Windmill Farms/Texas Show Review/Thoughts on Sarah Palin

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
Atlantic basin is quiet. There is a system that will probably become a tropical depression off the west coast of Mexico. But, it is moving away from land and will probably continue. I will let you know if this changes.

Storms are moving up and over the ridge over the southwest US. There will be plenty of 100s and 90 across the southwest and southern plains. Look for more comfortable conditions for the rest of the country with highs ranging from the 60s to 80s. Southeast will be quite humid. Severe storms are possible in two main areas...see figure at right.

Houston, this is the 3rd day in a row of record temperatures. Today, the high reached 101 at both Bush Airport and Hobby Airport breaking the old records set in 2005. It will be cooler due to showers and thunderstorms Monday and Tuesday. Enjoy!

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do windmill, or molino de viento, pronounced moh-LEE-noh DAY vee-EHN-toe. Look to the right to see a huge molina de viento.

Summer is a time for play and that's why we were able to get so many great shots of children having fun when we shot our award winning DVD, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco, Volume 1. And kids love to watch other children having fun. The neat thing is they don't even realize they are learning while being entertained. Order today from www.frankandpaco.com/. You can also order from http://www.venturaes.com/, http://www.dololanguages.com/, http://www.carlexonline.com, www.thecuriousmindstore.com/, http://www.amazon.com/, http://www.bestbuy.com/, and http://www.barnesandnoble.com/. For our English as a Second Language (ESL) version, go to http://www.frankypaco.com

AND MORE
The photo at right shows a few of the giant windmills being used to generate electricity. These were on a plateau as we drove northwest on U.S. Highway 84 between Abilene and Lubbock. There were hundreds, possibly thousands of these windmills on and off over the span of a 100 miles are so. I have also seen some in eastern New Mexico, near Interstate 40 and my sister Julie tells me she has seen some near I10. in the desert southwest. One of the neatest things I saw was a place where they were storing the parts. The blades were huge...I would guesstimate 25 feet long.

The Texas show in Palo Duro Canyon was especially outstanding last night. And we were so lucky because there were storms east and south but none right where we were--to cancel the show. And the high clouds and sprinkles in our area kept everything nice and cool. It is the 75th anniversary of Palo Duro Canyon and the 44th year of the Texas musical in the canyon. At the end of the show, there was a bonus of a 4th of July fireworks display. As we drove away from the show, there was a lovely display of nature's own fireworks...lightning in the distance.

This morning, it was so pleasant...rain cooled air. The trip from Amarillo to Edgewood (just east of Albuquerque) was so easy. Now, we are in Edgewood. The air is dry and there was a brief thundershower that cooled the air even more. The windows are open and it is just sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo refreshing!!!

Even though on vacation, I haven't missed the news about Sarah Palin. My own feelings about this matter are that maybe, just maybe, the reality of her young son's care (and her new grandchild) are just too much. When I left television, my main reason was Sarah--who had extra needs that were at times all consuming. Many people I know were shocked that I left such a great career. But, my heart was breaking and it was too much to handle knowing that I was letting her down. Just my thoughts... For what it's worth, my brother-in-law says he thinks she is pregnant.

Hope whatever you are doing, you are having fun!

Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman