A Coqui in Winterfell

Sunday is a work day in the Fluit Household, which might seem on the surface somewhat offensive to some, but entirely understandable once you unpack it. Chris as a pastor spends most of Sunday either preparing or leading services and for the rest of us, while not "working" at church aren't having a sabbath either. So Saturdays tend to be our Sabbath. The day we tend to spend together, resting. Anyone who has grown up in a Pastoral family understands this. However today we are having a unusual Sunday Sabbath thanks to the Snow.

For the last few days the paper and news have been covering the crippling storms the souther midsection of the country. My Dad and I even talked about it on the phone. Like my experience growing up in Hurricane country we have been watching this particular storm work its way our direction since Wed. On Friday morning I made a point of going to the grocery store and stocking up on essentials, like bread, milk, canned soup and meat. Not planning for power-loss ice-storm but certainly for not having to run out into the weather if I didn't have to.

Last night after coming home from dinner with friends Chris got on the internet and checked the weather reports and then checked with the executive committee and see what the call would be. The forecasts mentioned that the it would cause hazardous driving conditions and urged folks who could stay to home to do so.  The call was made to cancel Sunday services and reschedule the Christmas Program for the following Sunday.

This morning it was slightly disappointing to wake up to a less than impressive 5" of snow. Seeing the day develop Sunday AM services were probably doable, but now by 11:30 things are starting to ramp up. And we will probably go out in a little bit and start up the snow blower and clear what has already accumulated before the rest of the stuff comes down.

But despite that the snow hassles, and the inconveniences of cancellation, I am actually still really thankful for the unexpected restful day it will be. Our day was scheduled to the hilt, with Sunday AM services, caroling at noon, then Christmas rehearsal in the afternoon flowing straight into the program in the evening. A instead we are going to go nowhere. And that in the end is okay.

Be safe where ever you are, keep your speed in perspective. Stay warm.

Oh and if you like reading about the art of Forecasting and how this storm has been a huge headache for those trying to tell us what the weather is going to be like and why, check out the Accuweather,com blog, Meteorological Madness by Henry Margusity Sr. Meteorologist and Severe Weather Expert. The Sunday 8 am post was really interesting.

This storm has been a disorganized mess since yesterday and why? The upper-level system has remained detached from the primary low and is juts now catching up to the surface low over Ohio. The primary low has been reluctant to develop overnight despite sitting in a puddle of warm air. To top it off, Olga swirls over Cancun yesterday, blows-up in the Gulf of Mexico and most likely pumped the ridge up along the East Coast, thus sending plumes of warmth north. Most likely, Olga was a tropical storm last night prior to reaching Florida given the buoys reports of 30- to 40-knot sustained winds. When is the last time you saw a tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico in mid-December with a raging snowstorm in the Midwest and ice/sleet falling in the mid-Atlantic...and to top it off, you add very cold arctic air sitting across New England. From a meteorology point-of-view, it's fascinating to watch, from a forecasting point-of-view it's been a nightmare since Wednesday. I know a lot of you are disappointed about the storm, I know I am given I have about an inch of sleet and ice on the ground this morning with a temperature now at 32 degrees, up from 29 since last night. But like I said the other day, don't count every flake that falls in your backyard, study the meteorology of the storm and learn to appreciate how complex the weather patterns really are. Lets be frank folks, this is only Dec. 15 and we have 3 1/2 more months of true winter to go, and looking at the long range models, there's at least 3 major storms to deal with prior to the end of the month, all of which will have their share of snow and ice problems...so we are not done yet...