MY BABY IS 21, WHAT A GIFT
85% THERE, JUST A LITTLE MORE HELP
MY FUNDRAISER CONTINUES....
Many of you are daily visitors and make financial or personal decisions based on the information presented. The majority of you appreciate the honesty, accuracy, and knowledge that you gain. If you fall into any of those categories, I ask that you make a $20 dollar investment in what I feel is a unique and reliable product. I'm still about $2,255 from my goal. The future is in your hands, and I hugely appreciate the generosity of those who have contributed. If you find value in the site and see the effort that's put into it, please consider a
minimal donation. T. Swails
21 CANDLES...
I did not realize it at the time, but 21 years ago today, the greatest gift I ever received was given to me in the form of a 6.5 pound baby girl. The light that beamed from her eyes was a torch that came from me. Who knew I could bring something so exceptional into this troubled world. That was the day everything became bigger than me, and I crossed the mantle of manhood. Many years later, I am proud to say she has rewarded my care and attention with amazing memories and accomplishments. What a fantastic journey we are on. She is the gift that keeps on giving. Have a special day, buddy! Love, your dad.
A recent picture of Eden with some of her artwork on display at the Figge Art Museum in the Quad Cities.
The focus of the weather world recently has been the onslaught of Arctic air that has held sway over the central Midwest the past 8 days. Low temperatures in Dubuque have been below zero 6 of the last 7 mornings, and Thursday morning will make it 7 of 8.
We're not quite out of the woods yet, as lows again will go below zero Friday morning. The EURO showing lows that look like this Friday. That will make it 8 out of 9 days below zero in my northern counties. That's an impressive stretch of cold weather.
Due to the cold and associated wind chills, which remain in the range of 15 to 25 below, a COLD WEATHER ADVISORY is in effect through mid-morning Thursday. Another day for the parka.
TIME TO MOVE ON
If you are tired of the cold, and most of us are, feast your eyes on this 500mb jet stream animation. You will notice the deep trough over the center of the nation lifting into the North Atlantic. The flow deamplifies and a W/NW flow aloft allows downsloping winds to develop over the Plains. That effect, along with the introduction of Pacific air, will ramp up temperatures this weekend and get us above freezing by Sunday.
One hindrance to warming at the start of the weekend will be snow cover. Much of the region aside from my southeastern counties has some. The heaviest is in the aqua shades, where 4 or more inches exists in EC Iowa and NW Illinois. Sunday, a chunk of that should melt, and much of what's left goes down the drain Monday.
The Meteograms of the EURO and GFS centered on the Quad Cities are showing the jump in temperatures above freezing by Sunday. 40's, maybe even some 50s are possible in the south early to mid-week. The EURO might just be a bit zealous on the warm side. I would shave a few degrees off of what it is currently showing until there is better confidence between it and the GFS. Even so, we should be a good 40 degrees warmer on highs than we have been.
The EURO
The GFS
I'm still not seeing any positive signals for significant storms or precipitation the remainder of the month and probably early March. These are the precipitation departures for the next 2 weeks.
The EURO
The GFS
That's it for now, time to blow up some birthday balloons. Or maybe not. Are balloons appropriate for a 21st birthday? Are they for kids? Hey Alexa, I need your help. Roll weather, and if you can spare a donation, I will see to it that it's money well spent....TS
Comments