Viene la Tormenta!

An unseasonable storm's a-coming, forecast to dump a couple of inches of rain in the area in just one day. Winds up to 60mph gusts. All this is traced back to the typhoon that hit Japan hard less than a week ago. The worst of this storm will occur around 2:00pm PDT on Tuesday, 10/13/2009 and expected to leave quickly, tapering off by Wednesday afternoon or evening.

Hoping to get through this unscathed.

Fall is Definitely Here

We supposedly had a few drops very early Sunday morning, but I wouldn't know it, not getting outside until close to 10:00am. I geared up and rode to Auburn, CA for a quick bite and to read the Sunday paper before heading another few miles to Meadow Vista. Friends were setting up a couple of nets for some pickup volleyball games.

I made sure I bundled up well before leaving the house, but decided to put away my jacket liner after my meal. I figured it was around noon and things have warmed up a bit; also, what's a few miles even if it may still be a little on the cool side? A few miles of a chilly cold ride, once you factor in the windchill factor.

The temps got just above the mid-60s in the foothills, and there was a slight breeze blowing and some patchy cloud cover. Dark, patchy clouds. The occasional rays of sunshine breaking through were warm and welcome. The weather reports dustings of snow up in the mountains, Lake Tahoe included.

I'm just hoping that the storms passing through will subside long enough for a ride next weekend, or the following weekend, to witness the forests' changing colors. But I'm sure the triple digit temps are all behind us now... fall is definitely here.

Hell

The temps in the area have hit triple digits over the past couple of days (and possibly will for the next couple)... but another cooldown is forecast for the weekend.

Yeah, this week's been hell.

Snow

And here we have... snow! It has fallen, is falling, and reached lower elevation levels (but I haven't seen it here in the valley near sea level). This morning I still chose to motorcycle in to work, the area having experienced overnight lows in the upper-20s to low-30s.

Not sure how much will fall in the upper Sierra with this storm system, but any is a blessing.

No Snow

It's just over a week away before Winter officially begins and we're still lacking snow in the hills!

Living here in Northern California is (usually) a skier's paradise, where numerous resorts are within easy reach for a day's, or weekend's, worth of bombing down the mountainside. Squaw Valley, Alpine, Heavenly, Northstar, Sugar Bowl, Donner, Boreal, Sierra, Kirkwood... to name a few. There are also enough terrain besides these resorts that cater to the nordic types who'd rather schuss along on skinny x-country skis.

But maybe not this season. It's really that bad, and unless a lot of snow is coming around the corner, we are also looking at a severe drought year; we depend on the water content in the mountain snow packs.

Fog!

The Sacramento Valley was socked in fog all weekend long, making it a bit chilly for me to really want to bundle up and ride. Of course, if I rode up to the foothills and out of the valley, I'm betting I'd be rewarded with sunshine. But then again, it's these types of days that should have me keeping close to home and getting much neglected chores done.

I strung a few colored lights up in my back patio for the holidays (LED is the way to go). Went out and bought a new overhead light fixture for the kitchen from Home Depot. I moved the one in the kitchen to the dining area; the one from the dining area is now relegated to my storage room. The new fluorescent fixture is SO much brighter and reveals many spots where I missed cleaning. I'm slowly trying to thin out the stuff I've squirreled away in my other bedroom, as well as what's stashed here and there throughout the house.

Had to throw a battery charger on my pickup since it's been awhile since I last drove it. Grabbed several bags of grocery, including 10 12-packs of Diet Coke that were on sale. Did I mention that my boys love asparagus and green beans? They also enjoy brussel sprouts, which I haven't yet prepared (but finally bought at 89 cents per pound... it was over $2.00/lb. for the longest time!).

Tonight I heated up some soup, chopped up some garlic and threw it in along with some frozen peas and corn. Mmm, hot soup on a chilly, foggy evening and Christmas carols playing on the radio in the background. 'Tis the season!

Late Autumn 2008

We are almost two-thirds into the fall season, and unlike the Arizona desert where I was born (and left at the age of 20), Northern California has the traditional four seasons. For the most part. Today's temperature reached 80 degrees, and Saturday's forecast calls for more of the same. Heck, the town of Napa almost hit 90 degrees today! We're breaking records here.

We really need some rain (and snow in the mountains), but other than that, I'm not complaining. I'm gonna don my leathers and go riding!

Riding in the Rain

I'm riding in the rain, just riding in the rain... what a glorious feelin', I'm happy again!

The rains came. Last Friday. Except for he break we had on Sunday (which brought mostly blue skies and sunshine) our weather forecasters have been spot on regarding the precip that's descended on our region. I took light rail to and from work for the first time since the skies went dry last spring, and wouldn't you know, my train goes kaput to start off my weekend. Thankfully the outage only lasted about 20 minutes.

Wow, it just dumped cats and dogs outside as I continue to type.

Tomorrow morning the storms should be history and I can resume my two-wheeled commuting again. I was just thinking about the many times I've been caught riding in the rain... caught, I say, since I rarely consider heading out when the wet stuff threatens to fall. It's one thing to be rained on while close to home, and a whole 'nuther story when stuck hundreds of miles away. How far is far?

Portland, OR
Spokane, WA
Eureka, MT
Aspen and Vail, CO
Salt Lake City, UT
Flagstaff, AZ
the northern CA coast
the Sierra Nevadas

My friend wrote to say that he got caught riding in the rain on his commute home Thursday evening (whereas I caught only a few droplets). Not being a seasoned rider, his comment was that it was scary. Regardless of experience, it is scary having to share the roadways with idiots in urban traffic; I'd rather take my chances on the open road, hundreds of miles from home.

Forecasting Fall

The clouds came in Friday, and I experienced a few droplets of rain on the way home from work (I still commuted on my motorcycle). It wasn't like I was going to melt. Late in the evening the rains came, with enough falling to give us a good overdue soaking. My alarm clock scared me up this morning to overcast skies which slowly broke way to blue and sunshine. Temps climbed to at least 70 degrees while clouds still loomed along the horizon. I rode out for lunch and stayed around town; perfect day for a long ride if it weren't for residual road dampness and slippery leaves where I might end up riding. Or more weather, especially up in the mountains.

Our weather forecast for the coming week will be pleasant days in the low 80s!

The Oven

That's what I feel like we're in right now. The valley is filled with smoke from the remaining fires (several hundred, from the 1000+ burning a couple of weeks ago... the smoke due to a wind shift). Temps hit a 103 degree high depending on whom you ask, and at 10:00pm PDT it's still around 90 degrees out there!

The a/c is running while I'm kicked back on my couch typing this. Headlining the news is a hazardous air quality warning in effect through at least Thursday. Record to near record temps. Ugh.

48 Hours

This was some Memorial Day weekend. The weather was cloudy and grey in contrast to what are normally hot sunny days for this time of year. We even had some showers! Didn't matter much to me however. I was laid up in bed from 6:00am Sunday morning until early Tuesday morning. My stomach churned, I was cold, I was hot, my body ached. Thoughts and dreams that went through my head made very little sense... well, less so than usual anyway. The Sunday and Monday newspapers sat unread. I made sure to feed and water my boys, and quenched my thirst since I was quite parched presumably through breathing through my mouth. Monday afternoon I tried getting up and watching a bit of tele, thinking that my soreness is from too much time lying in bed; that didn't last long, as I crawled back under my covers. TV kinda sucked.

Called in sick to work today for recuperation and cleanup. Lost a few pounds from my involuntary fast, but I'm beginning to feel a bit hungry. My lovely boys sat by me through all this; so glad to have them around.

Hump Day

All quiet on the homefront, so I figure I'd post something, say anything. Here goes.

After many days of triple digit temps, we've had a cooldown. This week has been and will be around 80 degrees tops. It's quite a welcome respite, save for one niggling annoyance: the wind. I've ragged about the wind in past posts which, along with fog, are my least favorite weather conditions. The crap that the wind stirs up have been a nuisance for allergy sufferers. There's also stuff that get blown over, our region having gone through just that only a few months ago. Trees. Power lines. Fences.

It is Wednesday, mid-week and often referred to as hump day. It's a mystery to me how calendars came about where weeks begin on a Sunday and end on a Saturday. If God rested on Sunday, wouldn't the week begin with a Monday and Thursday will be smack dab in the middle and become the hump day? Or we can credit the bankers for giving us the 9-to-5 M-F schedule that sandwiches Wednesday between two pairs of other work days.

Memorial Day weekend is around the corner and there are sales advertised everywhere I look. Kinda nice that I just received my stimulus check from Uncle Sam, except that it's all been spent (e.g. the insurance deductible and then some, for my motorcycle engine damage). I guess that's the latest excuse. Going back chronologically I could say that it had already been spent on the central heat and a/c replacement. Or last summer's vacation. Or a myriad of purchases hi-tech or home & garden related. Ad infinitum, but a buck's a buck.

Have a safe upcoming holiday weekend!

Another Drought Year

Just what we need... another drought year. Things looked promising earlier in the year with all the snow in the mountains (and the water content in that snow). Hmm, part of my chores today included watering the lawn, of which I still have plenty. Crabgrass mostly. Got a large load of laundry done too.

Our neighborhood is not on water meters, yet. That may be an inevitability however, so I'll need to start figuring out what I can do with my landscape.

Wither the Rain?

It's April Fool's Day, but I did not bother celebrating this year. Rather pointless seeing that just about every other day is such a day, or am I just kidding? I dunno.

Last month was one of our driest on record, having gotten a few drops from a passing "storm" last Friday on my way home from work. I don't know how much was recorded if not negligible; clouds remained throughout most of Saturday, which began clearing by late afternoon. The forecast for tomorrow, Wednesday, was another chance for some showers but looks to pass us by according to the weather station I'm watching right now. It's our local weather channel, because there isn't anything else on the boob tube that I care to watch.

Instead, the precipitation will probably end up in the mountains to the east, even better if it's in the form of snow. Used to be I'd clamor for the rain so we wouldn't end up with a drought stricken summer, but now I'm wondering if I should have been so concerned. Our water supply in the valley comes from the amount of water in our snowpack in the Sierras. If managed properly we should be okay.

Hoping that that's not a big if.

And Then The Wind

All this wind just blows!

Today's storm has brought down power lines and many trees, and tossed about property that wasn't securely tied down. Watching this evening's news revealed more traffic collisions had occured than is imaginable. Some of the fallen trees have destroyed parked cars and crashed into homes. My truck was okay while it sat at the light rail station, although the trains weren't running resulting from this abhorrent weather (a coworker's husband drove me from work back to the parking lot). The trees surrounding my house were still rooted, although my yard was littered with some branches, none so big as to cause noticeable damage, if any. The rainwater level rose on my back patio due to the poor drainage, so water leaked into the mudroom. Damn. Good thing I have a wet/dry vacuum cleaner. I was most worried about my 10'x10' canvas topped metal gazebo; the winds were more violent than I have ever experienced. Whew, it was still standing and appeared unscathed.

However, half my backyard redwood fence had blown over (onto my side), knocking over a metal citronella torch and nearly disrupting some stones I set up around a little pond I've been working on for over the past year. Hah, did I not previously hint that when it rains, it pours?

C'est la vie!

Winter Solstice

Here we have the first day of Winter, and the night is going to be as long as it's gonna get. Our nights have been a bit on the chilly side (and of course, this is all relative, especially if you ask those in the Northeast part of our country who may be experiencing blizzards and subzero temps). It's dipped to around freezing... plenty cold for me. This is in contrast to a summer ride I made a few years ago through Death Valley (Stove Pipe Wells was a brief stopover). All suited up in protective gear and it was 120 degrees at 200' below sea level.

I still think my body parts function a bit better on the warm side.

Not So White Xmas

We had a cold front come down from Canada, so overnight lows have dipped into the 30s, above freezing. However, the days have still been sunny with temps in the low 60s (last week it was in the upper-60s); today we had gusty breezes.

Thanksgiving came and went (hope everyone had an enjoyable turkey feast... I did), but our Sierra range is still left with little to no snow! Perhaps blame it on global warming. Our water supply is dependent upon the snowpack in the mountains, along with the amount of water in that snowpack. Northern CA's ski industry is hurting too.

Let's see what the next 3 or 4 months will bring.

Cold August Nights

Last night there was a cold breeze blowing... not cool, but cold. This morning was overcast and the temps never made it past the mid-70s; our normal high is in the mid-90s, putting us 20 degrees off the mark. What gives? This is August!

But I'm not complaining.

Update from the Bee:

We're talking, for once, about the all-time lowest maximums, instead of the all-time highest. Monday's downtown high was just 74 degrees, 3 degrees cooler than the previous record of 77 degrees set in 1906, according to the National Weather Service. Sunday's downtown high of 76 frosted the previous low maximum of 78, set in 1962.