Even More Pleasant Weather/10 ounce versus 12 ounce beer/In Defense of Pluto

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
Tropical Depression #16 formed today in the western Caribbean...this is not the remnants of Tropical Storm Matthew which has brought deadly mudslides to Central America. The National Hurricane Center is forecasting that this storm will be drawn northward across Florida, back over the Atlantic and then into the Carolinas (which have had very heavy rain recently). Models and ensembles are all in fairly close agreement. T.D. #16 will probably become Tropical Storm Nicole on Wednesday.

Another new disturbance in the central Atlantic has a 10% chance of becoming a tropical storm in the next 48 hours.

In the eastern Pacific, there are 2 areas of disturbed weather with a 10% chance of becoming a tropical storm in the next 48 hours.

On Wednesday, just a few areas of the country will get wet...eastern seaboard (including Florida), western Great Lakes, and southern California. Ridge of high pressure will bring more 100+ readings to part of the southwest and 90s all the way up to Medford, Oregon. L.A. will only have highs in the 90s after it's all time record heat on Monday. The eastern 2/3 of the country will be pleasant with highs in the 60s, 70s and 80s and comfortable levels of humidity.

Tuesday began in the 50s for most of the Houston area. Houston will continue to be very pleasant into the coming week. In fact, a reinforcing shot of cool and dry air will arrive Saturday. And there will be plenty of mornings in the 50s and highs in the low 80s starting on Saturday.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do planet or planeta, pronounced plah-NAY-taah. Do you miss Pluto as a planeta? I've got some thoughts on the matter in the AND MORE section.

Volume 3 DVD of my award winning education series, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco, will be released soon. A CD of music from volumes 1 through 3 will be released at the same time. Volume 3 will cover the alphabet (with words beginning with those letters), numbers 1 through 20 and colors. Until it's ready for release, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco Volumes 1 and 2 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
Polls
My poll, on how far the Houston Texans football team will go, is closed. 40% said they thought they will make the playoffs. 20% said they will make the AFC Championship. 20% said they will make the Super Bowl. And 20% said they will win the Super Bowl. Thanks to all who responded.

My new poll is on the planet Pluto. Do you think it should be reinstated as the
9th planet? Thanks in advance for answering.

Pluto-9th Planet or Not
Unless you've been under a rock or a small planet, you probably heard that back in 2006, Pluto lost its status as the 9th planet of our solar system. I was devastated and grieve to this day. It was one of the platforms of my childhood. How many solar systems did I build with 9 planets...how many models did I see with 9 planets...how many science fairs did I attend with dozens of 9 planet solar systems? And the name Pluto...it was just perfect for a tiny little 9th planet at the end of our solar system. Everything was right in my world and in my solar system. The loss of that 9th planet Pluto shook me to my core. Well, recently I was excited to see that the New Horizon spacecraft (launched in 2006) has only 5 more years until it passes by Pluto and makes some observations. I thought finally this dear little planet will be vindicated and claim its rightly place in the planet hierarchy. But alas, it looks like even New Horizon can't save it. Upon further investigation, I learned that Pluto is one of what are believed to be more than 40 dwarf planets. So, if we were to be fair, we would have to induct those other 40+ dwarf planets onto our list, including the asteroid Ceres and Pluto's moon Charon. Ceres is actually larger than Pluto. Okay, let's say we just took in the top 3 dwarf planets (that we know of). then we would have 11 planets. Nahhhhhh...you can't go home. The damage has been done and Pluto has been permanently demoted to dwarf planet. I'll revisit this topic when New Horizon reports back in 2015. Don't worry...the time will fly.

10 ounce versus 12 ounce beers
My nephew Taylor (of legal age by the way) just told me that his friend from Louisiana told him about 10 ounce beers which are the only size sold where he lives in Louisiana. Well as I had never seen this, I was quite intrigued. He said that his friend prefers it...saying that you can drink 10 ounces fast enough that it is cold the whole time. But that last 2 ounces in a 12 ounce...well it just gets warm and yucky. Others say it just tastes better. And some people just prefer the feel of the more slender can. Bottom line, they'll take the 10 ounce beer even at the same price.

So, I started checking this out and it turns out this size got popular in St. Mary's County Maryland in the 50s. Today, it is popular around New Orleans, in one other county in Maryland, in parts of Mississippi, in St. Mary's County Maryland, Puerto Rico and a few places in Texas. And get this--all of Budweiser's 10 ounce beers are made in Houston. (But I've never seen one--not that I shop for beer a lot...but I think I would have noticed ha ha).

Anyway, here's the link to the story in Gazette.net.
http://www.gazette.net/stories/111705/busipgl154036_31896.shtml


Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Waiting for Matthew to form/Cold Front Heading this Way

Watching disturbance in the Caribbean this morning as this could become Tropical Storm Matthew by this time Thursday. Hurricane Recon will check it out later today. Big questions are how strong it will get and where it will go. Trough moving across US may eventually steer it northward (toward Florida?) or it could stall out in western Caribbean and eventually be drawn north by a later trough or even another possibility. Models show a variety of possible tracks. So, stay tuned.

Tropical Storm Lisa is way out in Atlantic and not threatening any land areas. Will continue to monitor.

In Pacific, Tropical Depression Georgette is moving northward across the Gulf of California having made landfall on the Baja peninsula as a weak tropical storm. Will likely bring some heavy rain to the southwest US (in particular Arizona) before getting drawn into the trough moving eastward across the US.

Speaking of that trough, it will swing a cold front through Houston on Sunday. Look for some thunderstorms beforehand (especially on Saturday and possibly early Sunday). Then Monday through at least the middle of the coming week...sunshine, low humidity, lows in 60s, highs in 80s.

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

First Cold Front Coming!/3 Month Weather Outlooks/Houston Texans Poll

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
Hurricane Igor passed just west of Bermuda late Sunday night as a Category 1 hurricane. Although there has been some damage, it was not nearly as bad as Hurricane Fabian in 2003...the eastern end of this major hurricane with 115 mph winds hit the western part of Bermuda causing major damage. According to the National Hurricane Center, there were 4 fatalities on Bermuda and $300 US of property damage. Prior to Fabian, the worst storm was half a century earlier. From here, Igor will likely move northward and eventually weaken with the remnants bringing rain to Greenland.

Julia is a tropical storm east of Igor which will probably not affect any land areas.

In the far eastern Atlantic, there is an area with an 80% chance of developing (next storm name is Lisa). Most models show it going north...but it is very early. So stay tuned.

I will say that one of the more extended forecast models, shows something developed near Florida in the middle of the coming week (a week from Wednesday). So, I'll be checking that out over the next few days.

In the eastern Pacific, there is a new disturbance brewing which has a good chance of developing and moving northward into the Baja California/western Mexico.

There is a slight risk for severe storms today for Minnesota and Wisconsin. There will be many areas with thunderstorms. Upper 40s today around Cut Bank, Montana while Phoenix should be one of the hottest spots with 100+ readings. 60s for California coast and 50s and 60s for the northern tier of states. Elsewhere, 70s to 90s with southeast and south nice and steamy.

Houston, very warm and muggy into Saturday with scattered showers and thunderstorms each day. First real cold front arrives late Saturday bringing lower humidity and sunshine by Monday (as well as morning lows in the upper 60s). Yay!!!

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do bicycle or bicicleta, pronounced bee-see-CLEH-tah. It can be expensive to ride a bicicleta for a living...find out why in the AND MORE section.

Volume 3 DVD of my award winning education series, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco, will be released soon. A CD of music from volumes 1 through 3 will be released at the same time. Volume 3 will cover the alphabet (with words beginning with those letters), numbers 1 through 20 and colors. Until it's ready for release, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco Volumes 1 and 2 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
Poll Results and New Poll
My poll on favorite Dairy Queen Blizzard is closed. 80% of the respondents said they like the kind with candy added the best (my favorite is butterfinger). 20% said they like cookies added the most. No one selected fruit added or chocolate concoction as their favorite. Only only answer was allowed. Thanks to all who participated.

The Texans won their 2nd game of the season on Sunday, 9/19. How far do you think they will go this season. More than one answer is allowed. Thanks in advance for participating.

Fall Official Begins this Wednesday 9/22
According to the U.S. Naval Observatory, fall will officially being this Tuesday, September 22nd at 10:09 pm. This is called the autumnal equinox and it marks the days when the length of day is about equal to the length of night. Happy Autumn!!!

More about Bermuda
Checked Wikipedia and found out that Bermuda is an archipelago made of 138 islands, located about 640 miles east-southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. It is only 20.6 square miles in size (i.e. if it was a square, it would be a little over 4 miles by 4 miles in size). There are 67,837 inhabitants (according to the most recent census). The biggest island is often called Bermuda also.

It is expensive to be a bicycle courier
I was talking to a bicycle courier the other day. He said he averages about 50 miles on the bike daily. He was super fit, and he said he can eat whatever he wants. I asked him how often he has to replace his bike tires, and he said about once every 3000 miles (so about every 3 months). He said that the bike tires are almost as expensive as car tires. So, I went online and checked out bike tire prices. The most expensive I saw was $74 but there were some more casual models for only about $10. I figure he is probably not using the latter.

Oct/Nov/Dec Temperature/Precipitation Outlooks
The latest 3 months outlooks for October through December from the Climate Prediction Center indicate cooler than normal conditions for coastal California but warmer than normal for the southwest and south. See figure at right.

For precipitation, the outlook is drier than normal weather for the southwest and south and wetter than normal for the Pacific Northwest. See figure at right.

Drought Monitor and Outlook
Northern Louisiana, northeast West Virginia and western Hawaii are hardest hit by drought. Forecast is for persistence in drought for most of these locations and development of drought in western Arkansas. See figures at right.

Hang in there everyone...the cooler weather is almost here.

Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Tropical Storm Karl Forms in Caribbean

Tropical Storm formed this afternoon (Tuesday 9/14) in the western Caribbean. There is some good news for Texas and the entire Gulf coast. Looks like the storm will move across the Yucatan as a tropical storm only and then hit northern Mexico once it crosses the southern Gulf. And for Mexico there is good news in that the Yucatan will weaken the storm and it shouldn't have much time to strengthen before it makes its 2nd landfall.

It could however be a big rain producer.

Meanwhile it looks less and less likely that Hurricanes Igor and Julia will strike the mainland US.

I'll have more in my next post.

Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Major Hurricane Igor, Tropical Storm Julia, Is Karl Next?

Happy Sunday Evening everyone -
A big change over the last 24 hours with Igor strengthening dramatically and becoming a major hurricane. Everyone from the Mid-Atlantic northward should be watching this storm carefully and reviewing their hurricane plans. It is still too soon to tell if the storm will hit the US.

A new tropical storm named Julia has formed in the eastern Atlantic. This one will probably not be a threat to the US but it is way too early to determine.

In the Caribbean, a disturbance is having a tough time getting its act together. At least one intensity forecasting model is showing it becoming a tropical storm by Monday night. If that happens, it will be named Karl. Forecast models are all saying that it would hit Mexico. We will know a lot more in a few days.

Have a great week everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Tropical Update/Mannequin's Day Ruined by Fire

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
Tropical Storm Igor is strengthening again. According to the National Hurricane Center, it should be a hurricane by tonight. And, it is forecast to continue getting stronger over the next several days, turning so that the US will likely not be threatened. Meanwhile, watching a disturbance in the eastern Caribbean that has a 60% chance of becoming a tropical storm in the next couple days and a disturbance in the eastern Atlantic that has a 50% chance of becoming a tropical storm in the next couple days. Model and ensemble forecasts suggest that the eastern Caribbean disturbance will track across the Yucatan and into northern Mexico. Stay tuned.

Eastern Pacific is quiet.

Very hot and humid across the south and southeast this Saturday with thunderstorms from Texas to the Ohio Valley and over to the eastern seaboard and through the southeast. Highs in the 60s and 70s for western California, the northern states/New England (including New York and Washington D.C.).

Houston, it is just hot and sticky for no real relief in sight through the coming week. There will be some scattered showers and thunderstorms, but that's it!

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do fire or fuego, pronounced FWAY-goh. Find out how fuego ruined one mannequin's life in the AND MORE section.

If you are in Fort Bend County and you would like to see my award winning DVDs, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco, head to your public library. I donated several copies to the area libraries. Of course, you can always see clips on our web site. I just finished getting some music clips to put on our web site now that my Volume 3 DVD will be released soon. A CD of music from volumes 1 through 3 will be released at the same time. Volume 3 will cover the alphabet (with words beginning with those letters), numbers 1 through 20 and colors. Until it's ready for release, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco Volumes 1 and 2 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 have long wanted to learn more about a store called Bug Time, a do it yourself extermination supply store in Stafford 4647 South Main Street (it's really the feeder road and one of the improved sections of Hwy 90). Their number is 281-565-9061. For at least a year, they have had a mannequin outside, decorated in various ways to bring attention to the shop. For the longest time, there was a male mannequin. That disappeared and was replaced by a female mannequin about 3 months ago. Now I hadn't seen the female mannequin for a couple weeks and there is a reason. Apparently, someone set fire to the truck it was placed on...ruining the truck and burning up all but the head of the mannequin. The male mannequin can't be used as a replacement as it had deteriorated due to the elements.

Owner Ron says they are debating whether or not to order a new mannequin. He said that it was their best advertising...bringing in more business than anything else. He said the nearby Dulles High School kids loved the mannequins and frequently added their own fun decorations. Ron said he would come to work in the morning only to find some new type of decoration that was clever and funny. He said one time he had removed the mannequin for a while and when he put it back, the kids put up signs saying "welcome back" and such.

So, I'll let you know if he gets a new mannequin. The suspense is almost unbearable.

On this September 11th, special prayers that God will bless our country and give comfort to all who are still suffering and grieving.

Have a great weekend everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Hermine Not Done Yet/Hello Igor

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
The National Hurricane Center has issued the last advisory on Hermine. But now it is being tracked by the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center, because it still has lots of potential to dump flooding rains. Speaking of rain totals, Georgetown and much of Austin picked up a foot or more of rain. Houston had some 3+ totals but handled it well.

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Igor has formed in the far eastern Atlantic. Model predictions mostly suggest a turn to the north at some point. Will watch. Too soon to tell for sure.

Two other disturbed areas are being watched including what is left of Gaston now in the Caribbean. The National Hurricane Center says nearly a 0% chance of that developing in the next couple of days. Will keep watching.

Tropical Pacific is quiet.

Slight risk for severe storms for the western northern plains on Thursday. Many areas of the country will also have thunderstorms and flooding rains will threaten the nations mid-section as the remnant of Hermine track northeastward.

Houston will be muggy will only a scattered showers or thunderstorms into the weekend. Long range looks continued warm with some very slightly drier air next week...don't get your hopes up...will still be muggy.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do book or libro, pronounced LEE-bro. Find out about 2 books I really endorse in the AND MORE section.

Getting some music clips to put on our web site now that my Volume 3 DVD will be released soon. A CD of music from volumes 1 through 3 will be released at the same time. Volume 3 will cover the alphabet (with words beginning with those letters), numbers 1 through 20 and colors. Have had a few of Sarah's friends checking out the rough draft of Volume 3 and they were glued to the set. Until it's ready for release, you can order my award winning DVDs, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco Volumes 1 and 2 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
Today is the 110th anniversary of the Great Galveston Storm of 1900, the worst weather disaster in US history--as many as 12,000 deaths. There were a lot of parallels between Hurricane Ike of 2008 and that storm. Now, I am reading a fascinating book filled with Ike anecdotes and flashbooks to the 1900 Storm and all kinds of interesting connections. It is called Infinite Monster by Leigh Jones and Rhiannon Meyers. Thanks to my buddy and hurricane historian, Lew Fincher, owner of Hurricane Consulting, for giving me the book.

Speaking of books and in honor of Rosh Hashanah, I am also recommending a book called The Lost Cellos of Lev Aronson by Frances Brent. I just finished the book about Lev Aronson, an accomplished cellist, who suffered greatly through the Holocaust. It's a great read and I can't stop thinking about all he endured. May we never forget!

Have a terrific Thursday everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Flood and Tornado Threat Update Tuesday Morning 9/07

Hello everyone -
Rain from the weakening Hermine is bringing a threat of flooding for the next 2 or 3 days. As I write this post this morning, I have not seen any reports of tornadoes, but that could change. The biggest concerns right now are possible tornadoes and flooding.

FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING 9/08

The following is the advisory from the National Weather Service. Please keep in mind that I am posting this on Tuesday morning. The watch area and timing will likely be modified over the next day or so. Please consult the Houston/Galveston National Weather Service office for the very latest updates.

THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS NOW IN EFFECT FOR

* A PORTION OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS...INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING
COUNTIES...AUSTIN...BRAZORIA...COLORADO...FORT BEND...
GALVESTON...HARRIS...JACKSON...MATAGORDA...WALLER AND WHARTON.

* THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING

* THE REMNANTS OF TROPICAL STORM HERMINE WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE
SLOWLY ACROSS SOUTH TEXAS THIS MORNING AND THEN INTO WEST
CENTRAL TEXAS BY EARLY WEDNESDAY. THE WIDESPREAD PRECIPITATION
OVER SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS IS EXPECTED TO MOVE INTO SOUTHEAST
TEXAS TODAY AND TONIGHT. LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN AND TRAINING CELLS
ARE LIKELY. EXPECT WIDESPREAD 1 TO 3 INCH RAINFALL AMOUNTS
THROUGH TONIGHT WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR SOME AREAS TO EXPERIENCE
5 TO 10 INCHES WHERE TRAINING PRECIPITATION OCCURS.

TORNADO WATCH
The following is the advisory from the National Weather Service. Please keep in mind that I am posting this on Tuesday morning. The watch area and timing will likely be modified over the next day or so. Please consult the National Weather Service/Storm Prediction Center for the very latest updates.

The National Weather Service has issued a Tornado Watch effective until 1 pm Tuesday 9/07 for the following counties:

TEXAS COUNTIES INCLUDED ARE

ARANSAS AUSTIN BEE
BRAZORIA CALHOUN COLORADO
DEWITT FAYETTE FORT BEND
GOLIAD GONZALES JACKSON
JIM WELLS KARNES KLEBERG
LAVACA LIVE OAK MATAGORDA
NUECES REFUGIO SAN PATRICIO
VICTORIA WALLER WASHINGTON
WHARTON

Be safe everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Tropical Storm Hermine/Flash Flood Watch/DQ Mini-blizzard

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
Tropical Storm Hermine is strengthening in the southern Gulf, but it doesn't have much time to strengthen as it should make landfall tonight over northern Mexico or southern Texas. Bottom line...there is going to be a lot of rain. A vast area is under a flash flood watch including the following portion of Houston. The following is the Monday morning advisory from the Houston National Weather Service. Please understand that the watch area and duration will likely change over the next couple of days. So be sure to check with the local media and the Houston National Weather Service for the very latest advisories.

FLASH FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT FROM THIS EVENING THROUGH TUESDAY
EVENING...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HOUSTON/GALVESTON HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WATCH FOR A PORTION OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS...INCLUDING
THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...AUSTIN...BRAZORIA...COLORADO...FORT
BEND...JACKSON...MATAGORDA AND WHARTON.

The watch means that conditions are favorable for heavy rain. Once flooding is occurring or imminent, the National Weather Service will issue Flash Flood Warnings. Once that happens, you should avoid driving and stay at home unless advised to do other wise.

Elsewhere in the Tropical Atlantic, still watching the remnant of Gaston which could become a tropical storm again within the next 2 days as conditions are favorable for that.

Tropical Pacific is quiet.

Houston, heaviest rain will be early Tuesday through Wednesday but there could be scattered showers and thunderstorms thereafter through the coming weekend.

In the nation the Labor Day, many locations will have thunderstorms and there is a slight risk of severe storms for Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do rain or lluvia, pronounced YOU-vee-ah. There will be a lot of lluvia in Texas this week.

Volume 3 will be released soon. Volume 3 will cover the alphabet (with words beginning with those letters), numbers 1 through 20 and colors. Have had a few of Sarah's friends checking out the rough draft of Volume 3 and they were glued to the set. Until it's ready for release, you can order my award winning DVDs, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco Volumes 1 and 2 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
Mini-blizzard at DQ
I love the mini-blizzard size at Dairy Queen (DQ)...just the right size for portion control. I think the price is a bit high...$2.29 at the DQ we go to. Speaking of that, I was interested in how they grouped the choices for blizzards...4 groups. Which type is your favorite? Put in your vote in my new poll at right. Only one answer is allowed. Thanks in advance for participating.

Magic Exhibit Coming to an End
This is the last weekend to see the Magic exhibit at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. If you are looking for something to do with the kids, I heard it is not to be missed.

Baylor College of Medicine Visit with Medical Students
Thursday, Sarah joined Gordy and me giving a talk to the Baylor College of Medical Students as part of their genetics lecture series. We were joined by two families with adults with Williams Syndrome and one with a little girl, Emma, with velo-cardio-facial syndrome (VCFS). See photo at right and here is the link:
http://vcfsef.org/
VCFS is the 2nd most common syndrome after Down Syndrome. Yet, it is way underdiagnosed. I have written about it previously in my blog--about a year ago.

We were there to speak about living with Smith-Magenis Syndrome (SMS). For more information, go to prisms.org. Thankfully, our experience has been much easier than that of most families.

Sarah formed a new friendship with medical student, Chaya (see right), who said that she went to the same elementary school that Sarah is attending now. And she had the teacher who is now Sarah's principal. Small world! Good luck in your studies Chaya.

Special thanks to Dr. Lorraine Potocki, her assistant Valerie Price and all the wonderful people at Baylor Genetics for helping to enlighten the next generation of doctors. Interestingly, at our last appointment with Sarah's immunologist, there was a young doctor assisting who said that he remembers us giving the lecture to students when Sarah was a toddler.

Hi-Rise Truck
Just had to share this photo I snapped of a high rise truck...this is one of the highest I have ever seen.

Be safe with the heavy rain everyone. Remember, turn around, don't drown. Never cross a flooded roadway on foot or in a car.

Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Tropical Depression #10 and Wet Week Ahead for TX

Hello Everyone -
Just a quick update this evening as Tropical Depression #10 has formed in the southern Gulf. It may become Tropical Storm Hermine before moving into Mexico. East Texas will be on the wet side of the flow around this system so more than anything, it looks like much of Texas including Houston area will get drenched this week--especially Tuesday and Wednesday.

More to come!

Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Watching Gaston/Labor Day Weekend Forecast

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
3 named storms in the Atlantic and possibly a 4th named Hermine in a few days.

Most immediate concern is Earl, a Category 4 hurricane which might hit the outlying areas of the eastern seaboard on Thursday and southern New England on Friday. I am reminded of a great book called Sudden Sea about the 1938 storm that slammed into eastern Connecticut and Rhode Island.

Fiona is not forecast to become a hurricane but it could pass very close to Bermuda.

Finally, I am watching Gaston, pronounce ga-STAWN which is forecast to become a hurricane on Friday and move westward. Long range steering environment could bring it into the Gulf middle of next week. So stay tuned.

Slight risk for severe storms on Thursday from northern Texas to southern Wisconsin. Very hot in the desert Southwest with lots of 100+ readings. Hot and sticky across the south and southeast with highs in the 90s. Very pleasant for most of the west coast, Rockies, central and northern plains and New England with highs in the 60s and 70s and low humidity.

Big trough which will steer Earl northward will also usher an early September "cold" front into Houston late Friday. Lower humidity air arrives in advance--early Friday. But the big improvement will be late Friday and through Sunday. Should be a very pleasant weekend with mild mornings and warm afternoons with low humidity. Look for some rain to return as early as Labor Day Monday and scattered storms Tuesday and Wednesday.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do hot or caliente, pronounced cah-lee-EHN-tay. It sure has been caliente this summer. See my global warming poll results in the AND MORE section.

Volume 3 will be released soon. Volume 3 will cover the alphabet (with words beginning with those letters), numbers 1 through 20 and colors. Have had a few of Sarah's friends checking out the rough draft of Volume 3 and they were glued to the set. Until it's ready for release, you can order my award winning DVDs, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco Volumes 1 and 2 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
My poll on global warming is closed. 50% said they thought manmade global warming is causing the extreme record heat. 0% said they thought naturally occurring global warming is causing the exreme record heat. And 50% said they were not sure what the cause is. Only one answer was allowed. Thanks to all who participated. I hope to have a new poll in my next post.

Have a terrific Thursday everyone.
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman