND HOW MUCH WILL
ACCUMULATE.

Week's Weather/Lightning Safety/Gerald Ford's Birth Name

WEATHER
As I write this post late Sudnay evening, a cold front is moving across the central US. On Monday, there will be some thunderstorms over the southeast US and some over the desert Southwest. There will be some snow showers over the Great Lakes and in the Denver area. Highs will be in the 20s across the northern and central Plains and Rockies. 50s, 60s and/or 70s for the west coast, southern states and southeast states.

Houston, a cold front is arriving early Monday. It will still be mild with highs in the low 60s. But, look for rain and highs only in the 40s on Tuesday. Tuesday will be a tricky day for travel north of Houston. Looks like there will be some snow as far south as College Station but not as far north as Dallas. Dry air returns to Houston during the day on Wednesday. Look for more rain on Friday.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do lightning as in bolt of lightning, relámpago, pronounced ray-LAM-pah-goh. How do stay as safe as possible when relámpago threatens. See the AND MORE section, to find out.

Coming soon to a Barnes & Noble near you....our award winning Spanish DVDs for children...volumes one and two of Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco. You can also order them from http://www.frankandpaco.com, http://www.amazon.com, http://www.bn.com, http://www.bestbuy.com, or http://www.ebay.com/. Our ESL (English as a Second Language) version can be found at http://www.frankypaco.com

AND MORE
LIGHTNING SAFETY
Today is the first day of Severe Weather Awareness Week in southeast Texas. Lightning has always fascinated me. It is extremely important to take the right steps when lightning threatens.

I like the 30/30 rule which works like this. When you see lightning, start counting. If you hear thunder, before reaching 30, you should seek shelter. The 2nd 30 stands for the 30 minutes you should stay in shelter after the last crack of thunder.

Want to know how close the lightning is...each 5 seconds you count from the time you see lightning to the time you hear thunder corresponds to 1 mile of distance.

Best place to be is indoors. If you can't be indoors, get into a vehicle and avoid touching anything metallic. If you can't get into a vehicle, get to a low point away from water and tall objects (like trees). If you are the tallest thing around, squat down on the balls of your feet. If you are indoors, don't get into a bath or shower and avoid touching appliances. Also, keep your distance from glass doors and windows in case a nearby lightning strike creates flying debris which could break glass.

To learn more about severe weather, go to the this link from the Houston National Weathe Service:
http://www.srh.noaa.gov/hgx/?n=severe_weather_awareness

3 Month Temperatures and Precipitation Outlooks
The Climate Prediction Center has released its latest 3 month temperature and precipitation outlooks. Temperatures are supposed to be below normal over the southeast US including the Houston area. Rain chances will be above normal for the southwest US. To see if your area is expecting above or below normal conditions or neutral conditions (plains white), see the figures at right.

President Gerald R. Ford's Birth Name
I learn so many fascinating things while helping Sarah with homework. For example, she is working on a project about an assigned president -- her's Gerald R. Ford. Well, I was absolutely fascinated to read in the book Gerald R. Ford our Thirty-Eight President by Sandra Francis, that he was born Leslie Lynch King Jr. Apparently, his birth father was not the nicest guy and Ford's mother left him when Ford was only 2 weeks old. Later, at a church social, Ford met Gerald R. Ford (Senior) and he married her and later adopted her son, Leslie. They were very close and later, people started calling Leslie, Gerald R. Ford, Jr. The stepdad eventually adopted him and later Leslie legally changed his name to Gerald R. Ford, Jr. Ford's mother had 3 more sons with her new husband.

Please keep my sick family members in your prayers. My aunt is improving but still in ICU. As you can imagine, that has not been a very pleasant experience for her or her family.

Have a great week everyone.
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Weekend Forecast/Observing Lent/Drought Update

WEATHER
20s, 30s and 40s for highs on Thurday from the northern plains to northeast. There will be a few snow showers over the Rockies, Great Lakes, and northern New England. Highs will be in the 50s, 60s, and 70s along the west coast and southern states.

Houston's outlying areas will have one more light freeze early Thursday and then a nice warmup into the 60s. Friday will bring lows in the 40s and highs in the 60s with higher humidity and more clouds. Saturday and more so, Sunday, there will be some showers. Lows will be in the 40s and 50s repectively with highs in the 60s to low 70s respectively. Rain wraps up early Monday and then look for some rain again as early as Wednesday.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do bread or pan, pronounced PAHN. Do you eat healthy pan. Find out what types of healthy foods people are eating in the AND MORE section.

Remember last post, I told you that we had gotten the biggest order yet and the 6th order in 6 weeks from our distributor. Well, on Tuesday, we got a 7th order just as big as the 6th one. I called our distributor and he thinks that Barnes & Noble is putting it in all of their stores (instead of just a few). See what all the fuss is about. Order our award winning Spanish DVDs for children...volumes one and two of Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco from http://www.frankandpaco.com, http://www.amazon.com, http://www.bn.com, http://www.bestbuy.com, or http://www.ebay.com/. Our ESL (English as a Second Language) version can be found at http://www.frankypaco.com

AND MORE

My poll, on what healthy foods people eat, is closed. 55% said raw almonds, 33% said walnuts, 44% said edadame, 44% said broccoli, 66% said blueberries, 22% said sweet potatoes, 77% said whole grain breads, 55% said brown rice, 33% said organic foods, and 11% said other. More than one answer was allowed. Thanks to all who participated.

My new poll is about Lent. What are you doing to observe it? Or do you observe it at all? More than one answer is allowed. Thanks in advance for participating. I used to do something extra every Lent. But once I started teaching CCE to young grade school students, I thought it would be something they would appreciate if I gave up something yummy that I liked to eat. So, last year, I gave up chocolate. Oh my goodness. I had no idea how frequently I ate chocolate. It was a very long 40 days...let me tell you. I think I was even dreaming about chocolate toward the end. But you know what was really neat about it? It made me think of God and Jesus more? Guess that was the whole point. In case you didn't know, Lent is the 40 day period leading up to Easter. It says in the Bible that Jesus fasted for 40 days and 40 nights and he was greatly tempted by the Devil. But he did not give in. So, what am I doing this year? Well, you aren't really supposed to tell anyone. But if I remember, I will tell you at Easter.

I have 3 dear relatives who have endured ordeals with their health. First let me share some wonderful news. My cousin, Tina, has been released to her sister's home after many months in ICU. There were several times we thought we would lose her...she was so sick. She still has a lot more recuperating to do. But, at least she is home! My sister-in-law just had a thorough workup at Mayo for a possible cancerous golfball sized tumor. She does not have cancer and will be monitored. My brother is more relieved than words can say. And so is all of the family. The 3rd is a dear aunt who remains in ICU after an unexpected and quite complicated 9 hour heart surgery. She is getting a little stronger each day, but it has been quite an ordeal for the family (and her). Please keep all of these ladies and their families in your prayers.

Well, I told you my nephew is working as a valet. He told me that today a man felt really bad that he did not have money for a tip. So, he gave him something else, a $4 winning scratch off lottery ticket. Hey...that's worth more than most tips.

I finally updated the drought figures...look at Texas...almost no drought left! What a difference from last summer. Looks like Hawaii has the most severe drought with persistence to development expected. Alaska has some drought but there is no forecast available for the trend through April. In the continental US, there are several areas with drought in the west with some improvement for the more southern areas and new drought developing in the northern states. Ohio is also expected to develop some level of drought.

That's all for now. Have a great end of week and weekend!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Valentine's Forecast/My Experience Winter Olympics/Dates of Last Freeze

WEATHER
On this Saturday before Valentine's Day, 4 large areas in the mainland US are under Winter Weather Watches and/or Warnings (see figure at right). Highs on Sunday will be in the teens and 20s across the northern plains, Great Lakes and northeast. There will be some snow showers in the midwest and Great Lakes and some cold rain in the Pacific Northwest. Milder across the southern tier of states with highs in the 60s (70s for the desert Southwest) and some showers along the Gulf Coast.

On this Satuday afternoon in Houston, the sunshine has returned!!! Some clouds and even showers will return on Sunday as the next cold front approaches and passes. A nice warmup on Sunday with highs near 60 with morning temperatures in the low 40s. Then for Monday and Tuesday, lows in the low to middle 30s and highs in the 50s. Highs will be back up in the 60s Thursday, Friday, and Saturday with some showers end of the week. Cooler on Sunday. A bigger rain coming on the following Monday.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do Olympic Games or Juegos Olímpicos, pronounced HWAY-gose Oh-LEEM-pee-cose. Are you planning to watch the Juegos Olímpicos. Find out about my own olympic "experience" in the AND MORE section.

We are so excited because our Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco, Volume 2 has just been awarded the Family Choice Award for 2009. Here is the announcement they sent me:
Your product was featured in the January issue of the following magazines: Los Angeles Family, Santa Clarita Family, South Bay Family, San Gabriel Family, and Ventura Family.

Family Choice Award coverage is targeted directly to parents who seek the winners of these coveted awards as top recommendations for their buying decisions "from the source they trust most".

The Family Choice Awards was founded by the Family Magazine Group, America's largest free parenting publication, and is recognized as the premier resource for the very best in children's and parenting products and services.

I put their award seal at right. Also, our Volume 1 won the Dr. Toy Best Educatinal Product Award and Homeschool.com Best Educational Product Award.

My other big news is that on Friday, we got the biggest order yet and the 6th order in 6 weeks from our distributor. See what all the fuss is about. Order our award winning Spanish DVDs for children...volumes one and two of Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco from http://www.frankandpaco.com, http://www.amazon.com, http://www.bn.com, http://www.bestbuy.com, or http://www.ebay.com/. Our ESL (English as a Second Language) version can be found at http://www.frankypaco.com

AND MORE

It Really Has Been Unusually Cold and Wet in Houston
I did some checking and February has started out downright chilly...we're running an average of 6.5 degrees cooler than normal. So, far this month the average high has been 53.8 with the average low being 40.9. And so far this month, there has been 3.36" of rain...normally there should have been 1.32". So the month so far has been wetter and colder than normal.

January was also cooler than normal in Houston with temperatures running an average of 2.8 degrees below normal (average temperature was 49.0 degrees). January was actually drier than normal however with a 1.15" deficit.

December was colder than normal with temperatures 3.5 degrees below normal (average temperature of 50.2 degrees). And it was also wetter than normal with 5.44" of precipitation (a surplus of 1.75").

These data was taken from the National Weather Service web site.

Dates of Average Last Freeze in Houston
According to George W. Bomar's book, Texas Weather, the average last freeze for Houston Hobby is Feb. 18th (and from the National Weather Service the average date of last freeze for Bush Airport is Feb. 25). The Hobby airport number is based on data from 1961 to 1990. I don't have the year's for the Bush Airport number. In any event, remember that this is the average, so there have been half the years with freezes later than those dates. My rule of thumb is don't fertilize until around mid-March and avoid pruning dead wood until at least then.

Southeast Texas Gets 2nd Snowfall in One Season!
The following discussion was obtained from the Houston National Weather Service web site:
THE LAST TIME TWO SNOW EVENTS
OCCURRED IN THE SAME SEASON WAS BACK IN 1985. ACCUMULATING SNOW
FELL ON JANUARY 3 AND AGAIN ON JANUARY 12 1985. HERE ARE THE
SNOWFALL TOTALS FROM ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS FROM LAST NIGHTS SNOW EVENT:

COMMUNITY SNOWFALL

WECHES 3.5 INCHES
LATEXO 2.5 INCHES
MADISONVILLE 2.5 INCHES (PUBLIC)
MADISONVILLE 2.0 INCHES (CO-OP)
CROCKETT 2.0 INCHES
LOVELADY 2.0 INCHES
KENNARD 2.0 INCHES
W. GRAPELAND 1.7 INCHES
IOLA 1.0 INCHES
BRYAN 0.5 INCHES
TRINITY 0.5 INCHES
COL STATION 0.2 INCHES

Only Weather Museum in United States Looks Forward to Several Important Events
If you know any attorneys who are looking for continuing education credit, The Weather Museum will hold a Forensic Meteorology seminar from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm on March 30th at the University of St. Thomas. I'll have more on this as the date approaches.

Mark your calendar for Friday, April 30th when the 15th Annual Weather Museum Classic takes place at the Wildcat Golf Club. The tournament will benefit the educational programs for the museum. Shot gun start is 1:00 pm.

In October, the museum will host a national flood conference. This confernence has the sponsorship of The American Meteorological Society and the National Weather Association--the main professional organizations for meteorologists. I'll have more on this as the date gets closer.

Luge Tragedy and My Own Bobsled Experience
The 2002 Winter Olympics were held at Park City, Utah. My family took a holiday there about 6 years ago and they had the olympic park open to visitors, offering a change to got down the bobsled track on bobsleds fitted with wheels. They packed us in 4 tight with a professional bobsledder at the front of the bobsled. We had to go through a safety briefing and wear helmets. The track wasn't as fast as one on snow, but by golly, it was fast enough. I think they said we would go down about 50 to 60 mph. Let me tell you, it was unforgettable, a very rough ride which only lasted about a minute, but seemed like it lasted 15 minutes. Our teeth rattled, our backs were racked and our heads knocked about as we raced down the mountain. I'm glad I did it, but considering the headache it gave me, I don't want to do it ever again. The professional we rode with was training for the next Olympics. Sorry, I don't remember his name. But, he told us that many bobsleddings end up with long term health problems due to the repeated jarring of their heads.

Seniors Making a Difference
Chronicle writer and buddy Leslie Williams sent me this link to an article she wrote recently. I loved hearing how the seniors at The Terrace in Sugar Land are making life better for others. Read all about it:
http://www.ultimatefortbend.com/2010/02/seniors-show-heart-through-support-causes

Sarah's Class has Valentine Celebration
I got to help with Sarah's Valentine's class party on Friday. Sarah's friend Ashwini made homemade crafts for everyone in the class. She told me it took her 5 hours!!! One of the parents took the photo of Sarah and me at right. It really took me back seeing the excitement and joy on the kids' faces. What a fun time!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman