Changes Afoot

Change is coming to the High Sierra this weekend. The Reno AFD promises a much cooler and wetter regime is due in for Saturday night. Snow levels will be above pass levels, but the rain and cold will set the table for the Snowmakers. Tuesday the system moves south and the Tahoe Sierra warms a little.

It looks like snow for Halloween is gonna be a tough ticket. I looked at Boreal's mountain webcam this afternoon...it still looks a lot like summertime...the forecast says thunderstorms are likely as the system arrives. Sounds like a good time is on it's way!

There may be lingering high cloudiness after the fun is over...that would set up warming, humid conditions...they'll need clear skies before the temps drop enough to blow any man-made snow...enter the ballgame metaphor...it'll be great spectating. 

Media Catches Up...Maybe
A headline posted at Watts' Up With That caught my eye: "BBC told to ensure balance on climate change" Another case of pendulum swing? I think so...I hope so...

Forty years from the founding of the modern environmental movement, it's well past time for the pendulum to begin it's return swing. After forty years of agitating that we "Do Something" about climate change, the data are just beginning to catch up with the debate. Newly published papers have showed an amazing wealth of new connections between naturally occurring ocean cycles, solar cycles, glacier advance and retreat and continental weather in Europe. Similar mechanisms are at work closer to home in the Pacific. Eventually I believe the connections will be demonstrated Pacific-wide, too.

Concurrently, science's ability to measure, understand and correct historical data degradation is improving along the same path as computer speed and power increases do. Increasing computing power is shedding new light on climate and weather, and Man's diminishing role in Global Warming. I hope the news will begin to see the light of day Stateside. This is good news coming down the pike these days...

Good news for Gaia...has a nice ring to it...don'tcha think?

Soldiering On

The Boys look to be havin' a good time down in Baja Sur. The killer app cum appliance, Facebook has been beaming their fishing photos to us Norteños daily, where the non pescadors among KirkVallus' FB friends comment and the fishermen drool and envy.

A mutual friend asked: "I take it T-Dave you're maybe just a bit jealous you're not there?!"

"Not a bit...I'll get 'em next year...did get my Mom's Taxes done tonight, though! More wahoo, Boys!", I replied...I knew in May that I wouldn't be going South this Fall...I had too many pins in the air this year. I'll do it right in 2011...it'll be epic...think Odysseus.

I'm feeling a "good tired" tonight...Income Taxes are just too much hassle. Can we ditch the Income Tax and the millions of pages of rules and go to a Flat Tax, or better yet, a Consumption Tax please? Wouldn't it be wonderful to liberate all those suffering, button downed accountants? Who knows, one of 'em could turn around and cure cancer or something...

So I'm resting up...feelin' the glow of accomplishment...watching some tube...doing the email...thinking about the next round of baseball playoffs. The American League starts Friday...my Giants go to bat Saturday in Philly...it's more epic on tap.

I read some interesting new info about our Sun...but that's a story for a day not devoted to rest and relaxation...on deck, October's 90 Day Climate Outlook Discussion.

Stat Wrap

No, not more baseball, besides I'm a Giants fan, not a stat rat...anyway, I'm givin' it a rest until Saturday when my San Francisco Giants play in Philadelphia.

I've read a few articles lately that cover the changing of the seasons...Mark McLaughlin, of www.thestormking.com penned a look at Truckee's September rainfall and it's place in the High Sierra's Water Year. Everybody gets excited by the first decent storm of the season...old news.

There's two weeks left of Atlantic Hurricane Season, and it's been more quiet than the forecast...nothing of any real import on the horizon either.  The authors mention the early snow on New Hampshire's Mt Washington while apologizing for the weak hurricane season that didn't match the active season forecast.

Sounds like good news to this observer...remember the fears of hurricanes messing with the Gulf Oil Spill? That was a total train wreck even without tropical weather jumping into the fray!

After the High Pressure brought North Winds and Red Flag Fire Weather Warnings over the weekend, here in the Inland Valley, it's warm, but not quite hot. It was a little muggy this afternoon. I worked all afternoon on the Family Books...it's Tax Time in Pepperland...sweaty stuff weather or no.

I'll be back up the Hill once more before Thanksgiving...before the November 2nd General Election actually, so I perused the Reno AFD. They're forecasting warmer than usual weather for the next week...and zero precipitation in the near term.

I'm reminded that it's getting to be Snowmaking Time for Boreal if they're gonna spin a chairlift on Halloween...I'll see if their webcam is online yet...

Waddya know...Boreal's webcam is back online after taking Summer off! Not much to see, the thermometer was 45.9F° at 9:20PM...the mountain lights weren't on, and the Half Moon isn't bright enough to really illuminate the bare ground.

 SturgeUrge, Urge's brother, and KirkVallus are down at the tip of Baja fishing, and the Sea of Cortés is a little cool for this time of year...just like the rest of the Eastern Pacific.

We didn't get a "Regulation Summer" this year...who can say what the Fall will bring?  I'm not a Gambling Man, but I'm tempted to wager that Boreal is gonna be hard pressed to make enough snow for their Halloween Show this time around...either way, it'll be fun to watch!

Resting Up Again

It's amazing to me that I could be weary just from rooting for the San Francisco Giants in September and October.

I have fiddled with my sleep schedule a little over the past few days...getting up extra early to drive SturgeUrge and his brother to the airport early Sunday morning kinda dovetailed into Sunday's Giants' Game...thanks to COMCAST, our cable provider here at the Ancestral Digs.

I've been sleeping through my alarm clock lately...I've been staying up 'till 1AM most nights to watch a talk show on TV...this usually segues into watching the last half hour of Craig Ferguson's "Late, Late Show" (I was a Johnny Carson fan...I never got into Leno, and I'm so over Letterman) I dig that Ferguson is a Proud, Newly-Minted American Citizen! Ferguson is such a fervent American-O-Phile that he got a tattoo of Benjamin Franklin's "Join or Die" woodcut:

It's really easy to wake up and turn off the alarm when you've set it just so you can listen to the local morning radio guys' first hour. It's a different story when you're getting up to head out to work in the morning...knowing my recent behavior is why I awoke at 0430 when I'd set the alarm for 0545, and I stayed up 'till the appointed hour Sunday morning...

So Sunday after I dropped the Baja-Bound guys off at the airport, I did a little shopping on my way home, and hopped back into bed with my laptop to write Sunday's CorduroyPlanet, and to do some email and Sunday Paper Surfing.

Around 10:30AM the broadband quit workin'...I picked up the landline...no dial tone...I got back out of bed, walked into the den, and reset the modem...no joy...I tried a couple more times, to similar results, so I decided on a nap around 10:30AM. I turned the TV on...cableTV was working fine, and set the alarm clock for 12:30PM (The Giants' game's first pitch was scheduled at 1:37PM PDT)

I think I was asleep before my head hit the pillow...I awoke with a start when the CableTV went out. It was 12:25...I grabbed my cell and called COMCAST Service...the Robo-Operator finally droned: "COMCAST is aware of the outage and we are working to restore service in your area"...just an hour to Game Time!

Everything came together 10 minutes or so later...Whew!

A tense game ensued in Atlanta, won in the 9th by the Giants, after losing a one run lead to the Braves in the 8th. A heartbreaking loss for the Braves this time. (They broke our hearts Friday in the 11th)

Monday night's game was another tense one (all Giants' games have been close since the All Star Break) The Giants' Radio Announcers went so far to coin a phrase for the Giant's game winning MO: "Torture" Ha!

Lots of drama, lots of one point games...torture fits. Tuesday the Giants' victory won the Division Series, and they got to spray champagne everywhere. Spirits were high, and ski goggles were worn by the revelers.

Thursday the Giants begin the National League Championship Series against Philadelphia...that's gonna be even more torturous torture!

I'm gonna let the DVR watch the late night stuff for me this week...I'm gonna need my beauty-sleep.

Truth? I'm outta shape...after all, I haven't done this since 1962...and I had the endless energy of youth that time around!

Good night...

Spaced Out

Jeez, I was up early this morning...yeah, I stayed up late too...

Formula One visited Japan this week, and the Japanese Grand Prix was televised LIVE Saturday night at 10:30PM PDT Good racing after a ragged first lap, and a victory for the German Wunderkind, Sebastian Vettel further tightened the race for the Driver's Championship. Five racers are still in the hunt...with three race weekend to go.

The SpeedTV telecast showed a very cool look at some of the latest/greatest technology from the Renault F1 Team. Unbelievably, they did a couple of minutes on the Renault R30's Rear Diffuser.

The rear diffuser is where all the aerodynamic magic happens...a full 40% of an F1 car's downforce is generated by the diffuser...it was really surprising that Renault allowed TV cameras to capture their design...Thanks, Team Renault!

So, the race was over a little before 1AM...I had to get up at 0545 to take some pals to the airport...and I awoke at 0420...little kid on Christmas Morning Syndrome...lots of stuff goin' on in my world today!

I dropped the guys in front of the OAK terminal as the Sun was rising over the East Bay Hills. No fog or "Marine Layer" to mar the moment...the lights were on at the Oakland Coliseum in preparation for today's Raider game.

The thermos of French Roast didn't exactly cut the fog in my brain either...sleep deprivation...marine layer division...

Back at the Ancestral Digs, I fired up the NFL Pre-Game Show on ESPN...I'm just marking time until this afternoon's SF Giants game vs Atlanta...in Atlanta...the tension is already building...hmmm, maybe it is the French Roast...nah...

Preparing to write CorduroyPlanet, I saw a tweet from @Virgin_Galactic announcing a successful glide test over the Mojave this morning. The VSS Enterprise is a Burt Rutan design that is slated to take passengers up to the edge of Space, once they get the testing finished...and I imagine FAA Certification. Private, Commercial Spaceflight is drawing nearer thanks to Sir Richard Branson's vision and cheekyness. I wish him well, I can't wait for Manned Space Travel to come to the Marketplace!

Virgin Galactic's VSS Enterprise hangs below the wing of the launch plane

Sunday Update

CorduroyPlanet will post late Sunday, thanks for your indulgence.