Hurricane Ike Aftermath - Fluctuations in Power...arrrghh!!!

HURRICANES AND WEATHER

Happy First Day of Fall...It is the autumnal equinox and according to the U.S. Naval Observatory, the official start is at 9:44 am this morning. This is the date in the Northern Hemisphere when the length of night and day are approximately the same (12 hours). The length of daylight will now be less than the length of night and will continue to decrease.

Just when Briargate Elementary attendees were getting ready to go back to school, rats!...the power went out again. Here is the latest update from the Fort Bend ISD web site:

Update about Briargate Elementary--Overnight there was a power outage at Briargate Elementary and classes are canceled at Briargate on Monday, Sept. 22. All Fort Bend ISD campuses will open for classes at their normal time on Monday, Sept. 22., except for the five campuses listed below with no power. The status of these campuses will be updated on Monday.Campuses with NO POWER are: Briargate Elementary and Ridgegate Elementary Schools; also Quail Valley Middle, and Christa McAuliffe Middle Schools; also Willowridge High School.

A big improvement to the Centerpoint numbers!!!...66% now have power (which means 34% do not). I am changing the Centerpoint map at right...I like the color coded to indicate percentage of those without power. The dark red indicates those with more than 80% without power. My daughter's 1st grade teacher in Quail Valley told me this a.m. that they still do not have power! To see all the latest outage maps and updates, go to http://www.centerpointenergy.com/staticfiles/ike/ike.html.

Getting lots of interesting emails from blog followers. Charlie Richards sent me this link to NASA satellite imagery following Ike.

http://ngs.woc.noaa.gov/ike/IKE0000.HTM

There are lots and lots of spots you can check out! Thanks Charlie!

Peyton Cascarelli sent me the new photo posted to the left...a metal pole stuck through a tree trunk (which as you can see has been cut to a more manageable size). Anyway, you have probably seen some of the tornado related photos of straw through trees etc. One theory is that when the wind is blowing hard and bending trunks, cracks open which allow flying debris to penetrate and then when the trunk straightens back up, the object is lodged inside. Maybe that is what happened here. Thanks Peyton!

Invest 93 has brought torrential rain to Puerto Rico and more is likely. The eastern Dominican Republic will also have to deal with dangerously large amounts of rain. Here is part of the National Hurricane Center advisory.
INTERESTS IN PUERTO RICO...THE VIRGIN ISLANDS...HISPANIOLA...THE TURKS ANDCAICOS ISLANDS...AND THE SOUTHEASTERN BAHAMAS SHOULD CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE PROGRESS OF THIS SYSTEM.
Also, it is moving west-northwesterly now, it should start moving northward soon. A non-tropical low will be forming off the eastern seaboard...models have been showing that feature for days. Will be interesting to see how it all plays out. Folks along the east coast should also monitor developments. It may be a problem from eastern North Carolina and possibly anywhere from New Jersey to southern New England.

Locally, just warm (mid to upper 80s for highs) and humid with a slight dip in humidity starting Thursday. The next noticeable cold front arrives a week from Tuesday. Looks dry (little to no rain through the next 9 days or so).

SPANISH WORD FOR THE DAY
For those with power, things are starting to feel more routine. We are so much more comfortable when we can keep our regular routine or in Spanish rutina, pronounced roo-tee-nah. With Sarah back at school, we are back to our normal rutina.

Our children's DVD, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco Volume 1 has been recognized as a Top 10 Educational Product for 2008 by Dr. Toy. Now that you have your power back, get a jump on the holidays by buying the perfect children's gift...my award winning DVD, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco from 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
The First Colony Library of the Fort Bend Library system has water and roof damage and is closed indefinitely. I have been following this closely as I had a book due back. It was originally due back on the 11th but there was a message posted that for any of the Fort Bend libraries, there will be no fines for books due from the 10th through the 22nd. Also, there are some extensions being allowed as well. As far as returning books that would have gone back to the First Colony Library, they can be returned to another Fort Bend Library location. For details, go to http://www.fortbend.lib.tx.us/.

On Wednesday, the 10th of September, I had the privilege to speak to a local Mocha Moms group. It was just so timely. As you know, I am selling a DVD which teaches Spanish to children. So, I give talks about the benefits of early language learning. I did an abbreviated version of that, but I lengthened the hurricane preparation part of my talk because of Ike. Some of the moms were recently moved into the area and had no idea what to expect from a hurricane. I was so glad to be able to give them instructions on what to do that very afternoon! Unfortunately, I was also scheduled to speak to the Mom's Club of Clear Lake on Monday, 9/15. I have yet to be able to reach my contact with the group. I was so sad that I had not had the chance to give these ladies vital hurricane preparation information. Now, they could probably teach me a thing or two about dealing with storms!!!

By the way, if you know anyone who would be interested in an early language and/or hurricane preparation and/or other weather topic talk, please have them contact me at 713-823-4401 or cecilia_sinclair@yahoo.com.

Have a good day everyone and praying for the return of everyone's electricity.
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman