The Big Chill January 2010

Well the cold weather has settled into south Texas.  Boy has it.  Fear of freezing pipes caused me to open up the attic access to let some heat up there to keep it a bit warmer.

I put the thermometer up there, to be able to monitor the temp from in the great room.  It was 20 outside this morning, and 31.5 in the attic.  With it being cold again tonight, reports say 20 will continue with the plan until another day or so.

The water in the creek behind us, was frozen solid this morning when I went outside.

The birdbath also a solid block of ice.

Beautiful sunny day with temp at about 42.  But it will be cold again tonight.  Tom and I attempted to do some geocaching today while out with the dogs for a walk.  Tried to find 3 at the waterway, but no luck.

Oh well, we will need to keep trying.

Will we be able to flush for long?

NOTICE

Stage 2 water restrictions in effect for The Woodlands:

Because of excessive water use in The Woodlands stemming from the excessively dry weather conditions, Stage 2 voluntary water restrictions are in effect. All Woodlands residents are urged to limit outdoor water activities like filling ornamental fountains, filling pools and washing vehicles. Residential irrigation schedules are as follows: addresses ending in an odd number (1, 3, 5, 7, and 9) are limited to Wednesdays and Saturdays. Addresses ending in even numbers (0, 2, 4, 6, and 8) should water on Thursdays and Sundays. Irrigation guidelines include no more than 1 inch per week in no more than 2 applications per week. All watering should cycle during the nighttime hours and be completed by 4 a.m.

If water use does not subside, Stage 3 mandatory restrictions will be implemented.

Will we be forced to only flush for #2? The lawns are turning brown. It has rained since April. Climate change? I suspect.

I guess they will see who has a green lawn and issue tickets.....

The Heat is On

Summer has come to the Gulf Coast. It is hot and steamy today. True Houston weather. The weather I remember as a child growing up here. I can remember hanging out with friends in high school in the summer, driving around with the sticky air giving no respite even at night. You are so happy to have sleeveless cotton shirts and shorts in this climate. Who cares what the thighs look like. It is all about comfort. I stuck my foot in the pool tonight and should have jumped in. It felt good but I was consumed with getting the tiki torches I just bought out in the yard for a test. I was on a mission to simulate the tropical jungle theme for real in the back yard.

Waiting for Ike

We are hunkered down, awaiting the storm. It is pretty windy, but the rain has not started yet. I don't think we are going to get the force of things until around 5 am. I am trying to decide if I should sleep on the floor in the closet (as the weather service suggests) or just go to bed and wait to be awakened by the storm and it heads into our area. I suspect we are going to get a lot of wind and tree's down. I sure hope we don't lose power. I did down load Curb your Enthusiasm to my Iphone to watch in case of power loss. Everyone took time today to do their preparation. It is so strange and such a long waiting period.

Anderson Cooper from CNN is reporting live from downtown Houston tonight. This storm is big news, and will be really bad when we see tomorrow.

Here We Go Again - Ike is Approaching

This one seems to be heading closer to our neck of the woods. Time to get ready, and hunker down.

Storm Watch

We are watching this storm as it could hit anywhere along the coast. Tom sure thinks I am silly for getting gas in the car and buying water.
I will be keeping the weather tracking up on my computer for the next few days.

Dud Tropical Storm

Funny how the local weather teams were having to show a puddle while
on location as the storm was not as expected, and coverage should
have been scaled back.

Tom thought it particularly funny that I was rushing around in advance pulling in all the plants and lawn furniture outside that could become projectiles.

I remember as a kid in Houston, Hurricane Carla coming our way. Mother was the life of the party and threw a hurricane party for the neighbors. Plenty of cocktails, and snacks heated up with sterno under chaffing dishes. I remember the next door neighbors wrapping their kid up in a blanket to brave the storm home. I suppose being half in the bag might be a good way to ride out a Cat 4 hurricane

But my mother was crazy, and thought that if we hid in the cedar closet, we would be protected from nuclear weapons shot our way, so a little cocktail party with 75 mph winds seemed perfectly normal.

Having spent 35 years in earthquake zone, it certainly is a welcome concept that here near the gulf coast, one can prepare for the natural disaster heading our way. No longer have the fear of being awakened to the house coming down around you.

The earthquake kit was easily transformed into the Hurricane Kit. When I pulled it down from the shelf in the garage, I found bottles of water labeled Y2K. I was prepared for that potential disaster as well. I had to laugh that we moved the water from California, kept it in storage for 6 months as well. I hated to pour the stale stuff out. It was worth it's weight in gold.