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Buck's Blog With Andrew Michael
Weather, weather and more weather! Get behind the scenes access with Meteorologist Andrew Michael. He'll give you the inside scoop on the weather that affects the Miami Valley.
Click here to send your comments to Andrew about "Buck's Blog".
Buck's Blog
Man's best friend meets man's worst fear
02/22/12
I have blogged about my dog Buckeye a time or two, but this one is a little different. I mentioned how his nickname is Flawless despite him being nearly blind from birth due to severe cataracts and the fact that he has a tumor on his backside. We had to take Buckeye to a new vet after his paw was bothering him earlier this year. While we were there they gave us a price to remove his growing tumor near tail because it has nearly reached the size of a tennis ball. Surprisingly the surgery was about a third of the price as what we were quoted by another vet and while he is under they are going to clean his teeth. He will go under the knife tomorrow morning so I am happy I have nothing planned today other than some laundry and spend some time with him. I know he will do just fine, but it is still scary because when he has been put under before he takes longer than normal to come out of the anesthesia.
This morning will be a pretty nice morning with dry conditions and temperatures sitting in the mid-upper 30's for lows. This afternoon a few spotty showers may affect the Northern Miami Valley, but a decent part of the area will stay dry all day. We will get to a high of 50 today and 57 tomorrow! A little better chance for rain tomorrow, but then falling temps for Friday. Friday we will start out with a little spotty rain shower or two in the morning followed by a wintry mix as temperatures fall through the day. The ground will be so warm that any light snow that we see Friday night into Saturday will melt quickly. Cool on Saturday with a high in the mid 30's, but back into the 40's for Sunday with a wintry mix possible early next week. Enjoy the mild temps and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Presidential Progress
02/21/12
We were lucky enough to have President Abraham Lincoln on our morning show yesterday. It was SHOCKING how much he really looked like Honest Abe. He had a quiz for Meghan and Dan and Meghan won big time, despite all of Dan's last minute studying.
I finally got the last of my moped parts back from powder coat. It has been quite the experience because it has taken about five times longer than expected. The frame and one wheel turned out perfect, but the other wheel was a little less than perfect. There were a lot of dimples in the metal is what I am told, but it almost looks like it was not properly stripped or over stripped. You can't really tell until you are up close to the wheel, but I am putting it on my rear wheel and luckily the company made it up to me. I wanted the nice wheel on the front of my Magnum since that is where I will be highlighting my disc brake, k10 Suzuki fork, and Mag Dash with GPS and temp guage tucked inside the original speedo housing. I did let my Maxi's tank soak in a vinegar mixture the last five days to eat out as much rust as possible. I think I got about 98% of the rust and grime out. I also put on my new custom decals on the tank and tried to clear coat the tank to keep the decal from ever wanting to peal. Well a little gas spilled and ate right through the clear coat so that isn't happening. Luckily it didn't affect the decal at all. The bikes are slowly coming along and once the new MLM clutch braces are for sale I will have everything I need for both of my bikes. Almost there, just motor rebuilds and assembly.
Hopefully you enjoyed the dry weather yesterday. Wintry mix moving in right now, but temps are juuuuuust above freezing so it will melt quickly, but the first line is very light. The second line of rain/snow is heavier and will arrive around daybreak. If temps remain cold enough we could see a little dusting because of how heavy the rain/snow is falling in Indiana. The temps will warm up quickly this afternoon into the mid-upper 40's. We will see spotty hit or miss rain showers later today and through the next few days. We will also warm up into the 50's for Wednesday and Thursday, but a cold front will will roll through Friday with falling temps we look to see the rain change to a wintry mix. By Saturday morning we could still see a few flurries linger, but we will be cooler for the weekend and another wintry mix possible early next week. Stay safe out there this morning and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Enjoy the sunshine today, rain on the way
02/20/12
Monday sure is starting off pretty cruddy. I left home a little early to grab a Powerade on my way into work. I also picked up a carton of half and half for the coffee for myself and my coworkers because you can never half enough of that around here on the morning show. Well after starting the newscast I went to get my first coffee and the seal was broken on the carton. Everyone said they hadn't touched it yet so I had to throw it away...total bummer!
I also spent the weekend with no hot water until yesterday evening. Our water heater went out Friday afternoon conveniently timed because Dawn's mother and brother visited from Cleveland over the weekend. It was a lot of fun with them visiting, but taking a cold shower was not fun and Dawn and her family went to her cousin's for hot showers instead. I am just hoping all the bad luck is over with and the rest of the week will be much better, despite just tripping over my feet walking into the weather center....maybe that was because of my lack of morning caffeine, haha.
As the title eluded, we have rain on the way. Today will be another great day, just like we had over the weekend. We will have plenty of sunshine with a high of 42 today. Rain showers arrive mid-morning tomorrow and we will see on and off showers for your Tuesday with a high of 47. We will get into the low 50's Wednesday and Thursday with only a slight chance for rain those days. Out of Wednesday and Thursday I would think later Wednesday looks to be the best chance with a weak disturbance moving through. Friday will be wet as well with another cold front bringing cooler weather for the weekend. The rain on Friday may end as a wintry mix later in the day so I will keep a close eye on that. So, as the title said, enjoy the sunshine today because a wet week is on the way. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Fridays are awesome
02/17/12
There is nothing better than waking on on Friday morning at 1:15AM knowing that you don't have to do it the next two days. I do love my job, especially coming into the studio on Friday...spirits are high and so is the caffeine in our blood stream. The week is like a roller coaster of tiredness. Monday is not normally that bad because I am caught up on sleep, Tuesday is the worst because I am just trying to get back into the rhythm, then the days progressively get better, finishing with Friday. I normally jump out of bed and it is hard to bum my spirits on a Friday, cuz even if I only get to sleep until 7AM Saturday... that is nearly 6 extra hours of sleeping in. So to you, I offer this cheers, HERE'S TO FRIDAY!
Today looks like great weather for us. Mild and mostly sunny with highs in the mid 40's. More clouds for Saturday with similar temps and a SLIGHT chance for a sprinkle or flurry heading into Sunday, but less than a 10% chance. Sunday will be a little cooler with highs in the mid-upper 30's followed by 40's all next week. Dry weather will stick around until later Tuesday night when rain will return...so yeah, a pretty fantastic forecast for this February Friday. HERE'S TO FRIDAY! Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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GoPro Moped Video
02/16/12
I mentioned yesterday that I got a GoPro camera with my tax rebate. I shot a little video in the garage on Tuesday while I was working on my powder coated moped exhaust pipes. I am on the fence, but I may end up selling my 3CCD JVC camera because the GoPro offers microphone inputs and may shoot just as good of video for a camera that costs a third of the JVC. Anyway, hope you enjoy the video: vimeo.com/36836614.
Rain showers this morning will kick out of here by midday. The rain will be pretty light, but hopefully enough to wash away all the salt on the roads. I need to get my truck washed...the underside is caked with salt. Temps will remain in the mid 40's for the next few days. More sunshine Friday with clouds returning Saturday as a cold front swings through the area later in the day with a few flurries possible into the evening and Saturday night. Right now not looking like very much moisture, but still could be a little slick in spots Sunday morning. Sunday we will top out into the upper 30's, but 40's returning next week with any chance for rain holding off until the middle of the week. Stay dry this morning and have a good one.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Fun Valentine
02/15/12
Yesterday was a little grungy in the afternoon. Drizzle, temps just barely above freezing, but I still managed to have a great day. I found a great place to get my moped powder coated and I went to pick it up yesterday. I thought all the parts would be finished, but they still needed a part to finish my wheels...hopefully those will be ready in the coming days. Anyway, I was able to pick up my moped frame and all of my moped friends in Dayton are chomping at the bit to see what it looks like, so I took a teaser picture of just the swing arm and posted it to our site. I need to do some decal work and other wrenching before the bike is assembled, but I will be sure to share a photo of the before and after when it is finished. I also found a place in Franklin that sells AMSOIL Saber oil for my moped. 1977 Mopeds had a great blog entry getting to the cause of why so many people seize their Polini builds. The basic answer is that synthetic oils burn much hotter so when people are mixing as rich as 40:1 then the ring will expand and eventually the piston catches the exhaust port. Saber is meant to run 100:1, which seems crazily lean, but science and real-life testing doesn't lie. I spent the late afternoon putting the baffles back on the powdered exhaust pipes and while I was doing that, my GoPro arrived. With my tax refund I had enough money to pay off a credit card and get a little extra something for myself. That is the benefit of having Uncle Sam take out a little extra money each paycheck because nothing is worse than shelling out money come April 15th. I asked Dawn where she wanted to go for dinner and she picked BW3's...yea I picked the right wife! We had a lot of fun playing the trivia and enjoying our time together. I am taking her out to The Elevator in Columbus in a few weeks, so that will be our "romantic" dinner.
The drizzle and mild temps yesterday did help melt some of the snow and the mild temps the next few days will continue to melt any snow left. One thing that will help with the melting is the rain that will move in later tonight just after sunset. Rain showers overnight and tomorrow, but highs will remain in the mid 40's for the rest of the week and start of the weekend. By Sunday we will begin to cool off into the upper 30's and maybe even a flurry possible late Saturday as the cold front swings through, but not looking like any accumulation snow. Temps will warm back into the 40's next week so no accumulating snow for the near future. I am looking forward to the mild temps on the way. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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The North Wins Again
02/14/12
Sure enough, the north saw more snow, again. This winter has been quite a letdown if anyone is a fan of snow. Here in Dayton we have seen about a dusting so far, maaaaybe half an inch so far. As you can see in the webcam image I grabbed from Dayton ODOT camera (4:15AM) the roadways are just wet. However off to the north in Celina, thanks to Wabash Telephone, the roads are snow covered with about an inch of snow already. We still will see a little more snow through the morning with another half an inch possible, so the forecast will hold true from yesterday: Up to 1" south of I-70 and 1-2" for the north. I know I may be eating these words later, but I want one good snow storm. I want a healthy dumping of 6-8 inches of snow, but this winter the atmosphere just doesn't want to play along. Pardon the analogy, but the atmosphere has had a little too much cheese and can't squeeze anything out this winter.
Well as I said, we could see another half an inch of snow through the rest of the morning and then in the early afternoon we will warm up a little bit, high of 36, and get a very light wintry mix with rain mixing with the snow. The wintry mix will be light enough that it should not cause too many problems other than wet roadways. Temperatures will warm into the mid 40's for the rest of the week with rain Wednesday night into Thursday. Still mild Friday but cooler Saturday as we see a few flurries return and highs near 40 for most of the weekend, but more mild air returns next week. Stay safe on the roads and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Moped Friday Fun & More Snow Tonight
02/13/12
Friday turned out to be a little more fun than expected. I was helping rebuild one of my friends e50 moped motor and then the word spread that we were working on mopeds. After an hour or so the garage was filled with everyone antsy to get back out on two wheels. Rebuilding the motor turned out super fast and easy since it was my second rebuild... and I have to rebuild both of mine in the coming weeks...so a great refresher for me. Had a lot of fun hanging out and talking about plans for the group for the upcoming year. We haven't had a Moped Monday in a few weeks because of the cold weather and everyone's bike in pieces for winter projects. We hung out in the garage through the afternoon and then everyone peaced out for their weekend preps. We had one of Dawn's childhood neighbors down for the weekend so I had to get cleaned up for that. We had a lot of fun this weekend and also got to watch Dawn's cousins play a couple basketball games with Centerville Hustle.
The snowy system that came last Friday arrived slightly earlier than expected. With temperatures still above freezing, the first half an inch of snow melted cutting down the snowfall totals and we saw generally between 1-2" of snow across the area. This winter has been very tricky for forecasting the snow. It seems that every time we get snow the models normally double the snowfall forecast that we actually see. The last couple systems I have been going with that trend and forecasting the low end of the forecasted range. That being said....more snow on the way for tonight. I think that areas south of I-70 could see up to 1" and areas north of I-70 will see 1-2". The snow will start around 9PM tonight and last into tomorrow. The "heaviest" of the snow will fall before daybreak tomorrow with only a few light snow showers tomorrow morning. With temperatures getting into the mid 30's tomorrow we could see a light wintry mix for the south tomorrow, but a lot of the moisture will be pulling out of here through the morning while it is still cold. We will deal with clouds and low 40's for Wednesday followed by rain Wednesday night into Thursday. Thursday will be the warmest day of the week, mid 40's, followed by cooler temps, near 40, for the end of the week and weekend. Stay warm out there this morning with wind chills in the teens. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Upping snowfall totals & moped project update
02/10/12
We will get to the forecast in just a bit... I wanted to drop a little update on my moped projects. I still need to rebuild both of my engines with new bearings and seals, but the other parts of the bikes are really coming along. My Puch Maxi is being powder coated currently and I hope to have it back any day now. I finished putting new sealed bearings in the wheels and I also have the disc brakes ready to go. The new forks are installed the Puch Magnum along with new bearings, but need to wait for the Maxi to finish the new suspension on there. Gotta love good finds on eBay. That is where I found out about the Versailles shop with the cheap hydraulic forks and also found these GPS mounts. I picked up a GREAT deal on the GPS from Craigslist a month ago. Since the speedometers are essentially useless because I go faster than they can go I am putting a GPS mount on the Mag Dash. The mounts are very high quality and meant for mountain bikes so they completely lock down the GPS from wanting to rattle free. I did have to do some modifications to make them work with the new forks, but their bolting configuration is VERY similar to the dash mounts. The big thing I am waiting on now, other than the Maxi back from powder coat, is Motion Left Mopeds coming out with a new three shoe clutch brace with all the hardware. I want to get that so I am not warping my clutches with RPMs getting over 8000. I will finish buttoning up the bodies until then and once the clutch braces are available in a couple weeks I will be able to rebuild the motors. I can't wait to finish my bikes and take them out for a little photo shoot when it warms up. (It is very nice only having two mopeds and not more...I can focus more on quality)
Alright...forecast time. The forecast models have been ramping up the moisture with the coming snow and upper level energy will also help enhance the snowfall totals a little bit. I expect the snow to arrive right around the evening commute, pick up in intensity toward midnight, then it quickly moves out of here overnight followed by stronger winds tomorrow and much colder air. Based on the latest information I am thinking 1-2+" of snow for areas south of I-70 and then 2-3+" north of I-70. Hopefully the road crews will be able to tackle the roads pretty well overnight; in case you have any early morning travels for Saturday. Watch out for blowing and drifting snow in the rural areas through the day tomorrow. We will be much colder tomorrow with a high of 23 and then 28 on Sunday. Next week temperatures will gradually warm and then light snow/wintry mix possible on Tuesday and then rain/wintry mix on Thursday as start seeing highs in the 40's again. Temperatures will play a huge part in what kind of precip we will see next week so I will keep you posted. Enjoy the winter wonderland and have a great weekend!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Quiet weather today, snow & cold blast on the way
02/09/12
High pressure is really dominating much of the central part of the country right now. The strong area of high pressure will provide us with plenty of sunshine today, but the cold front plowing down from Canada will leave us very cold for the weekend. Highs of 39 today and tomorrow and snow showers will roll into the Ohio Valley around noon tomorrow and last on and off through the afternoon and early evening. This again looks to be light...so a dusting across most of the area. Roads will be slick again and likely cool enough for some snow to stick if it falls quick enough and if the pavement is left untreated. The big story is the big cool down for the weekend. Highs will be in the mid to upper 20's for the weekend. We will slowly warm up next week. Temps will be near 40 by Tuesday where we could see a little light snow, but the real moisture from the gulf looks to pump into the Ohio Valley area for the end of next week. Enjoy the sunshine today and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Snow moving in
02/08/12
Wanted to crank out the blog before the snow completely covers the area and I get busy tracking the snow and road conditions. This image was from just before 4:30AM and the snow is building, but should be done and out of here by noon. I expect less than an inch for most of the area, but more snow on the way later Friday...maybe a few sprinkles as well since we will be getting into the upper 30's for the end of the week. That system will have less moisture, so less precip. That will blast cold air into the Midwest for the weekend with highs in the 20's, but we will slowly warm up next week near 40 by the middle of the week with a lot of moisture pumping up from the gulf... a situation we will need to keep a close eye on in the coming days. Stay safe out there this morning and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Snow and winter returning
02/07/12
Winter has been VERY mild for Ohio so far... but things look to change by week's end. We will have a cold front push though later today and snow looks to arrive late tonight and another cold front blasting through later Friday leaving us below freezing for the weekend. The snow will arrive just before daybreak tomorrow morning and I am not expecting a lot. We could pick up a light coating, but it does not have enough moisture to break out the shovels or snow blowers. The second cold front looks to be a lot of the same...very little moisture for much snow for late Friday...likely just a few flurries or dusting. Next week looks to be a little more interesting...by the middle of next week the models have shown gulf moisture making its way up from the south and with temperatures cold enough we will need to keep an eye on the situation, but right now it is more than seven days out... so it's almost a shot in the dark to call anything specific at this point. Get the coats handy and give yourself a little extra time tomorrow morning. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Man The Manning!
02/06/12
I have a small soft spot for Matt Light on the Patriots, but other than him, I would be seen rooting for the Yankees first...which will never happen. It was not very difficult as to who I would root for during the Superbowl and the Giants deserved the win much more. Back in college, during the spring, I was walking around the mall and they were having an AMAZING clearance on jersey's so I bought a Peyton Manning jersey.(I think it was only $15) I figured he will likely be a pro bowler in the future and I respect his game. Well I also thought if I wore one Manning jersey it would work for the other Manning, Eli. Haha, the game turned out to be a great match-up and the commercials were pretty decent as well with beer, cars, and snacks taking the main spotlights. Special shout-out to Springboro native, Jake Ballard, who now is a Superbowl champ. The tight end sadly was injured in the first half and spent most of the second half in the training room...still gets a ring though. All-in-all it was a great Superbowl and now I wait until the Browns make it there.... next year?!?!
The weather yesterday was GREAT as well. As a matter of fact, there is VERY LITTLE wet action across the entire country. It has been a while since I have seen the US this dry with less than 1% of the country seeing any precipitation. Today we will get into the upper 40's with more sunshine. Tuesday will be a little cooler with highs in mid 40's and increasing clouds as the cold front swings down from Canada. Tuesday night into Wednesday we will see a few flurries, but as dry as the air will be, the cold front will not have much moisture to work with. Temps will cool down for the end of the week and by next weekend we may be lucky to get above freezing. The good news is that, other than the few flurries Wednesday, we look to remain dry over the week ahead. Enjoy today and keep the coat handy. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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National Wear Red Day
02/03/12
Meghan bosses Dan and I around a lot... well not really, but yesterday she told us to wear red about five times. Today is National Wear Red Day to raise awareness to help fight heart disease in women. Hopefully you read this before leaving the house so you can wear red too.
My birthday turned out fantastic. I got to spend most of the day with Dawn relaxing, going for a walk since it was so warm, and that was followed by a fun dinner at Dark Horse Tavern...their BBQ is amazing. Since we had Papa Johns on the morning show I had my pizza fix so I went with my second favorite. I loved just relaxing and enjoying the day and beautiful weather.
Today will be the last day of great weather. We will see plenty of sunshine with highs in the low 50's, but rain returns tomorrow. The rain will arrive just after daybreak and should pull out of the area by Saturday evening. The Northern Miami Valley may see a few snowflakes mix in at times, but not expecting any accumulations since the ground will be wet and warm. The heaviest of the rain will be mainly south of I-70. Highs tomorrow will be in the mid 40's and that will be the same for almost the entirety of next week. We will cool off with highs near 40, but still above normal for early February. We also look to stay dry for the entire seven day forecast other than tomorrow. Hope you have a great weekend and stay dry. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Groundhog's outta the bag, It's my Birthday
02/02/12
I am normally not a person to flaunt my birthday, but Meghan Mongillo would not let my birthday go unannounced today. She was very sweet and brought in donuts for everyone along with a birthday plate, balloon, and napkin (which I am wearing for a pocket square). We had a little fun this morning at 4:30AM before the boss was watching and light the candles on the donut and I blew them out during the weather chat. Thanks Meghan! When I grew up, on our birthday we got to pick up the mail, answer the phone, pick dinner, and got a cake. We never received presents and I kinda liked it that way. Instead of looking forward to the presents we looked forward to day itself and the things it brought...like later curfews, haha.
I have another confession... I never know how to treat Groundhogs Day. I am not sure if people look forward to it or not since it is my birthday. Kinda like a few friends with birthdays on Christmas or other big holidays. Anyway I did a little research and the myth or legend behind Groundhogs Day goes back to Germany. Easterly winds from Siberia would bring dry, cold air with plenty of sunshine...so when the groundhog would see its shadow it would go back to hibernating more because the easterly winds would keep bringing cold winds. If the winds were from the west, the North Sea, then it would bring more moisture, milder temps, and clouds...so when the groundhog came out of the hole it would not see its shadow because warmer winds are coming from the Sea. So there is a little science to the legend, but I am not sure how accurate Punxsutawney Phil really is here in America.
The weather looks really great again today. A little chilly this morning with current temps just barely above freezing. This afternoon more sunshine with highs in the low 50's and more of the same tomorrow. Rain showers arrive Saturday and a lingering shower or two on Sunday. We will then slowly cool off into the low 40's for next week along with more sunshine. Enjoy the sunny 50's while they are here. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Buckeye feeling better, despite the wet weather
02/01/12
In my Monday's post I mentioned how Buckeye got hurt over the weekend. He went to the vet Monday and got some medication for his swelling and pain...and he is much more spry now. He was still limping around a little bit yesterday, but it is such a relief to see him in less pain. He was running around yesterday and back to his old fun self instead of laying around and resisting moving at all.
This is a special segment, FOR YOU! I am working on scheduling my school/organization talks. I am very flexible and can work around your schedule for the most part...apart from early mornings obviously, haha. But if you are part of the Rotary Club, safety committee, or anything that you think I could help with or entertain you for an hour, let me know! Seriously...or ask the kids if they would like me to come in for a school talk. It is one of my favorite parts of this job and I am looking for more talks to schedule. (By the way, it's free!) Just wanted to throw that out there, you can email me at work at amichael@daytonsnewssource.com.
To the weather...we are dealing with some early morning showers, but they will be out of here by mid-morning. This afternoon we will see a little clearing with highs in the mid 50's. Highs near 50 for the end of the week with a mix of sun and clouds and then rain returns for the weekend. Saturday looks to be the best bet for rain and then maybe a light shower or flurry on Sunday with a little left over moisture. Highs will fall into the mid 40's for the weekend and then low 40's for early next week with lows back below freezing. Stay dry this morning and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Pleasure reading
01/31/12
Some people enjoy Harry Potter, some enjoy romance novels...but for us weather geeks, we enjoy reading the advancements in radar technology. The big change coming to a radar near you is called dual-pole. When radio frequencies were sent out in the past it was only sent out a horizontal radio wave and measure bounce-back radio waves in a horizontal plane. Dual-polarization will now send out the original horizontal radio wave AND a vertical radio wave. This will now be able to determine if we are seeing hail within storms and also pick out errors and get less "ground clutter." We can also start picking up bugs on the radar and other objects like birds, buildings, etc. The good news is that with this new advancement you can now remove data that is incorrect and clean up the radar to only show precipitation. The National Weather Service radar in Wilmington is scheduled to get the upgrade in the fall of 2012. It takes about a week for the upgrade and as a weather geek I am excited for the technology and excited to learn even more about it in my new book, Radar For Meteorologists by Rinehart.
Today is still on tap for the warmest day of the month and year. We should get into the upper 50's with rain returning tonight. It should arrive just before midnight and the light rain showers will move out of here pretty quickly. By mid-morning tomorrow most of the rain will be out of here. Temps will top out in the mid 50's tomorrow and then upper 40's for the rest of the week and weekend. With temps in the upper 40's for the weekend it looks like our chance for snow is melting away. The track of the system still is on the move but the last day's worth of models do not show us getting any of the snow, based on its track. We may see a few light rain showers over the weekend, but hey...with temps in the 50's and upper 40's...bring on the light rain showers. I will monitor the system in the coming days because nothing is set in stone yet. Enjoy the warmth and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Snowy Weekend in Cleveland
01/30/12
I must apologize for missing the blog on Friday. I was on the phone with our tech support for three hours during the morning show Friday and then had a meeting immediately afterward until close to 1 PM. I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off, figuratively speaking obviously. We had two small rounds of winter weather over the weekend. From the looks of the photos I received they were less than an inch each...which is what I was forecasting in my last blog on Thursday. We did see a little more snow north in Cleveland, where I was visiting the in-laws. The commute home last night was a little slippery in spots, but once we hit Columbus, and were on I-70, we were golden.
Buckeye may need to go to the vet today. The last few times we have visited Dawn's parents he frantically wants to get out of the bathroom, which is where we leave him when we leave the house for a few hours. Buckeye was originally Dawn's family dog, but once Dawn and her brother moved out for school we adopted him since no one was home to let him outside. He has not had any issues the first nine years of his life, then all of a sudden he does. He scratches at the door until he ends up hurting his paws and bleeds a little, very sad. Well we were gone less than an hour on Friday for dinner and he scratched so hard that he did not use his left front paw the rest of the weekend. He limped around the house and was very docile. We are taking him to the vet today to get him checked out, but it is very weird why all of a sudden he doesn't want to lay on the blanket we always leave for him. It may be in his old age that he is having separation issues. It breaks your heart to see him limping around on three legs though.
On to the spring forecast...for the end of January. Temperatures will be VERY warm for the end of the month. Today we will see clouds early with more sun later and a high in the upper 40's. Tuesday a little of the opposite with increasing clouds later and a high of 57, yes, 57! Rain arrives into the overnight hours heading into Wednesday and that will cool off our temps a little with highs in the mid 50's. The rain will end through the day on Wednesday and then we will be followed by mild temps in the mid 40's for the end of the week. The upcoming weekend looks very interesting. There is a system that the models have been showing coming through with a little more moisture than the last few wintry systems. The big question is the track of the coming system. Over the weekend the models trended toward the system affecting the east coast rather than us, but similar to last week, the last couple of model runs show the system coming right up the west side of the Appalachian mountains, which would mean a wet weekend. Still need a lot to nail down in the coming days, so enjoy the warm weather while it's here and I will worry about the weekend. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Early morning ice, late morning rain
01/26/12
This radar image was grabbed at 4:30AM today and you can see that we are dealing with a mixed bag of precip this morning. Temperatures are just below freezing at 31 degrees currently in Dayton. The rain overnight has limited the ice sticking and the rain will help melt any sleet or freezing rain falling. The good news is that temperatures will slowly warm through the morning and we will switch to all rain by late morning. The rain will kick out of here later and we could see a few flurries overnight tonight. Temperatures will be pretty cool heading into the weekend, 39 for the high today, 41 tomorrow, 37 Saturday, and then a cold 30 degrees for the high Sunday. Temperatures will quickly warm into the mid 40's next week. We could see a few flurries tonight & a few flurries over the weekend, but after today not much precip until the middle of next week. Watch out for a few slick spots this morning and then heavy rain later...gotta get back to the news to keep an eye on conditions. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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SUPER tired, but Gong Xi Fa Cai!
01/25/12
I am more tired this morning than any recent morning I can remember. Dawn and I were invited to a Chinese New Year celebration for the year of the dragon. We met up with our group and took a party bus to the restaurant. It was a lot of fun but lasted a few hours longer than what we thought, so I got about ninety minutes of sleep last night. I luckily was able to use "Gong Xi Fa Cai" which is how you say Happy New Year...a co-worker taught me that and figured I better learn how to properly pronounce it. The two people in the photo are friends of our group and family with the head chef at the restaurant. The big accomplishment of the night...I only used chopsticks.
Weather looks pretty quiet today. Increasing clouds with a high around 37. Rain showers arrive tonight and will last through the day tomorrow. Tomorrow morning we will drop near freezing so there is a chance for a few icy spurts. Temperatures will warm up through the day tomorrow so if there is any wintry mix it will melt quickly with the falling rain. After tomorrow we look to be pretty dry for the most part. Highs will bounce around in the low 40's and 30's heading through the weekend and next week, but dipping briefly on Sunday as a cold front blasts through with a high of 28. We could see a few flurries Sunday as the cold front swings through, but only a very slight chance. Back to the news...and back to my coffee. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Moped Video
01/24/12
I had some free time yesterday so I compiled some of my moped video and put together a little clip of the DAM Riders: http://youtu.be/_d13-HHnanY. None of the video was shot specifically for this, but just wanted to put together a little clip of what I had. Can't wait to shoot video specifically for our moped rally trailer.
Weather looks pretty calm for today. A little breezy and cool with highs near 40 with a mix of sun and clouds. Similar tomorrow with a few more clouds as rain approaches for Thursday. Thursday morning we will be near freezing so we could see a brief spell of a wintry mix...still a little far out to, but I am leaning a little more towards rain for most of the area and only a slight chance for the wintry mix. Temps will remain in the low 40's through the first half of the weekend then a slight chance for light snow as a cold front moves through with colder conditions next week with highs back in the lower 30's. All in all, a much calmer pattern than we saw the last week...no sleet, freezing rain, snow, thunderstorms, watches, wind advisories...I will take it! Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Overnight storms
01/23/12
The storms overnight rolled through and luckily not a lot of damage here in Ohio, other than a few power outages. There were reports of at least twenty tornadoes across the Southern US, but here in Ohio we only had strong winds around 45-50 miles per hour, which is just below the severe weather criteria of 58 mph. So by 5AM the threat moved out of here with a few morning showers sticking around. We still could see a shower or two into the afternoon, but the big story will be the windy conditions. We have a Wind Advisory through the afternoon with winds 20-30 mph with gusts possible up to 50 mph.
Temperatures will remain pretty mild for the week ahead and the coolest day looks like tomorrow with a high of 39. The rest of the week we will top out in the 40's and then a chance for rain on Thursday. I talked on Saturday about how we would be sandwiched between two systems and it looks like the Southern system will swing north and could bring a wintry mix Wednesday night and then showers on Thursday. After today a pretty quite week except for Thursday. Stay grounded today in the strong winds and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Double dose weekend & severe weather Sunday night
01/21/12
The storm came, the storm left. It left us with almost exactly what the forecast was calling for. The one small change was that the leading edge of snow yesterday across the Northern Miami Valley fell as a little sleet and freezing rain as warm afternoon air in the upper atmosphere changed the precip type. The first line of precip was pretty light and then the real moisture kicked up and we had 1-3+" of snow with very light ice north of I-70, and under 1" of snow but 0.25-0.5" of ice to the south. Once again, the I-70 divide holds true...never been quite sure why, but that is time and time again the divide between snow and ice, or ice and rain. I have lived here over a quarter century and it always plays out that way.
Due to the snow and ice, we did cut-ins for Good Morning America this morning from 7AM-8AM and then from 9AM-11AM. We did a full hour on-air then from 8AM until 9AM. It was a lot of fun, but my voice was starting to go out by the end. Anyway, I am back in here now filling in for Chris Mulcahy to give him a day off since he was working for Jeff Booth, who had the week off for some vacation time. I never realized how quick I am with the graphics and forecast in the morning until I came back to weekends. I had everything done and now have time to write my blog and build a couple new graphics.
Well the snow and ice didn't go anywhere today unless you put salt on it...we will be cold again tonight with lows in the low mid teens. Tomorrow temperatures will climb through the day and evening ahead of our next system and by Sunday night into Monday morning our temps will be in the mid 40's so a decent amount of melting will take place. Sunday night strong to severe storms look to roll through the area with a lot of upper level atmospheric support. The timing, as of now, looks to be shortly after midnight Sunday night into Monday morning for the Ohio Valley. The main threat looks to be damaging winds and possible tornadic storms. The one up-side to the system is that it appears to weaken just before arriving to the Ohio Valley and most of the strongest weather will be to our southwest in Western Kentucky and Tennessee. It will need to be monitored very closely and I may have to come in a little earlier than normal Monday morning. Temperatures will fall behind the system and Tuesday we will top out in the mid-upper 30's. The rest of the week we will get back into the 40's, but the chance for rain is a little tricky. Right now there are a couple systems down the pike, but we seem to be sandwiched between them. On Thursday and Saturday we will have a system to our south and another system to our north on both of the days, but we may be dry between the two systems. The models are basically fighting between the polar and tropical jet stream and we are right between the two. I will keep you posted, but please make sure you keep your NOAA weather radio on for Sunday night in the event that severe weather breaks out.
Oh, if you live in or near the Mercer County, Ohio area you may be interested in this: The National Weather Service is having a (free) meeting this coming Thursday, January 26, at 6:30PM in Dicke Hall at the Wright State Lake Campus for CoCoRaHS recruitment. That stands for the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail, & Snow Network. The NWS needs ground reports of how much precip falls. The radar can give you an estimate, but the ground reports are what really help establish whether warnings or watches need to be issued based on the amount of precipitation. They will hook you up with a rain gauge and measuring board for snow, but most importantly, teach you how to measure the rain, hail, and snow properly. It would be a GREAT meeting to attend and is free. For more information check out the website they have set up: http://www.erh.noaa.gov/iln/mercer_auglaize_cocorahs.php.
Stay safe on the snow & ice and I will see you back here Monday morning. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Snow, sleet, & freezing rain for later today
01/20/12
Running a little behind this morning due to the tricky forecast and spending a lot more time dissecting the forecast models and building extra graphics for yesterday's snow and the snow/wintry mix of weather on the way later today and tonight. As far as yesterday's snow we had a few heavy bands of snow move through between I-70 and US36 and they saw between 1-2". North of there was around 1" and then the further South of I-70 you went the less you would see. Aight, on to what is on the way...
Snow will roll into the area in the late afternoon today and your evening commute could have a light coating of snow already. Snow will continue into the evening hours and warm air will work in from the south. The warm air will be in the upper atmosphere so it will melt the snow as it falls, but then the cold air at the surface will refreeze it into sleet...small ice pellets. This switch will take place just after the evening commute depending on where you live. Warmer air will continue to try to push into the area and that will mean that the rain will not be able to refreeze into sleet and fall as rain, but with temperatures at the surface below freezing we will see it freeze on contact...freezing rain. The warmer air will not affect the north as much as it will affect the south. The south will see the most icing and the least amount of snow...up to 1". The central parts of the Miami Valley will see about 1-2" of snow and a little less icing compared to the south. Then the far north will see the least amount of icing and will be dealing with more snow, 1-3+". It should all wrap up around daybreak tomorrow and then just remaining below freezing all day Saturday.
I will say this... this system is the one that you want to WAIT to shovel the driveway or sidewalk until tomorrow. Any snow under the layer of ice you can just break through and then easily remove the ice. If you shovel the snow tonight and then the ice freezes directly on the pavement then you will have a tough time trying to get it off. I dunno about you, but I am waiting to shovel until tomorrow morning when it is all out of here.
Saturday will be a mess on the roads because we look to remain below freezing all day long, but Sunday we will get into the mid 40's with rain for Monday and temperatures falling through the 40's through the day and mild temps in the 40's for next week... I am pretty sure a lot of people are looking forward to the 40's with the weather we have been seeing.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Snow today, ice on the way
01/19/12
As if the weather on Tuesday wasn't crazy enough... it appears we will have some even crazier weather over the next 48 hours. Today snow will arrive in the late morning and move out of here by the evening hours. The snow will mainly affect the Northern Miami Valley and the far south may not see much of anything. Right now I am thinking 1-2" to the far north with around 1" still for US36 to I-70. South of I-70 less than an inch and continuing to decrease in depth the farther south you would go. Not terrible, but enough to leave a nice little coating for the north.
Tonight we will see the clouds break up a little and temperatures will be in the low teens for Friday morning. Snow will move in briefly Friday night followed by warmer temperatures in the upper atmosphere. This will thaw out the snow as it is falling to the ground and change it to rain but the temperature at the surface will be below freezing so it will freeze on contact with the surface...freezing rain. We could have a light coating of ice by Saturday morning, but temperatures will warm through the day helping to melt the ice. Be careful Saturday morning. We will keep a close eye on this system as it approaches because a degree or two temperature change will really affect what falls from the sky. I hope to break down the forecast for Friday night with more detail tomorrow once we can nail down the temperature changes. Temperatures will warm up a little for the weekend and remain rather mild heading into next week with another system early next week containing a little rain. Stay safe and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Slick Roads This Morning
01/18/12
Light snow overnight really left the roads tricky this morning. The rain moved out yesterday and temps just plummeted; cooling it off enough for the snow to stick to the pavement. Temperatures this morning are about twenty-five degrees colder than yesterday. There is not A LOT of snow on the roads, but sometimes that is when it's worse because it's deceiving. So be careful... more snow is on the way. Luckily my commute is primarily back roads so I was able to stop in the middle of the road for this picture...I was NOT driving.
Well the light morning show will start to taper off and we will see a little afternoon sunshine, but only a high in the low 30's. Tonight we will see the clouds increase and a chance for snow through the day tomorrow, especially north of I-70. The far Northern parts of the Miami Valley could see a little more than 1" of snow. I think the area between US 36 and I-70 could see up to 1". Dayton and south could see maybe a dusting tomorrow, but the majority of the system looks to stay to the north. We will stay in the lower 30's for highs tomorrow and Friday, but Friday night we could be dealing with a little ice. The last couple of model runs appear to be hinting at some freezing rain, but the temperatures will play the main role into what we will exactly see falling from the sky...so we will have to wait until it gets a little closer to pinpoint the type of precip we will see Friday night into Saturday morning. Temps will slowly warm up heading into the weekend and next week. Right now we look to be dry most of the weekend, but rain will return next week. Stay warm, stay safe, and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Happy Valentine's Day from the Dayton Area Moped Riders
01/17/12
I know it is early, but we had a group meeting last night with the DAM Riders and we figured we would get a picture of all of us making hearts for a photo for the web for Valentine's Day. Cheesy? Well, we ride mopeds too. Most of the group showed up, but there were a handful of others that couldn't make the rally planning meeting. We made some big decisions such as our rally date: September 7, 8, and 9, and we also voted on a Treasurer. I was taking on the task of dealing with our money but with dues now to help run the website we figured it was a good idea to lessen the burden of dealing with the dough on top of everything else. I hate that winter keeps us from getting together as often, but last night was a lot of fun, even though I lost most of my voice by the end of the meeting. (With rumors of gas hitting $5 a gallon by the summer our group may be getting a little larger.)
Well if you don't like the weather in Ohio......just wait. Today is going to be a crazy day. We are starting off warm with temps in the low 50's and rain showers. By daybreak we will have a line of thunderstorms punch into the Miami Valley and then run off to the east only to leave us with falling temperatures later today and a few light rain showers. By the evening we will be falling into the low 20's and dealing with a few flurries and the wet roads refreezing so watch out for icy spots on untreated roads Wednesday morning. We will remain cold for the rest of the week with a chance for snow Thursday night and Friday Night but then we will warm back into the 40's for the weekend. The models have been trending a little cooler for the weekend so I will keep an eye on what they do over the next day. More rain possible Monday but the weekend looking mild and dry.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Restful Weekend and Crazy 7-day Forecast
01/16/12
Still under the weather for the, ehhh, sixth day. Dawn went to Cleveland for the weekend and I did not feel well enough to sit in a car for six hours so I stayed home and rested up. I had a lot of hot tea, rest, and random food. When Dawn is home we plan our meals a week in advance and being there alone allowed me to branch out a little bit. We had strawberries in the fridge and they were about ready to start going downhill so I tried to think of what I could mix up and I had everything for my made-from-scratch pancakes except an egg...so I rolled the dice and made them without the egg. Chopped up the strawberries and added them to the batter... still turned out delicious and filling. They were not quite as "fluffy" though without the egg, but no complaints here. Anyway I spent most of the weekend hanging out with Buckeye, trying to rest, studying, and working a little on my mopeds.
One more day for my charity sweater vest auction!!! Make sure to put in bids to help out two local charities! Details are within the individual auctions: http://miniurl.org/sweatervests
The seven-day forecast is quite crazy and has a lot going on. Today we will slowly warm our temps continuously overnight and through tomorrow, so tomorrow we will be in the mid to upper 40's. Rain will arrive later this afternoon and evening and will continue overnight and into early tomorrow. Temperatures will then drop through the day tomorrow and we could see a little snow on the back side of the system tomorrow night as we drop to a low of 19 for Wednesday morning. With the ground being wet, snow will not likely stick because it appears to be pretty light. We could see a few slick spots Wednesday and we will stay below freezing until Friday as we slowly warm up. Right now we look to be in the mid 40's for Saturday and 50's are possible for Sunday. We could see a quick snowy system Thursday, but accumulations look to be pretty light. Rain also possible Saturday, but that, also, is looking light. Quite a roller-coaster of a week ahead as far as the weather goes...I will keep you posted on any possible changes. Enjoy the mild temps later today and tomorrow, just make sure you have the umbrella. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Quick update on the snow...
01/13/12
I don't have a lot of time this morning for my blog, but I wanted to jump on here and drop a quick line. So far the Southern Miami Valley has seen about an inch of snow and the Northern parts have seen about 1-2" with some places seeing about 3". The real tricky part of this snow is the wind. It will be very difficult to measure accurately because of the blowing snow and you would need to be in a wind-blocked area to measure the snow. We still could see another inch for the Northern Miami Valley this morning and about half an inch south of I-70. The radar image I grabbed is from 5:04AM this morning and we are getting the wrap around snow showers behind the low pressure system. Most of the snow has fallen, but we still could see a little more. There is a weak clipper system Saturday night and Sunday morning and that could bring less than an inch of snow and then we will warm up into the lower 40's for Monday and Tuesday with a little rain and then cold again for the middle of next week.
So, watch out for blowing snow this morning and a little drifting snow in the outlying areas. Gotta get back to tracking the snow on-air. Stay warm, safe, and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Snowfall Forecast for Tonight & Tomorrow
01/12/12
I love this blog... you know why I love my blog forecast? I don't have to talk. My voice is really strained this morning and it dropped about three octaves overnight and I would make a GREAT country singer or Ted Williams impersonator. The joke around the studio this morning is that I finally hit puberty overnight. This sickness is really getting to me, but I am throwing everything I can back at it. I am even sleeping with a scarf on to keep my throat warm thanks to some advice from Dawn's grandmother. Surprisingly it works, but is a little weird to go to bed with a scarf on...haha. My throat doesn't hurt too bad since I have been drinking LOTS of hot tea with lemon and just trying to make this a very short-lived illness...even though everyone around me, over 10 people at work, has had it for a couple of weeks.
Aight, on to the forecast... which I am sure everyone is waiting on with anxiety. We have light drizzle this morning and patchy fog. The temperatures will begin to drop in the afternoon from the low 40's into the upper 20's by tonight. I expect us to being our switch over to snow between 3PM and 7PM depending on where you live. The snow showers will continue into the overnight hours and through tomorrow. The first half an inch or so of snow will melt on the warm pavement but with the strong winds it will help cool of the roads rather quickly. By the time the snow wraps up tomorrow, here are my thoughts on the snowfall total forecast: 1-2" South of I-70, 1-3+" North of I-70. The far north will be seeing the most and may be tapping into a little lake effect snow as well later Friday. The winds will be VERY strong, between 20-30+ mph, for tonight and Friday meaning that blowing snow and drifting snow will be a problem in the rural areas. The roads for Friday morning will be pretty nasty if left untreated, but with blowing snow even treated roads will be a little nasty. Highs will be in the lower and mid 20's for Friday and the weekend...so much colder as well as snowier. Stay safe out there and try to make the best of the snowy situation. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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What color do you think??? (Plus a snowy forecast)
01/11/12
Well I need to make a decision...and pretty quick. I picked up a blue Puch Maxi and I am debating whether the wheels I rebuilt will match the build I am planning. The blues are not the exact same color and I now am deciding whether to do an all blue build or do a red, chrome, and blue build. Hmmm.... Let me know what your thoughts are... I am starting to lean a little bit more toward the red because it has been my bike for the last couple of years and I have already de-rusted the inside of the gas tank and other cosmetic issues have been fixed.
I was excited to see a few more sweater vests had bids this morning... remember, only 6 days left. http://miniurl.org/sweatervests.
The weather will be changing back to winter starting now... Cooler today with highs in the mid 40's and then falling temps through the day tomorrow. Light rain on and off for your Wednesday followed by rain changing over to snow tomorrow, on Thursday. The snow will melt at first because the pavement will be so warm, but by Friday morning as light snow continues, the roads will begin to cool enough for the snow to stick. I am still only expecting a light accumulation, but by Friday evening we could have about an inch of snow and in some locations to the north may see closer to 2". The real issue will be when the roads cool off enough for the snow to stick, so be careful Friday. There is another weak system Saturday night that could bring a little more snow and more on Tuesday... so quite an interesting, cold pattern for the days ahead. I will hopefully be able to break down the switch-over time a little better tomorrow as we get closer to the snow and fine-tune the snowfall totals. Stay dry, let me know what you think about the colors, and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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The Big Dip
01/10/12
I finally caught what my wife had. She has been sick with a sore throat and coughing the last week and I woke up this morning and I dreaded swallowing each time while trying to get ready for work. I did make sure I took some medicine and made a hot tea for my morning commute. I just hope I can shake it quick because I don't want to have to use my sick days this early in the year. However, considering we do the news for four and half hours, each morning, my voice may be going faster than my wife's. Blaaaaahhhh!!!
Well, the big dip is coming. As you can see in the image, the unseasonably warm temperatures are about to turn on us. We hit 46 for the high yesterday and today we should be pushing 50. Rain arrives tomorrow and with that...cooler air followed by a cold blast for the end of the week and the weekend. Thursday we could see the rain transition over to a little snow. We have been so warm the last week that most of it will melt as it hits the pavement so, at best, I think we could only see a dusting. We will begin to dry out with the cold air for Friday and could see another system early next week with a little better chance for sticking snow.
The sweater vest auction to raise money for two local charities continues. Don't forget to check out the sweater vests and the details about the charities: http://miniurl.org/sweatervests. Enjoy the last sunny, warm day and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Moped Rides & Sweater Vest Auction
01/09/12
Wow! What a FANTASTIC weekend! Considering it was the first weekend of January, in Ohio, and we had temps in the upper 40's and 50's...Wow! I took advantage of the great weather as much as possible. We had a couple of impromptu moped rides.
First ride was Friday afternoon and we rode about 26 miles. There were five of us riding around West Carrollton, Kettering, Dayton, Moraine, and Miamisburg. We did find another kid riding a moped and caught up with him to tell him about our group, but he just kept riding. Oh well, still had a blast. Dawn and I had guests in town Friday night and Saturday so I spend that time visiting with them and we went to The Greene, warm weather shopping is better than slushy weather shopping. They left early Sunday morning so four of us got together Sunday afternoon for another ride for about 24 miles...so 50 miles total. Couldn't ask for better weather, but the one down side to the weekend was that one of our newer riders, Mike V, got into an accident heading home Sunday night. He broke a few bones, however he is in good spirits. We are not sure what the cause was just yet, but it was a mechanical error of some sort. Luckily there was no other vehicle involved.
Well...I come up with some crazy ideas at times. I am moving forward and focusing on the future. With that, I have decided to auction off 16 of my sweater vests on eBay... I know, I know! They have become a staple for my identity on-air doing the forecast, but it is time to focus on the future and I wanted to give them a proper send-off. So I had a poll on my Facebook page and I asked what charities people would donate toward and I got a BIG response. The top two votes were the Hope Foundation of Greater Dayton and Shoes 4 The Shoeless...both local charities. I am splitting the proceeds between the two so check out my auction on eBay: http://miniurl.org/sweatervests. Or you can search my profile on eBay, it is "emrickrd" I encourage you to spread the word and help the auction along and please bid yourself. I even included two of my Christmas sweater vests...GREAT for any of those holiday parties. The auction ends in 8 days so hopefully people will keep an eye on them, but might as well bid now and get your hand in the fun.
The beautiful weather will continue for today and tomorrow. We will continue to have highs near 50 with sunshine until the middle of the week when rain returns followed by a little snow on Thursday. Cold air will punch in for the end of the week with highs near freezing and most of the days spent below freezing for next weekend. I will keep you posted on how much snow we are expecting to see as it gets closer, but try to get out there and enjoy as much of the great weather while it lasts. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Happy Birthday World News Now
01/06/12
Waking up at 1AM everyday is not an easy task. I take my morning shower, grab a bagel, and start loading up on my caffeine to get the day started. I normally roll in a few minutes before 2:30AM which leaves me enough time to get my things ready to start working on the forecast and turn on ABC just before World News Now begins. Watching it every morning makes time fly by. Its fun light-heartedness helps me wake up and puts a smile on my face...cuz sometimes I just want to be sleeping. Anyway, today they are celebrating their 20th year on-air...and proud to deliver more news to insomniacs than anyone else. They also always have the "Friday Polka" where Barry Mitchell, a former reporter on WNN, performs a polka song on his accordion to kick off the weekend. I never liked polka until now and the song is stuck in my head and something I look forward too all week...when I hear that song, I know the finish line and sleep is near. Today he played a live version and it was fantastic. I guess overnight people love polka. So Happy Birthday and a big shout out to Rob Nelson and his new co-anchor Paula Faris (who used to work at my current station) and all the crew behind the scenes who I frequently tweet in the middle of the night...thanks for making my mornings a little more fun...before we come on-air to continue the fun at 4:26AM.
The weather today looks AMAZING! Yesterday we got slightly warmer than the high I was forecasting and today I think we will get into the low 50's, here in Ohio. We should only be in the mid 30's for high temps this time of year. Mostly sunny, breezy, and great today, but a cold front will roll through heading into tomorrow. We will cool back into the 40's for the weekend and early next week, but luckily no decent chance for rain until next Wednesday. We will cool off toward the end of next week, but ehhh, dry and mild until the middle of next week... enjoy it! I know I will be out and around town on my moped later today, hopefully you can try to soak in the great weather too! Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Quite an interesting evening
01/05/12
I got a little taste of second shift yesterday, again, and I can safely say that I do not miss working in the afternoons/evening. I worked that shift for several years and there is always something hanging over your head...oh yea, you have to go to work in a couple hours, so no, you can't run that errand, or can't work on mopeds all afternoon and get greasy. BUT, I did like being able to sleep more when I was on that shift. I dunno, I guess each shift has its pluses and minuses. Anyway...I had a meeting at work at 3PM yesterday with the entire staff. On the way home I came around a corner at Soldiers-Home West Carrollton Road and Pinnacle Road and saw a can in the road. I tried to miss it, but with another vehicle coming, I had no option but to hit the can. Normally no big deal. I get home a short time later and I hear a hiss when I get out of the truck's tire...Crikey!
I found the leak and it looked pretty big so I took the wheel off to put the spare on. After taking the punctured tire to the garage I though...ehh, I may be able to fix it. Last summer I was killing time at a K-Mart in Columbus and bought a tire repair kit that was in the clearance isle. I took out the puncture repair tools: rough sided poker, large eye hole tool, and the tarry rubber strip. Take the poker, that has rough sides to clean the puncture, stick it in the leaking hole a time or two to make sure there is no more debris. Act quick and have the tar covered rubber strip already threaded into the eye hole. Stick it in the hole 2/3 of the way and then pull it quickly back out. The bottom of the eye hole is slit so the rubber strip will snap out of the tool leaving the hole filled and sealed. Cut off the excess rubber sticking up...done. I checked the tire this morning and it was as good as new. Repair only cost me about $0.50 and I still have nine more rubber strips. Looking back on the situation, I could have fixed it in about five minutes without removing the wheel...instead of all the work and taking an hour to fix it. I just thought the hole was too large.
I got that fixed and I had to head up to one of my mechanic friend's place to pick up some steel for my moped project. On my way I found the metal can that I hit and I am now positive that I hit that and not a nail. Heading home from picking up the steel, I was blessed with one of the best sunsets I have seen in months. Beautiful pink, orange, and purple under the low hanging thin clouds. I guess since I was hindered with the punctured tire I was blessed at the same spot two hours later with a great sunset.
Weather looks to be pretty quiet, but great for the week/weekend ahead. Still thinking we have less than a 5% chance for rain this weekend. Most of it will be staying too far south and we will be very dry for any rain. For the next seven days, temperatures will be at least five degrees above normal. Tomorrow we will get to about 48 for the high, which will be 13 degrees above normal. So mild temps on the way and rain holding off until the middle of next week. Get out there and enjoy it and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Disc brake update & (yaaaawn) boring, but great forecast
01/04/12
I went to Versailles last week and visited a go cart shop for some "cheap hydros" that they sell. The inexpensive hydraulic forks are all the rage for most people on Moped Army because these k10 Suzuki forks fit many mopeds with minor fabricating involved. Normally hydraulic forks cost about $200, but you can pick these up online or in person at the shop for $39.95. That is a steal in my opinion. I have been working on the forks over the last week to convert them for mopeds and hopefully soon I will have them finished. I still need to weld on a tab to mount the disc brake caliper and refill the hydraulic fluid, but these puppies are about ready to be mounted and complete the frames on both bikes. Now I just need to finish rebuilding the motors and they should be finished... just in time for spring.
Speaking of spring, boy it's going to feel like spring this week, despite just starting January. We still have a little snow on the ground, but with the Southerly winds picking up this week we will actually warm up into the upper 40's by Friday. I mentioned yesterday the cold front swinging down over the weekend, but that will only bring "cooler" weather next week with highs near 40. As the front moves through Saturday into Sunday there will be very little moisture to work with and there is only a VERY slight chance for a flurry or sprinkle. I expect nearly all of the area to remain dry the entire time, but will still keep a close eye on it. So dry for the most part and temperatures well above normal for the next week. Enjoy it... I guess Old Man Winter has only visited so far... just hasn't unpacked yet. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Snow that sticks?!?!
01/03/12
So far this winter we have had three rounds of snow. One at the end of November, one a the end of December, but yesterday's snow was a first...the first to stick to the pavement. The ground was very warm the last two times and it only stuck to the grass for a couple hours. Yesterday was a headache on the roadways. Since I have been in the news industry it has been VERY clear that the first sticking snow ALWAYS causes the worst problems. We all have driven in the snow and know it's slick, but we easily forget how slick it can be until you slip and slide on the snow covered roads. We really did not see THAT much snow, under an inch for most of the area, but it was enough for us to remember...oh yea, gotta take it easy.
Roads will still be slick this morning that were not cleared yesterday and it will not be melting today because we will only get to about 24 for the high. The clouds will start clearing out and tomorrow we will get back into the upper 30's and then 40's heading into the weekend. There is a cold front coming through during the weekend but not expecting any moisture with it. I will keep an eye on it, but looking like a pretty dry change in temperatures. Calling for temperatures in the upper 30's for Sunday and Monday. Once these flurries kick out of here this morning...looking dry for a while...and mild. Stay safe and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Happy New Year!
01/02/12
Hopefully you had a fun and safe holiday season. I was blessed with a lot of time with my friends and family. I am hoping 2012 will be just as much fun and productive as the last couple of years and wish you the best in the new year. I also want to thank all my loyal blog readers. The page views the last couple of months have been off the chart and I just want to thank you for checking in on what's happening with me and the forecast.
I am sporting the scarlet and grey today for the Ohio State bowl game...The Gator Bowl against Florida. I hope that Urban has been a good fly in the ear of the Buckeyes the last couple months, even though he will not be coaching the game this afternoon. Today would be a great day for the scarlet and grey sweater vest... but they have been retired.
Light snow showers will stick around the area for today and will be on the very light end of the spectrum. We can expect less than an inch for accumulations, maybe slightly more to the far north where they may pick up more lake effect snow. Very cold tonight with a low of 14 and winds causing wind chills to drop near zero. A few flurries tonight and tomorrow as we warm up the temperature for the end of the week with sunshine returning as we get into the mid 40's. It has been one roller coaster of a winter so far with very mild temperatures. Stay safe out there and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Arctic Circle magic trick
12/30/11
I always love experiments/magic tricks. We were lucky enough to have Chantelle Rose back from her PolarTREC to the Arctic Circle. Right before Christmas the Graham High School science teacher returned to the area from her 50 day trip. She joined us on the morning show yesterday and she came bringing gifts... after all, she pretty close to the North Pole...kinda. While she was taking scientific readings and monitoring life below the ice she did an experiment. All of her students decorated styrofoam cups. Chantelle also decorated one for FOX 45. She put all of the cups in her laundry bag and dropped them to the bottom of the sea. The water pressure compresses the air pockets out of the cup and shrinks all the designs on the cup and makes the cup barely bigger than a golf ball. Very cool. Thanks for the gift and for keeping us updated on the Arctic expedition, Ms. Rose.
On to my last blog forecast for 2011. Already picking up a few light showers across the Northern Miami Valley. The rest of us will see a few passing showers through the day today, but shouldn't be a washout. At least we will be warm today with high near 50...same for tomorrow, just no rain. Another chance for rain on Sunday, New Years, and then MUCH colder for Monday and Tuesday with highs in the mid 20's. We could see a little snow on Monday when the temperatures drop. Right now it is not looking like much more than just a dusting, if that. I hope you have a safe and happy New Year and see you back on here in 2012! Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Moped project update & roller coaster weather coming
12/29/11
When winter hits I always take advantage of the nasty cold weather to focus on projects. This winter I have a few projects for my mopeds. I am rebuilding both e50 engines with new seals, bearings, and case match the cylinders. I am also installing disc brakes to assist in braking faster. With the new brakes, I will need new front forks because the stock forks will twist because they are not made for the torque of disc brakes. I finished installing the discs yesterday and excited to continue checking off the rest of the items for my winter projects. I really am loving the new wheels though...new sealed bearings, disc brakes, and puuurdy blue five star rims. (I might add that I completely cleaned off my work bench right after this photo... let it get a little messy during the wheel project)
The next couple of days I may regret starting my winter projects. Highs will be near 50 for the last few days of 2011. Remember New Years Eve last year? We hit a high of 61 in Dayton. We shouldn't be quite that warm, but enjoy what warmth we DO get. There is a slight chance for rain for Friday, mainly north of I-70 and another chance for rain Sunday and maybe a few flurries Monday...then say goodbye to the mild temperatures. The first week of 2012 looks to be the coldest stretch of days all season with at least three days below freezing the entire time. It has been a mild winter so far with barely any snow for the kids to enjoy. Highs next week will be in the twenties so at least it will cool off the ground enough for snow to stick for future snow storms. Well back to the news. Enjoy your Thursday...only one more day til the weekend. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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No snow, where'd it go?
12/28/11
Two main factors played into the fact that we have next to no snow on the ground today: snow coming down light melting on the warm pavement, but the main cause was the dry air sinking in and soaking up the moisture. The switch from rain to snow happened just as planned, but that darn dry slot always will kill snowfall totals. Normally the dry slot is not as strong as what we saw yesterday, but was very powerful and was quite the sponge...soaking up the moisture. The Dayton International Airport did have 0.6 inches of snowfall yesterday, but nothing to measure sticking on the ground because it melted on the warm pavement. If the snow falls fast enough you can easily get it to stick to warm pavement though. Check the blog entry from Thursday, March 25, 2010...which has photos. It was a very similar situation where the pavement was warm...but we didn't have the dry slot. The two factors combined really killed us because since the snow was so light, it wasn't enough to stick. Blew that one...which you will not hear very often, but gotta own up to it.
The good news is that we will stay dry for the next couple days. Today we will only get to about 32 for the high, but mid 40's for the rest of the week and weekend. There is a slight chance for a few rain showers to the north for Friday and a better chance for little rain for all of us in the Miami Valley on Sunday as a cold front punches in for the first week of 2012. Stay warm and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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The dreaded dry air
12/27/11
Dry air has punched in on the back side of the low pressure and now we have a cut off of most of the moisture. We may still see some moisture wrap around the low counterclockwise to get to us and with a little lift from the cold front pushing through Wisconsin we may see a little more, but we are pretty much wrapping up. The cold air is timing out about right, but the sinking dry air working in with the Low has completely killed the snow totals. At this point I would say a dusting for the Southern Miami Valley and up to 1" for the north. I have had light snow at my house in Dayton for about three hours now, but the ground is too wet for it to stick.
Roadways will still be slick overnight as temperatures fall into the mid 20's. There also may be a little lake effect snow for the far Northwestern Miami Valley by Celina with strong northwest winds pulling more moisture off Lake Michigan. Sorry, doesn't look great for snowmen making today. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Here Comes The Snow
12/27/11
The rain arrived right around midnight. The temperatures are right now BARELY above freezing, but where the rain is reflecting a little stronger on the radar(green turning to yellow on the radar) we are likely seeing a few big flakes of snow mixing at times(pink on the radar). The rain will switch over the a wintry mix through the middle of the day and over to all snow(blue on the radar) by the evening commute so be prepared for slick spots later. Some of the snow will come down fairly heavy during the transition, but with the ground so warm the roads will be a slushy mess at times. By the time the snow moves out tonight we are expecting about 1-3+" across the Northern Miami Valley. The Southern part will see up to 1". It is now just a waiting game to watch the temperatures fall and the snow to follow. We should be dry then until Friday with a few rain showers returning and maybe a few on Sunday as well. That system will just kinda sit over the top of us for the weekend and it will bring warm temperatures with highs in the mid 40's for the weekend before colder air arrives next week. Stay dry, safe, and on the road today...and have a good one! (I may jump back on here later this morning with an update on snowfall totals depending on when the snow change-over begins.)
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Back from Vacation...Snow forecast for tomorrow
12/26/11
Back in the weather center and it still isn't 5AM as I am typing this... I had a lot of fun visiting the family and enjoying the holiday season. I received some great gifts and I can't remember anyone that was not super excited when they opened up the gifts from Dawn and myself. I really love sharing gifts more than receiving them because it is sometimes the thought and remembering the small things they mentioned to surprise them. I did get a new sweater vest I am wearing today... I may have a new one or two after a few returns at the store today. I also saw Sherlock Holmes II over the break and I highly recommend the movie.
Well, the models are having a really hard time adjusting to the change of seasons. My last blog entry, last Friday, the models were showing us remaining dry all this week. That changed a lot. There will be a push of Gulf moisture and that will smash into an arctic front tomorrow. This is a very tricky system because the switch over from rain to wintry mix to snow will determine how much snow we are expected to accumulate. The models over the last 12 hours have still be having a hard time deciding on how much snow will fall as well. Some have shown as much as 6+", but I highly doubt that will happen. We have been so warm and we actually warmed up to 50 degrees yesterday for Christmas. The first snow that falls will melt and it will take a decent amount to accumulate. Here are my thoughts by Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. I think the far Northern Miami Valley may have 1-3+". The central part of the Miami Valley will see between 1-2" and the far south will see up to 1". This may change if we switch to snow early with cooler temperatures arriving sooner. I will have an update tomorrow morning with fresh look at the accumulations. Mild for the rest of the afternoons this week with another slight chance for rain on Friday. Right now it looks dry for any New Year celebrations on Saturday night. See you back on here soon...have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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To Shave or Not.... & White Christmas (errr) Forecast
12/23/11
I have been really enjoying my time off. It may sound silly but I love not shaving during my time off. It has now been about a week since I have shaved and I am not sure how I like it. I think I could pull off a good goatee, but my mustache and the hair on the sides, where my sideburns are, is very blonde and wouldn't be able to be seen unless I let it grow in a lot more. I thought about having a fun segment next Monday when I return to work and ask the viewers to see if they want me to shave or not... only trick of it is...is that I couldn't get the idea approved so I will likely show up Monday morning with a clean shaven face... ehh, maybe a goatee (just kidding, I would need approval first)
Spending time in the kitchen and cleaning the last couple days has been a lot of fun but also a lot of work. When you visit others you forget all the work that needs to be done beforehand. Not that the house was dirty at all... it was actually REALLY clean, but you still need to dust again, vacuum, cook, clean some more, tie up some loose ends, clean some more, and then finally crash on the couch only to get back up and check on the roast. It is totally worth it once all is said and done, but it is a lot of work in the meantime. I got to share the duties yesterday with Dawn and her mom and we were quite the team running around the house with our mental checklists. The temperatures fell last night and we were JUUUUUST cold enough to get a brief dusting, but it will melt by the afternoon because we will get above freezing.
I have some sad news to bring. Our chances for a White Christmas are less than a 1% chance. The quick clipper system we have been keeping an eye on the last two weeks for Christmas Eve will scoot by just to the north. The good news is that we will be pretty dry over the next week. After our flurries/light sprinkles end today the rest of the seven day forecast looks completely dry. Highs will be in the low/mid 40's for the next seven days with lows in the upper 20's. Not a bad end to the second wettest year on record with a little over 56", but still about 3.5" away from the record set back in 1990. (I remember that quite clearly...my parents took us out of school early one afternoon to go see the flooding in Cincinnati along the Ohio River...shhhh)
I wish I could bring you better news for a White Christmas, but at least you will not need the boat to get to grandma's house. I will be busy around the area spending time with my family over the next couple days so Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and I will see you on Monday! (If anyone receives a sweater vest as a gift, send me the pictures, and I will have a blog dedicated to the spread of vest-cheer) Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Not exactly "vacation" weather
12/20/11
No, that picture is not me. You may have noticed me taking the back-burner the last couple days. I am taking a week off and spending a lot of time with friends and family. The picture is from Ms. Rose, the Graham High School teacher, who has been in the Arctic Circle the last month and a half doing research on the ocean life below the ice. The image is of her pointing to a lenticular cloud. They are, hands down, my favorite cloud and are very rare here in Ohio. You need very specific conditions for the clouds to form and if the conditions last long enough it will look like pancakes stacked on a plate. I have only seen them twice in Ohio... Once with an over riding, on-coming front and another time when a thunderstorm was growing so rapidly it lifted a sheet of air to form the flying-saucer-looking cloud. She is expected to return to Ohio just before Christmas and I can't wait to interview her on the morning show the week after Christmas...when I am back at work.
Speaking of my vacation. One of the things I enjoy the most is not shaving. I have a decent scruff going right now and maybe before I shave it I will grab a picture. I visited my childhood church where my mother had a big roll in the Sunday services. I spent some time on the family farm and got to hang out with my two wonderful youngest siblings and then Monday we visited my grandparents in Cincinnati and they were overjoyed with the gift we got for them. (Not expensive, but lots of time and love) I would tell you what it is, but we still have two more of the same gifts to give out to Dawn's family. I will show you after the holidays. While most people take time off in the middle of the summer and spend it on the beach (kinda wish I was there)... I am taking it off with a week of rain and clouds. I wish it was sunny and warm, but ehhh, I love Ohio and the people that live here too much to go anywhere else with my saved-up vacation time.
Alright, on to the forecast... the main reason I finally logged onto the computer in days... I have been keeping an eye on the models on my Android phone the last few days and here is a look at what our predicted snow depth for Christmas morning, according to the last for model runs of the GFS:
The models yesterday were very hopeful for at least some snow on the ground for Christmas morning. The models have trended away from snowfall with the disturbance coming through Christmas Eve, but don't give up hope completely. In winters past the models that come out about five days out hold true better than the models two days out, so we will have to wait and see and I will keep you posted, no worries.
As for the next few days: rainy, mild, and foggy. I can barely see down my street right now because the rain has stopped and now it is like pea soup fog. The rain will be the heaviest Tuesday night and Wednesday night, but breaks in between. Wednesday and Thursday will be the warmest of the week and then much cooler for the end of the week heading into Christmas with highs back in the 30's. I will be back on before Christmas with an update, but get used to rainy, gloomy conditions. Trust me, I wish I could change that. I will keep the sweater vests ready for re-deployment next week when I return to work. Until next time, have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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The New Facebook Timeline (with tips)
12/16/11
We all know one thing...Facebook is always changing. The big change has been in the pipes for a long time and it is now "LIVE" for those who want to get a jump on it. The picture shows that the new look will take a little longer to load because it is a little more picture based. There is now a top "cover photo" and the timeline on the right side (below the ads) that can show you everything you posted or others posted to your wall since you signed up for Facebook.
If you want to switch over your profile before the assigned date, you can. I read online that December 22nd everyone's profile would switch, so might as well get ahead of the curve. If you want to switch your profile now you can just go to www.facebook.com/about/timeline and then click on "Get It Now." Make sure to take time to review all of your old posts. You can tweak your timeline and delete any unflattering photos or posts for a week before it is published for others, unless you are to eager to share your life story...or you can make the new timeline public for your friends to see when you are ready.
You can also hide certain parts of your wall or even highlight parts of it to show off to others.
There is a LOT of custom settings that you can do for each individual post. Either go through and delete or hide them one by one or if you don't want the public to be able to see it then make sure to hide your timeline in the privacy settings, but c'mon...it's Facebook! So pick out your cover photo and get ready for a LOT of time to be wasted...right around the holidays. (Woulda been nice if they would have launched it AFTER people are done visiting families.)
Much colder out there today compared to the last couple of days. We are sitting in the low 30's at 5AM...so about 25 degrees colder than this time yesterday. We will see the clouds clear out through the day today and sunshine will be around for the weekend with highs in the upper 30's for today and tomorrow. We will tap back into the 40's for Sunday and next week, but lows will be in the mid 20's til then. Rain also returns for late Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday next week. The next system right before Christmas looks like it will not be quite as cold, but there is still a very slight chance we could still see snow. I will keep a close eye on that. Today is my last day on-air for a week, but I will make sure to update my blog next week while I am spending time with family and friends for the holidays, so make sure to check back in for a look at the forecast and how the holidays are going. I hope you have a Happy Holiday and a very Merry Christmas...and as always, have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Lookie, Lookie, Try My Cookie!
12/15/11
It looks like another morning cooking competition... although I am not sure if we are competing or not... (In my head, maybe!?) I made the SUPER easy, SUPER cheap Buck Blusters (a combination of blustery and clusters...since they are clusters and great for blustery weather....ok, I made that up).
Here is the recipe:
One bag of butterscotch chips
Half a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips
One can of Spanish peanuts.
Heat the chips, stir in the nuts, drop on wax paper... It only costs about $5 to make about three dozen Blusters... Buck style. Let them cool about 30 minutes and you are good to go, or as Dawn and I call it, G-ta-G.
On to the forecast. Morning rain today and a few breaks in the rain. This afternoon we will begin to dry out and then we will deal with cooling temperatures through the evening...but not before we get into the mid and upper 50's for the middle part of the day today. Try to enjoy the warmth because it will be a long time before we are that warm again. Weekend will be mostly sunny and temperatures in the upper 30's, near 40. More rain will return for the start of next week as we stay in the 40's and then another system later next week that MAY bring snow just before Christmas... the models have warmed up JUUUUST a bit. Anyway, I am training Chris Mulcahy for the morning show, so I got to get back to that. Stay dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Truck tune up
12/14/11
What a better way to spend an evening than raising your truck five feet in the air and repairing it. We had to replace the water pump and, while it was convenient, an oil change. I am very jealous of my friend's lift, but no way would it fit in my garage. I spent most of yesterday with Dawn, who was home sick from work. Hopefully she feels a little better today. I will not be able to take care of her all day today because Jeff Booth and I will be going out to lunch with our new meteorologist, Chris Mulcahy. I have met Chris, but it will be nice to sit down and chat about stuff. It is a rare occasion that we all can get together because of the opposite shifts.
Rain showers and mild conditions this morning. The rain showers will dry up a little bit as we head into the late morning and afternoon, but more showers and storms will roll in tonight. As of 5AM we only need. 0.59" more rain to get to the #2 wettest year on record...should likely happen by tomorrow morning. Warm again through tomorrow, mid 50 for highs, and we will dry out later tomorrow...then temperatures dropping, near 40 for highs, for the end of the week and weekend. At least the weekend is looking dry, but more rain returning early next week. There is still another system on the long, long term models right before Christmas with much colder air and moisture...snow still looking possible. The last three out of four model runs have shown a decent amount of moisture for a little whitening. More on that in the days to come. Stay dry today and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Busy 24 hours...Christmas tree up
12/13/11
First time I have put up the tree in two years. I didn't put up the tree last year because I just couldn't get into the spirit of the holiday because of working so many long streaks of work (16, 19 day streaks) and no time to really celebrate with family and friends... Well I guess that is a lie. I did get to celebrate. It was two years ago I wasn't able too and thus leaving me in a weak Christmas mood for last year and I took off the week before Christmas as a safe guard. Anyway, I spent most of the day yesterday studying for my CBM test...at the gym, home, during my sleep...hope I pass. After all the studying, I did a little house cleaning , rearranging and put on the Christmas tunes. With Buckeye blind we can't move too much of the house so I was able to move a table and it worked out perfectly for the Christmas tree. I also put up the nativity set that my sister got for me a few years ago. I may even get a little crazy and decorate outside a little today...after studying.
Temperatures will be favorable for being outside this afternoon. Clouds are rolling in this morning and we will be mostly cloudy today with a high in the upper 40's. Rain arrives tonight and will stick around the area over the next couple days with a few breaks. The rain will also bring in MUCH warmer temperatures and we will be in the upper 50's...not to shabby, but a little soggy. Cool air will return for the weekend, but at least it is looking dry with highs in the upper 30's, near 40. We have two systems next week and the second system, just before Christmas, looks to bring in colder air and we MAY see a little snow on the ground for Christmas... still WAY to early to call just yet, but there is hope. Enjoy the mild temps and dry weather today and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Holiday Spirit
12/12/11
I will admit that my Christmas tree is not up, yet, but I am still in the spirit of the holiday season. We had Tim Horton's in the station on Friday and they got my holiday weekend kicked off right. Dawn and I knocked out most of our holiday shopping Saturday, but we still have a couple of people to finish off the list. While it does feel great to get most of that finished, the real accomplishments came at home. I put up new curtain rods in the bedroom and black-out curtains to help me sleep during the day since I am awake nearly all night long with my shift. I also insulated the entire house's windows. While it only cost about $30, I think we will EASILY make that back over the next few months. It is amazing how it cuts down on the draft you never noticed before. The rooms used to have a little chill to them, but now they are more temperate and once you warm up all the rooms the thermostat in the middle of the house SHOULD be a little warmer and kick on the furnace a little less. Now I just need to power through this week and then I took next week off for the holidays. Everyone always requests the week after Christmas off, so by taking off the week before I can visit family and enjoy the season a little more.
Well, the models are really keeping us mild until Christmas. I would say we have a 25% chance for a White Christmas at this point...more updates as we get closer. The sunshine over the weekend was REALLY nice to help raise the spirits. I am done with all the clouds and dreariness. Plenty of sunshine today to start the workweek and despite temperatures near 20 now, we should warm into the low 40's today. We will continue to warm the next few days and by Wednesday and Thursday we should be in the 50's...MUCH warmer than normal. The only trade-off will be a chance for rain later Wednesday and Thursday. That rain will be coming with a cold front and will drop our temperatures near 40 for the highs for next weekend. We will need to get colder than that if we want the ground to stay cold enough for snow to stick for Santa. Stay warm, enjoy the sunshine, and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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New spin on a "school" talk
12/09/11
I have talked to dozens of local schools and thousands of students...but recently I did something I have never done... talked to home schooled students. I was sent this photo from my recent talk with the South Dayton Christian Homeschoolers. The kids were a lively bunch and we met at a local library meeting room for the talk. The kids had a lot of fun and had A LOT of questions. I love it when the kids have a lot of questions that they come up with during the talk. The more, the better because if one person asks a question then it is likely another student was thinking the same thing.
Yesterday was pretty much awesome. I did a satellite interview with Archie Griffin and I gave him the "O-H!" and I got an "I-O!!" back....I think I may have climaxed my career too early, what do you think? After I left work, I went to the gym and did squats for the first time...in years. I can barely walk today. I then ran to the auto parts store to get a new water pump for my truck and then home. I did a little moped wrenching and then took a much needed nap. I slept for at least five hours and Dawn woke me up at 7:30PM so we could head out to watch the Browns play the Thursday night game on NFL Network. Browns scored a field goal on the opening drive and then Steelers scored a touchdown following that. Then no scoring until the end of the fourth quarter when the Steelers blew through our secondary and scored a 79 yard touchdown pass. James Harrison had another helmet to helmet hit on the Browns...this time it was our QB Colt McCoy...who doesn't even remember the hit. This is the third time Harrison has knocked out a Browns players thanks to his helmet to helmet hits in the last two games. I understand wanting to be known as a hard tackling back, but c'mon, let's keep it clean. If I have anything to say about the game last night... I am proud that the Browns held tough with Steelers and only lost the game by 11 points...could have been much worse.
We are dealing with a few light snow showers off to the north this morning. The far north has seen right around half an inch so far with maybe another half an inch or less...so a total of up to 1". We have not seen anything in Dayton, so all of it staying north of I-70. Dayton still has a few slick spots...I saw a couple, on my way into work, in locations where water was standing the last couple days from the rain earlier this week. Tonight we will drop into the upper teens and we should see the coldest temps of the season tonight. We will stay dry and warm into the lower 40's for next week. There is a weak system on Tuesday that may bring a little rain, but a more potent system later in the week with a better chance for rain. Stay warm this weekend and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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New heated morning show competition: Gingerbread Houses
12/08/11
We have done the pumpkin carving, pumpkin chucking, chili cook-off, and I am sure a few more competitions...and now we move on to a gingerbread house building competition. I went light on my icing on the house and focused more on simplicity and detail. I decided instead of outlining my windows, I put a light dusting on them for a frosted look and outlined my sidewalk to the house with red hot candies. We will be judged by two judges from a local gingerbread competition going on this weekend and Facebook on the station's Facebook page. There are three votes and three houses... probably ending in a three way tie?!? Doubtful.
Snow looking more promising for the tomorrow...for PART of the area. The northern part of the area may see up to 1" and that is to the FAR north. Most of the snow will be staying north of I-70 and the area just north of the 70 divide will probably only see a light dusting...if that. There is not a lot of moisture with this system, but enough to make things interesting. Dayton may not see much of anything. It appears the snow will start in the early morning for the far north Friday and push off to the east by Friday evening. That will leave us MUCH colder for the weekend with lows in the teens for Saturday and Sunday. Highs today & tomorrow will be in the mid 30's. We will be hard pressed to get to 30 for the high on Saturday and then quickly warm up into the upper 30's by Sunday and low 40's for early next week. We also could see a little rain for the middle of next week, but who knows... still cold enough that if we dropped a couple degrees it could be snow. Make sure to vote for me and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Returning to the classroom
12/07/11
Yvery year the Wilmington office of the National Weather Service they hold a media meeting to go over changes at the office and update everyone on what is new. Yesterday they also invited the local EMA directors and it was a very enlightening meeting. It is also really fun to get together with the local meteorologist and have some in-depth discussions on topics that we find dear to our professions. I am also excited about changes coming behind the scenes, but still have to wait nearly a year before the dual-pole radar is upgraded. Something to look forward to for next year.
Things will be pretty quiet for today other than a little drizzle this morning...with temperatures near freezing there may be a few slick spots, so be careful. The chance for the rain/snow later this week put on its brakes and is now looking to swing through on Friday now. We will only get into the mid/upper 30's through the end of the week with lows in the mid 20's. The Friday system still will swing by to our north...not a lot of changes other than it's timing bumped back to Friday. That will bring in MUCH colder air for the weekend. When we drop below freezing Friday night we will likely stay below freezing until Sunday afternoon. Other than Friday we will be dry over the next week, which I am sure many people will not mind with the localized flooding still an issue. I had to take a detour myself into work that added five more minutes because of the flooding. Stay warm and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Flooding Today, Snow by Thursday??
12/06/11
With the 1.95" of rain Dayton saw on Monday it broke the daily record for rain for December 5th with the old record of 0.72" set in 1977. We smashed the record! Many of the rivers and streams are near or juuuuust above flood stage this morning and are already starting to drop. By Wednesday morning we should see most of the rivers below flood stage. Other than Thursday, we will be dry over the next week. The system on Thursday is still a little tricky. It looks to scoot just to our north and we MAY see a few flurries, but I am starting to doubt it. I have mentioned before that these early-season systems pull a little more north than what the models show. As you can see in the image we are on the far southern edge of the system already. I am right now calling for a 20% chance for rain/snow, but I may be giving it more of a chance than needed. I think tomorrow we will really see and may be dropping that percent chance even lower. The temperature also will be the deciding factor between rain and snow.
Well other than the rain leaving today and the chance, slight chance, for rain/snow for the Northern part of the area Thursday...it will be pretty quiet, dry, and cold. Today we should see 40 for the high, then upper 30's through the end of the week. By the weekend we will see highs near freezing, so most of the day will be below freezing. We will see a few clouds heading into the start of next week...but no rain or snow. I am pretty sure everyone will be happy to dry out a little bit. I will keep you posted on Thursday, so stay warm and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Fun Weekend, Soggy Workweek
12/05/11
It seems like Dawn and I never get a weekend to just chill and relax. (Maybe next weekend) This weekend was busy, like the rest. Friday we had her work Christmas party at UNOH in Lima. It was a lot of fun, especially the games they had planned for some of the workers. We then went to Cleveland for the weekend and finished off the weekend with the Browns game with the couple we met on our honeymoon. Despite the drizzle, chilly temps, strong winds, and the Browns loosing, it was a lot of fun. I just had to try to keep warm as best as possible.
Dawn drove home so I could try to sleep a little before coming into work, which I am VERY grateful for...but I plan on sleeping A LOT when I get off work. (Since I only got an hour of sleep in bed last night)
Well the rain is going to stick around today. As of 5AM, Dayton unofficially jumped to #3 for wettest year ever with 52.26", #2 is reachable with 54.65" in 1996, & #1 is 59.75" in 1990. We could see about 1-2" for the day today with temps falling through the 40's. Tonight the rain will pull out of here and we could see a few flurries mixing in on the backside of the system, but not looking at accumulations because temperatures look to be slightly too warm to have a prolonged snow event. Temperatures will be much colder tomorrow with a few flurries in the morning. Highs the next few days will be near 40. Another system will swing by on Thursday and right now the models are having a hard time deciding if we will see snow or rain, so we will need to keep a close eye on that. By Friday and Saturday highs will be near freezing, so most of the day will be below freezing. Stay dry out there today and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Happy Sweater Vesitval Day!
12/02/11
There is one day a year when it is appropriate to bring ALL of your sweater vests to work...that day is today. It is the International Sweater Vestival Day. It is the second Friday after Thanksgiving and it is appropriate to wear yours and bring extras for the rest of your co-workers. I will be switching into a different sweater vest every commercial break for our FOX show this morning for some fun in the celebrations. Mopeds...sweater vests...I am not what you may call main stream, but I sure know how to put a smile on your face.
On to the forecast. Today will be partly cloudy with highs in the lower 40's. Saturday we will warm into the low 50's...same for Sunday. The clouds will increase for Saturday and rain will arrive for Sunday and Monday. Temps will fall through the day on Monday and by Monday night into Tuesday, still watching the chance for a little snow. We will dry out for the end of next week, but it will be pretty darn cold so if you are waiting to winterize your windows of the house, or dragging your feet for the winter clothes...might as well get ready. Enjoy your weekend, Sweater Vestival Day, and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Thick fog this morning
12/01/11
Sure enough, the fog was as thick as pea soup this morning. The only disclaimer is that the fog is VERY patchy. My house was clear then as I drove through West Carrollton, into work, the fog became very thick. As soon as I pulled out of town the fog cleared up instantly. So just be careful heading into work or school this morning. Temperatures are also below freezing so watch out for a few icy spots because of all the rain we saw just two days ago. I know I had to take a detour into work because of the Great Miami River flooding my normal route.
I totally blew it last night...I spilled the beans on Dawn's Christmas gift. It was Dawn's birthday yesterday and I gave her the new camera I got her because she hasn't had one for several years and has been wanting a new camera. Things were going well and I took her out to get her favorite steak from Outback. While we were eating the delicious honey wheat bread, we got to talking about our weekend plans. We have her work Christmas party in Lima on Friday and then off to Cleveland for the weekend. We have a lot of fun planned, including the Browns game Sunday afternoon. Anyway, I told her the neighbors would be watching the house and checking for packages because I didn't want the iPod sitting outside all weekend. I paused and bit my lip hoping Dawn didn't hear that... She did. "iPod?" Yea, I dropped the ball on that. Secret is out of the bag, sorry Dawn and Merry Christmas. Hope you still like it! (She did seem excited)
Plenty of sunshine today when the fog burns off. Temps will be in the mid 40's today and tomorrow and we will warm up to 50 for Saturday and Sunday. Rain returns Sunday and Monday with falling temps behind the system. By Tuesday we could see a little snow mixing in once again. The middle of next week will be bitterly cold, so enjoy the mild temperatures this weekend. Drive safe and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Tuesday's Snow Recap
11/30/11
If anyone was on Twitter or Facebook and had a lot of friends around the Miami Valley, you would know it was snowing... EVERYONE was talking about our first measurable snowfall of the season. I had to get some sleep while it was at it's thickest depth in Dayton, but Dawn's cousin snapped the photo of the snow covered pine tree in Miamisburg last night...very seasonal. I was able to at least see the snow start falling before bed. Buckeye was not a fan of the snow...he loves being hot, not snow-covered. Most of the inch of snow we did see had melted before I left the house on my way to work... just a melting dusting on the lawn.
As far as the snowfall totals, it appears that Darke and Shelby counties had seen the most snow with some reports between 3-4" of snow. Most of the north saw about 2-3" and the rest of the Miami Valley saw about an inch...unless you lived to the far south where they only saw a dusting. So, my second blog entry yesterday afternoon held true. The snow started falling yesterday afternoon instead of the evening. Temperatures fell a little faster and this allowed the snow to start falling earlier than the evening hours. Hopefully this was a good first test for drivers to remind them of how to drive in snow. I say that, but little to no snow stuck to the road so I still think our next "sticking" snow will be the true driving test.
The snow is pulling out of here, but we may still see a flurry or two this morning. The clouds will give way to sunshine later today, but we will only get into the upper 30's. Tonight we will drop off to a low around 24. With clear skies, light winds, and PLENTY of moisture we may see a little fog Thursday morning. If we do see fog, it will likely be freezing fog so the roadways tomorrow may be worse than today, especially the bridges. They will freeze first because the wind will go under the bridge and cool them off much faster. We will stay dry and cool for the rest of the week. Rain returns Sunday and we could be dealing with a similar snowy situation on Monday. Next week is looking VERY cold after the system moves out Monday. I will keep you posted on the Sunday-Monday system in the coming days. Stay safe out there and have a good one! Also, Happy Birthday to my wife, Dawn.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Update on snow....upping the totals
11/29/11
I have been keeping a close eye on the temperatures throughout the day and we have cooled off a little more and a little faster than the models were showing. So instead of the rain switching over to snow just before midnight we are already seeing snow here in the Miami Valley. The picture is taken by my brother in Darke County where they started switching over to snow around 3:30PM today. Since we will be cutting the rain short and seeing all snow sooner, here are my updated thoughts for tonight. To the far northwest 2-4" for Wayne, Randolph, Mercer, Darke, Auglaize, Shelby, and Miami Counties. For counties that border these counties, they can expect up to 2" of snow... such as Logan, Champaign, Montgomery, and Preble Counties. The rest of the Miami Valley will likely pick up about an inch of snow, or less to the south. Remember, the ground is still above freezing so it will stick for a short time and last the longest on the grass and mulch. The snow on pavement will melt fairly quickly unless you have a quick heavy snow shower. Parts of the area are under a Winter Weather Advisory meaning this is our first measurable snowfall for the season. While I doubt many of us will really need a snow shovel for this event... might not be a bad idea to find it in the garage if you live far northwest of Dayton. Heading to bed shortly so I can get into the weather center early tomorrow morning. Travel safe and as always, have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Tonight's snowfall forecast
11/29/11
Well it is knocking on the door. The rain is still falling outside and we have seen nearly two inches in the Dayton area over the last couple days. The cold air is already starting to filter in from Indiana. As temperatures fall later we will see the rain start to change to a rain/snow mix this evening after sunset and all snow by Wednesday morning. The models are fairly consistent for the predicted snowfall totals. It appears the Northwestern part of the Miami Valley will see up to about an inch of snow. The further north and west you live the better chance you will see more snow. I think Dayton may see a light dusting if the snow falls quick enough and the far south may only see a few flurries. Keep in mind that the ground is wet and still above freezing. The snow will only stick for a short time before melting. The best chance for snow will be between midnight and daybreak tomorrow so the morning commute could be a little hairy...again, especially north and west. We lucked out because it appears Indiana will be getting the worst punch of this wintry system.
Temps will remain cold for the end of the week with highs in the low 40's and overnight low's near 30. There are two more rounds of winter weather possible, Friday and late Sunday. The Friday system has very little moisture to work with, but still worth watching. Sunday night into Monday morning looks like more of a pesky system with more moisture. The temperature will determine if we are dealing with rain or snow so I will keep a close eye on that. First we have to get through tonight and if I see any changes to the forecast I will update my blog later today. Stay dry and keep the rubber on the road tomorrow. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Nasty Weather
11/28/11
Boy, what a weekend. Horrible for sports and Mother Nature even cried on Sunday...and still crying. I knew that Buckeyes and Browns would likely lose this weekend, but I still kept up my hopes. Buckeyes had several chances to win, but they fell through...just like the Browns. You have to give credit for Bengals and Michigan for pulling through and winning. I spent the weekend in Cleveland with Dawn's family to celebrate Thanksgiving. Dawn has told me several times about how horrible the traffic always is on the Sunday after Thanksgiving and she was VERY set on leaving as soon as the Browns game was over. Sure enough we hit the back-up just south of Mansfield on I-71. The highway goes from three lanes down to two. The narrowing of the road, steady rain, and several accidents meant that it took us about 90 minutes to travel 12 miles. It normally takes about three hours to get from her parents to our house in Dayton...last night it took five hours. That meant I only was able to get about three hours of sleep last night. I think a nap is a must, especially to make it to the Dayton Area Moped Riders' Holiday Feast tonight.
Well the temperatures are a handful of degrees warmer currently than what I was thinking Friday. That means instead of seeing snow, we are just barely too warm and we are seeing rain instead...good thing too because the system has a lot of moisture. The rain showers will stick around the area pretty persistently for today and Tuesday. Tuesday night we will fall below freezing and could see a few snowflakes. When we fall below freezing will determine how much snow and where. Best chance will be the north for any snow. I will break that down tomorrow when a more precise forecast is possible. We will have highs near 40 and lows in the upper 20's for the end of the week and into the weekend. There will also be a couple more rounds of winter weather possible Friday and Sunday. I will be keeping a close eye on those as well, but right now it does not look like a lot of moisture will be with these systems. Stay dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Morning Show Black Friday Feast
11/25/11
It has been a tradition that everyone at the station the morning after Thanksgiving bring in a dish for our Feast. That means our engineer, master control, production team, producers, reporters, myself, and the anchors. By Black Friday many people are burnt out on turkey and mashed potatoes so we have a wide array of sausage links, sweet potatoes, cracker and cheese trays, desserts, dips, not to mention good coffee. It is always fun to see what people cook up. Brandi, one of our morning directors, always makes some amazing food. Her dad attends a lot of meat cooking competitions and the sausages she brought in today were AMAZING. The dark ones were really spicy so keep the water handy!
So the forecast in yesterday's blog looks to be holding true. We do have a little morning fog that will burn off in a couple hours. Nice today and Saturday with clouds slowly rolling in and highs in the upper 50's. Rain will arrive late Saturday night into Sunday morning followed by much colder temperatures. Later Sunday we will be cold enough for a little snow to start falling. We could see a few light snow showers Sunday night into Monday. Right now there will be light to no accumulations. The Northern counties will have the best chance for light snow. Cold air will stick around all next week with highs near 40 and lows in the mid-upper 20's. Another system comes through next Thursday with even more cold air behind it. I am off to Cleveland for the weekend to celebrate Thanksgiving with Dawn's family. I will be watching the Buckeyes and Browns game from there. Enjoy your extended weekend and see you all back here Monday. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Big changes in the forecast
11/24/11
At the end of yesterday's entry I made mention that the first couple systems of the year always tend to lift north and warm up. The forecast model must have heard me. This image is of the same time frame as yesterday's model. The low pressure is now forecasted north of Maine, we have warmer temperatures, and instead of seeing a possible rain/snow mix we might be seeing clear skies instead. These winter systems are a little more fickle than many other storms. I will keep an eye on it, but the only way we could have been more different by the middle of next week is if we were dealing with 80 degree temperatures...hey, stranger things have happened in Ohio. I expect a few more changes over the coming days. In years past there may be a renegade model a week out that actually pans out and shows snow and it turns out accurate, despite models closer to the date straying away from what actually will happen.
Quick check of your Thanksgiving Day forecast. Yesterday was a beautiful afternoon with plenty of sunshine and mild temperatures. Today will be much of the same with a little morning fog or cloudiness. We do have a few thin clouds now that will burn off quickly when the sun comes up (writing this at 4:53AM). Mild and mostly sunny for Friday as well with highs over the next few days in the upper 50's, near 60. Rain will roll in late Saturday night into Sunday morning and bring the cold blast of air. We could see a few snowflakes mix in late Sunday and maybe Monday. The moisture looks to pull out quickly, but we will still will be cold next week with highs near 40 and lows in the 20's. Enjoy your Thanksgiving and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Week from now...snow?
11/23/11
The models have been hinting at a trough of cold air swinging through for the start of December. Now that that time frame is within shooting range it seems to be holding consistent from model to model, for the most part. The last couple rounds of models are showing a low pressure system getting lost from the flow of the jet stream and sitting over us early next week. This will allow cool temperatures and extended periods of rain for early next week and when a secondary cold blast of air arrives for the middle of next week...it will pull the colder air into the area a little stronger. Soooo, what does this all mean. The image attached shows three important factors in our snow chances for next week. You may notice the blue and red lines. These are the temperatures just a short way above the surface of the earth. You can see the freezing line of 0 degrees Celsius hugging the plains and the Midwest. The -10 degree line taps into parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the U.P. of that state up north. So the cold air will be in place. On to the black lines: these are the lines of pressure. The low pressure system that will begin lifting north by next Wednesday (according to the timing of today's model) will be a fairly strong system with a pressure of around 995 mb. The last and most important ingredient for us seeing snow...moisture. We are on the the third tier of amount of precipitation for the 12 hour window the model predicts. It appears there is plenty of moisture also higher in the atmosphere with cold air as well.
So here is what we are looking at for the forecast. The rain and clouds are on their way out of here. We will be dry all the way until Sunday. Today we will only get into the low 50's, but still on track to get into the mid 50's for Thanksgiving, tomorrow. Highs near 60 for Friday and Saturday before the big change in weather. The low pressure system will swing in on Sunday and put its brakes on and just sit around the Midwest for Monday. This will bring scattered showers for Sunday and Monday with highs in the upper 40's. The second cold blast of air is what we really need to time out to pinpoint our chance for snow. Right now it appears that the blast of cold air will arrive late Tuesday so we may see a few flakes of snow mixing with rain later Tuesday. If the cold air arrives at the predicted time we could see a switch over to mostly snow heading into Wednesday morning. Timing will be the deciding factor into when and where all of this happens so we still have a week to see what pans out. Remember, forecasting winter storms this far out is a lot like bowling down a lane that is about three times the normal length. It is especially difficult to forecast the first few systems...they typically pull north and we warm up at the last second, but with the Low already sitting over us a few days this is a little different. I will keep an eye on the situation and as always...keep ya posted because I have a feeling there will be changes by next week.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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What is better than Thanksgiving leftovers?
11/22/11
Thanks to my mother having Thanksgiving dinner the Sunday before the holiday... it allowed Dawn and I to enjoy two thanksgiving dinners before the holiday even arrived. We both love the food that is associated with the holiday. My mother sent us home with a LOT of leftovers. Thanksgiving is one of the best holidays. Everyone gets together, no need for gifts...just enjoy the fellowship of friends and family...and of course good food.
The steady rain is almost here. The wall of rain is moving in from the south and we will see steady rain through most of the late morning and early afternoon, heavy at times. The rain will pull out of here by tomorrow morning. We will get into the upper 50's today but only get into the lower 50's tomorrow. Thanksgiving will be mostly sunny and we will get into the mid 50's. Friday looking great as well with upper 50's and plenty of sunshine. Clouds will roll back into the area for the weekend and with that a chance for rain. Next week the models are hinting at cold air trying to push back into the area and trying to set up camp...so I will keep an eye on it because right now it has a strong trough of cold air over the Pacific for the weekend. Stay dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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How firm thy friendship ... OHIO!
11/21/11
Saturday was a bit of a bittersweet letdown. Dawn and I went back up to Ohio State for the Penn State football game. We went with her cousin who recently traded for an older public transport bus which is now converted into a party bus complete with television and lots of seating for a big group of people with still plenty of room to lay out the party spread. It was a lot of fun to return to Ohio State for the first time since Dawn and I got married at Browning Amphitheater in July. Mirror Lake and Browning were not nearly as green as what they were earlier in the year. We also met up with a group of meteorology students we graduated with, who also came up to tailgate. I really miss all of those guys who are just as nerdy as I am. Good friends whether the weather is good or bad.
We watched the first quarter in the party bus and then we went over to High Street to watch the rest of the game. It was a sad game because we had the chance to win the game several times, but sadly we did not win. This brings on Beat Michigan week. I really miss this week on campus because no matter what the record...it is all erased and everyone focuses on one game to set the mood for the season.
Yesterday we visited my parents' farm and we had a lot of fun celebrating Thanksgiving. My three brothers, myself, and our father got into a silly heated debate. We were talking about ceramic drainage tiles that help drain flooded areas of the farm fields. The debate was over how the tiles initially break and cause sink holes over time. My brother Clark made a few statements that easily had a few "cracks" in it and we had fun picking apart those cracks. He claimed the velocity of the higher elevation of the tube would be faster than the lower elevation of the tile. This would be true if you have a blow hole, but we were arguing about a solid tile that had no blow holes...so it would have to be the same velocity...all simple physics. Dawn said she was going insane because when we all get together we are VERY loud and "debate" over the some "boring" topics in her opinion. I had fun, haha.
On to your Thanksgiving week forecast. Today we will have a few light scattered showers, but most of the showers will be hit or miss with mild temperatures. Tuesday will be pretty much a wash-out with showers and storms most of the day and a high in the low 60's, so even warmer. The rain will move out just in time for early holiday travels on Wednesday. We will cool off a bit with highs in the low 50's for Wednesday, mid 50's Thursday and near 60 for Friday. Thanksgiving looks mostly sunny and mild heading into Friday morning with a low of 38 for any Black Friday shoppers. Much warmer than the years I participated. Working the morning shift kinda limits my Black Friday shopping. Back to the forecast...working on a holiday travel forecast graphic across the region. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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My new lucky gloves
11/18/11
These gloves were actually a mistake. Last year during a football Friday I needed gloves to shoot highlights for the freezing cold temps we were experiencing. My former co-worker, Malcom Maddox, swore on the skin tight thin Under Armour gloves. They are very thin and allow you to really feel what you are doing with all the buttons on the video cameras and still keep your hands warmer than bare skin. I was working a double and couldn't stop by Dick's Sporting Goods to pick up a pair. Luckily another co-worker Jon Scott said he was going to get gloves as well. He said he could pick me up a pair of gloves, however he was not there when I was getting the sermon from Malcom about how great these thin gloves were and how they should have already been a necessity for my normal gear when shooting video in the cold. Jon came back from the store and said the gloves were $35. I thought I was getting raked over the coals because online I saw the gloves I wanted for $20. (Still pricey) When he pulled them out of the shopping bag I saw that they were not what I was hoping for. Reluctantly, I paid him the $35 because I was banking on wearing the gloves he picked up for me. The gloves were very warm, but I had a hard time using them with all the small buttons, switches, and controls on the camera. I still managed but eventually got the gloves I originally wanted. Well, I have kept both pairs of gloves and they have really been handy in cold situations...until yesterday.
I checked on my truck in the body shop and they said it was being painted and I would be able to pick it up tomorrow, Friday. I was stuck to commuting on my moped for the day yesterday and with my winter project plans starting next week for the mopeds I wanted to soak in as many miles as possible, despite a high of 41 and winds 20-30 mph. Dawn and her cousin's were getting together at Sammy's El Pueblo Restuarant for lunch in Springboro. I LOVE their burgers...amazing. Anyway, Dawn called and told me they were meeting for lunch and they wanted to know if I wanted to come too. I couldn't say no so I rode the ten chilly miles to the restaurant. I always wear a backpack with essential tools in case I break down so I can attempt to fix my moped on the side of the road. I happened to have my gloves in another pocket. When I got to Sammy's I took off my backpack to get my lock and secure the bike to the tree. I noticed I left a pocket open and sure enough...the gloves were gone. (I used a warmer pair for the chilly ride) I was pretty bummed for lunch. I made sure on my way home I took the exact same route and my eyes were scanning machines. I scanned the roads left and right constantly looking for my gloves. I got about a mile from home and I was losing hope. THEN, I found one of the gloves in someone's driveway so I circled around and picked it up, WOOHOO! I continued my trip home and couldn't find the other glove. I was freezing and took a little break to warm up. After a few minutes of thinking, I wanted to check again. I got back on the moped and took the same route again. I wore the one glove I found for good luck and hoped that the one glove would call out to the other. As I was riding, about a block from where I found the first glove, I noticed something dark in the shade of a house that was close to the road...yup...there it was. I was stoked. I have plenty of gloves and really didn't NEED them, but it was quite a blissful moment when I put the second glove on and they were once again reunited. I knighted them my new favorite lucky gloves.
Well I wore the gloves on my chilly ride into work today. I could have used a second set because the 30+ mph wind from riding was cutting through the fabric on the gloves. I did wear two pairs of socks under my dress shoes so my ankles were toasty. Wind chills, for everyone sane and not riding a moped in the cold weather, are around 15-20 degrees. Plenty of sunshine will warm us up into the upper 40's and still looking at 50's for the weekend. Saturday will be warmer and windy, but dry...not the same for Sunday. Rain will return for Sunday through Tuesday. It will not be a complete wash-out, scattered showers instead. Heading into Thanksgiving we will see temperatures in the 40's but plenty of sunshine. I have been keeping an eye on the long term forecast. It looks like we may have a few cold snaps and a few flurries/light snow showers in the coming weeks. If things remain the same as what the models are showing...no measurable snow for a little while. I will keep an eye on things because that first snow always catches people off-guard on how to drive. You may think I am wrong, but mark my word...that first inch of snow there will be accidents all over the place. We get so used to dry pavement that a little bit of ice or snow seems to be do-able and people over do it. Anyway, enjoy your weekend and if you are heading to Columbus for the Penn State-Ohio State football game, you may see me. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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How Cold Is It?
11/17/11
COLD! As I mentioned in my last few entries, I won't have my truck back until later this week. I did not have rental coverage on my insurance(thought I did), but I did add it for future instances. (Hopefully wont need it.) Anyway, I embraced the idea of riding my moped when I couldn't borrow my wife's car. This morning it was about 34 degrees so I bundled up really warm. The only cold parts of my body was my ankles and wrists. I tucked my scarf up into my helmet and it was foggily warm. This image was a little exaggeration of how foggy my helmet was, but you get the idea. I took the photo once I got to the station and locked up my moped. I will now be wearing taller socks tomorrow and making sure I pull my coat sleeves over my gloves for the ride home. Despite how cold it was, it was still a LOT of fun.
We will slowly warm into the lower 40's today with sunshine returning after a partly cloudy start. It will be rather windy today. Tonight we will drop into the mid 20's for lows and our coolest temperature of the fall so far is 28 degrees, so we could be dealing with the coldest night of the season so far. We will slowly warm into the mid 40's tomorrow, mid 50's Saturday, and then upper 50's on Sunday...just as rain returns. We could see a few showers Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. Temperatures heading into Thanksgiving will be cool with highs in the mid 40's. Well back to the news...have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Take the Long Way Home
11/16/11
The title is a little misleading. I am still taking the same way home, but on a moped it seems like the long way home. Not because it only adds about three minutes to my commute, but because I can enjoy the scenic ride a little more. My truck is in the body shop til the end of the week and I will be riding my moped in the freezing cold mornings. I lucked out today because Dawn does not have a school talk til the late morning so I was able to take her car, but the next few mornings I will be riding in below-freezing conditions. Luckily it is only about a six mile ride with plenty of curves and rolling hills...only have to freeze for a couple minutes.
Showers pushing through now and temperatures currently in the lower 50's. Temps will fall into the upper 30's by the late afternoon and hopefully a little clearing. Tonight we could see a little patchy fog and with temps below freezing a little frost on your windshield. Partly cloudy and chilly the next few days and then slowly warming heading into the weekend. Rain will roll in Sunday and Monday...cooling us off once again for Thanksgiving week. Take your jacket for later today and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Storm Chasing Recap
11/15/11
Yesterday's storms were a bit of a letdown, but as a weather geek it was still a lot of fun. I was lucky enough to ride along with SWAT, Severe Weather Alert Team. I met up with the first vehicle in Arcanum. We then headed west to Indy.
Once we got to Indy we took a look at the situation and there was a nearly solid line of cells across Northern Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. The most fuel for the thunderstorms was in Southern Ohio/Indiana and the maximum rotation in the atmosphere was in Central/Northern Indiana and Ohio. We were hoping to have a rogue cell pop-up to tap into this area, but all of the storms stayed in the line to the north and it slowly dropped south into the energy.
We geared up and headed north in both vehicles to monitor the approaching line of storms. Since it was a line they were all fighting together for the energy they shared the conditions feeding the storms. No cells popped up ahead of the line and hogged up all the energy and rotation. Another cause for the storms possibly did not develop as hoped was that the upper level winds in the atmosphere were screamingly strong. Had they been slightly weaker we could have had the showers ahead of the line become more developed.
Here are a few images to give you an idea of what happened yesterday. The line of storms was all fighting for the energy.
If we could have had one or two decent cells pop out ahead of the line we could have had a much different story, but instead we just dealt with the line of storms. We still saw a few strong storms with hail over an inch in diameter, but no tornadic storms in Indiana or Ohio. There was only one tornado in Illinois, earlier in the day.
No storms today. We will see showers, mainly south of I-70 for today. The showers will pester the Southern part of the Miami Valley through tomorrow and then finally kick out of here. Cooler temps still on tap for later this week...dropping from upper 50's today, to 40's for the next couple days with lows below freezing Thursday and Friday morning. We will warm up a little for the weekend, but more rain by late Sunday and Monday. After only a little over three hours of sleep, I will now let you go. Grab me a coffee and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Chance for Severe Storms Today
11/14/11
We have really seen a lot of changing weather over the last week. We had snow showers last Thursday and we warmed up into the mid 60's for the weekend. We will soon be blasted by cold air again later this week, but first...a strong cold front. We are already seeing strong showers this morning across central Ohio and Indiana. Once we get into the afternoon a little upper level support and daytime heating will help support a slight chance for severe weather. There is a little directional wind shear, which could support a very slight chance for tornadic storms, but it appears we will likely be dealing with strong winds and hail as more of a threat. Best chances will be the western counties because the timing of the storms looks to roll through right before dusk. When the sun does down, 5:22PM, we will slowly lose power for the storms. I will be keeping a close eye on the situation from home just in case I need to come in and I am sure Jeff Booth will be watching closely from the weather center.
Speaking about coming in... I am taking my truck to the body shop today. After a fender-bender it will need to be there for about four days as they replace and paint parts. I could have swore that I had rental coverage with my full coverage, but apparently I do not. (I did add it though) I am resorting to riding my moped this week. I already brought a few suit jackets to work today to prepare for the cold, possibly wet, morning rides on my two wheels. I have been mentally preparing myself for morning rides below freezing...so when you see me later this week on the morning show with rosy cheeks you will know why. Dawn does have a few school talks this week in the late morning, so I may be able to take her car a day or two. Either way, I am embracing the idea of moped commuting in the cold.
As I stated, we have a slight chance for strong to severe storms this afternoon. Showers will push south tonight and the Southern part of the Miami Valley will see the best chance for rain overnight into Tuesday. The entire area will see cooler temperatures slowly arrive as we head into the end of the week. Highs for this week will be mid 60's today, upper 50's tomorrow, and mid 40's for the end of the week with lows in the upper 20's later this week. We will warm up a little next week...so looking good for tailgating at the Ohio State-Penn State game. Stay dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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First Snowfall
11/11/11
Well the flurries did not disappoint yesterday. Rain/snow showers started forming in the afternoon and were widely scattered through the evening. Once the temperatures dropped, it switched to all snow and Brandon Redmond, of Darke County, with the Severe Weather Alert Team, SWAT, managed to grab this image of the snow falling on their Severe Weather Emergency Response Vehicle, SWERV. The SWERV is their storm chasing vehicle. You can make out the logo on the hood when the snow started, but after a short amount of time the snow continued to cover the vehicle.
They were lucky enough to be under one isolated snow shower in the evening. Most of the area did not see snowfall that impressive, however many of us did see our first snowflakes of the season. Twitter was all abuzz about the snow in Dayton. I am sure SWAT got a few more photos and feel free to check out their site: SWATChasers.com, special thanks to them for sharing the photos.
On to the forecast. Today will be chilly, again. Right now most of the area is sitting in the upper 20's and wind chills around 20. We will reach a high in the mid 40's today with mostly sunny skies. Tomorrow we will warm into the upper 50's for a sunny Saturday. Lower 60's for Sunday and Monday, with a chance for rain both days. We will dry out later in the week but with chilly weather, much like today. Stay warm, enjoy your weekend, and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Largest School Talk and Cold Forecast
11/10/11
Yesterday I talked to the students from Watts Middle School and according to the teacher it was about 225 students. That would set my record for most students I have talked to at once. Normally when you get that many students in one room they can start misbehaving and not listening, but surprisingly they were awesome and very attentive. The students also had a lot of questions from my schooling, to the green screen, to my favorite parts of the job. I had a lot of fun and hopefully they did too. I am pretty sure they have a few new experiments that they can do at home that would cost less than fifty cents, which everyone loves.
Today will be a little bit of a rude awakening that it is the middle of November. We were spoiled this week with highs of 65 on Monday and 68 on Tuesday. Today we will only warm into the mid 40's. This afternoon and evening we could see a few sprinkles or flurries thanks to a little lake effect moisture. Best chance to see any precipitation will be the Northern Miami Valley. It will only be a slight chance this evening and overnight and tomorrow we will dry out for a couple days. Mid 40's for Friday with breezy conditions and then slowly warming into the upper 50's by the end of the weekend. Rain will return late Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, which will keep our temperatures from warming too much. Taking a look into the future, it appears we will be dealing with similar weather for the next couple of weeks: rounds of rain, not super warm, not super cold...just seasonal. There could be a little snow out there...I will keep ya posted as that may get nearer. Stay warm and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Handle with no handle
11/08/11
Not sure how it happened, but I came in this morning and my station coffee mug had the handle busted off. How am I supposed to handle with care with no handle? Luckily a former coworker had got me a few large wilderness coffee mugs as wedding gifts. I wanted to register for the entire wilderness dish set for wedding gifts but Dawn said everyone would get them for us because they would think it was a good joke. Joke is on her because I LOVE my huge mug and it came in handy this morning as my back-up. Still not sure how it was busted in my filing cabinet drawer, but hopefully I can get a new mug since I am not sure they want me drinking out of the moose mug on-air.
The rain is starting to roll into the area this morning. Temperatures will top out around 60 today with on and off rain showers and then drying out later this afternoon as the temperatures take a nose dive. We will drop to the lower 30's by tomorrow morning. Highs tomorrow will barely get into the mid 40's with partly cloudy skies and there is a slight chance for a sprinkle or flurry later in the day. Friday much of the same...chilly and partly cloudy. Saturday we begin to warm back into the 50's and we will continue to climb into the low 60's for the start of next week. Rain will arrive on and off late Sunday into Monday with more steady rain will arrive on Tuesday. Stay warm and dry...and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Big Change in Temps Coming
11/08/11
Enjoy the weather today. We will be warming up close to 70 degrees with partly cloudy skies, but big changes will be arriving for the coming days. Rain will arrive Wednesday, tomorrow, and that will start a cooling trend. Highs will fall into the mid 40s for the end of the week and lows near or below freezing. The good news is that we would slowly warm heading toward next week, but more rain will arrive for the start of next week.
Hope you can get out there and vote today then enjoy the beautiful day. Since Friday night high school football is winding down, I have been pulled off the schedule to shoot football and now I will be a news photographer a handful of hours a week. I will start doing that today and it will work out perfectly with election day. Election day is always SUPER busy at the station so I am sure that our Assignment Editor will be very happy to know I will be joining the staff today. I caught up on sleep yesterday and I will be able to enjoy the nice afternoon today. Hopefully you can do the same...have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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120 Mile Moped Trip & Workweek Forecast
11/07/11
My bike made it. After taking the time to rebuild the engine last winter, I now know the pleasure of taking the time and doing it right. I think my bike knew that this trip would be it's last trip so it just chugged along before getting a new rebuild this winter. Our group left Cincinnati on Saturday morning and rode about 60 miles south to a state park in Carrollton, KY. The group from Louisville beat us to the park. It was a beautiful trip with rolling hills and occasionally bumping into the Ohio River.
While it was very chilly camping out, it was a lot of fun to meet up with my moped friends for the last group ride of the year. This was also my first time volunteering my truck to be the chase vehicle. So when a bike broke down we would put it in the bed of the truck and one of my dear friends was ever so kind and drove the truck while I rode my moped. We ended up with five mopeds in there by the time we finished the 120 mile trip and made it back to Cincinnati. I did notice that the ONLY bikes that finished the trip were mopeds that were rebuilt with new bearings and seals or completely stock bikes. Note: don't just throw a kit on it...rebuild it first. Lot of fun, but today I will be catching up on sleep.
While the weather was great this weekend, it will not last all week. Today and tomorrow will be mild with highs in the 60's. We will have rain just to our west the next couple days, so the far Northwestern part of the Miami Valley could see a few sprinkles or light shower, but the rain will hold off until Wednesday to push through the entire area. This will bring in much cooler air for the end of the week. By Thursday and Friday our highs will be in the mid 40's and overnight lows below freezing. There is a slight chance for a flurry or two Thursday with a little wrap-around moisture behind the cold front. We will warm back into the 50's by next weekend and maybe another chance for rain late Sunday...but that is still a long way out so I will keep ya posted. Enjoy the nice weather today and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Moped Rally this Weekend
11/04/11
This weekend will be a beautiful weekend and, from what I am told, the warmest weekend ever for Bombourbon Run. This is not a traditional moped rally where everyone meets up at one location. Instead groups meet up in either Cincinnati or Louisville and we ride halfway and meet at a park and camp out Saturday night. It is at least a 130 mile trip, once all is said and done, and I am looking forward to the challenge. My bike has been very reliable all season and I hope this weekend doesn't disappoint. We have four of the Dayton Area Moped Riders going to the ride. This photo was taken, by my friend KZ, from BBR two years ago and if it looks half as beautiful as this photo, we are in for a very scenic ride. I will be sure to take plenty of photos.
As I said, the weekend looks pretty warm, considering it is November. We will see plenty of sunshine starting today and we will be a little cool with highs in the mid 50's. We will warm up a few degrees each day and we could be in the upper 60's by Tuesday next week. Tonight will be chilly though, with lows near freezing, so frost and fog are a possibility. Rain will hold off until Wednesday when a strong cold blast of air arrives for later next week. Enjoy the weekend and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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School Visit, Weekend Outlook
11/02/11
I was invited to talk at Woodland Primary School last night in Greenville. It was not a normal school visit for me. Instead it was a Science Family Fun Night. There were seven stations set up and the kids would move from station to station. It was a lot of fun, but I think I was the only one that did not have something explode or spew. Instead I used hot water and blue ice cubes to make cold fronts, had a few tornado demonstrations and talked about weather safety. Dawn came along with me and I told all of the kids I brought my wife because I needed an assistant. She never gets to see my school talks because she is working and considering I had to do my experiment several times I actually did need some help. We stopped by an old favorite restaurant afterward, CJ's Highmarks. Their cheesy chicken soup is AMAZING.
Well yesterday afternoon turned out awesome, highs around 60 with not a cloud in the sky. Today we could see a few high clouds with highs in the mid 60's. A few late day showers tomorrow will keep us a little cooler, but then we dry out and slowly warm back into the 60's for the end of the week and weekend. We will see mostly sunny skies and it looks like the rain will hold off until the start of next workweek. No complaints here. It looks like the moped rally in Kentucky this weekend will have fantastic weather, score! Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Yuengling? Psst, Christmas Ale is back!
11/01/11
I completely understand the big excitement about Yuengling coming to Ohio, I really do. Dayton started selling their PA beer yesterday, but how about Christmas Ale!?! That, in my opinion, is the really story maker! First off, Christmas Ale would beat Yuengling in a head to head battle, but how about the rarity of Christmas Ale. Sure Yuengling was only sold regionally in Pennsylvania, but you could drive and get it, or have someone passing through pick some up. Christmas Ale is only sold about two and a half months out of the year. It went on sale yesterday and I almost guarantee that it is sold out at many local stores. Half the fun of Christmas Ale is trying to find it. It is a Great Lakes Brewing Company beer so it is much easier to find around the Cleveland area, but here in Dayton it is almost like hide and seek. There is actually a couple that Dawn and I go out to dinner with and we accept the challenge of trying to find a local restaurant that sells it for a dinner date night once a week. Disclaimer: You may have gotten used to lighter beers over the last 9 months... remember, this is potent and may knock your socks off from taste and strength. Also, special thanks to Randi Rico for tweeting me this photo yesterday.
October turned out pretty wet for us, but luckily we are keeping things dry to start off November. Today and tomorrow looks to remain dry and fantastic. We will stay right around 60 for the high for the next week. There is a chance for rain Thursday and late Sunday, but other than that, a great seven day forecast. I am hoping the rain holds out Sunday until later because I am heading to Cincinnati for a Cincinnati-Louisville moped rally. We are riding halfway and meeting up with the Louisville group at a campground in Kentucky on Saturday. It would stink to have a wet 65 mile ride back to Cincy on a moped. Anyway, enjoy the day and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Halloween Happenin's
10/31/11
Well on our Fox 45 In The Morning show we have been having some Halloween fun today. Meghan, Dan, and I are having a competition on who can carve the best pumpkin. There is a poll set up on the station's Facebook page for people to vote, so we will have to see who can win. (Vote for me)
We saw our first snowflakes in the Miami Valley this weekend. I was at Dawn's cousins' soccer games most of Saturday, but Dawn and I left and when we pulled out of the soccer complex it started raining. Her cousins told us that the rain came down so hard that snowflakes started mixing in, despite the air temperature at 50 degrees. There were two reasons why we saw the snow even with it being so warm...the first reason is because the freezing level in the atmosphere is so low, only a few hundred feet up. This means when you get enough rain coming down fast enough the snow doesn't have time to melt all the way. Along with that, when the rain falls it evaporates. Evaporation cools the air around it...called evaporative cooling. This also made that heavy cell of rain cool off even more, and thus sustaining a few flakes of snow.
This morning we are tracking rain again and we will see warmer temperatures over the next few days with highs near 60. Today though we will only get into the lower 50's and the morning rain will end this afternoon so any trick'r treating should be dry and cool. We have a very slight chance for rain Thursday and Sunday with two week systems moving toward Ohio. I will keep you posted on that in the coming days. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Double Rainbow, Anniversary, and Frost n Fog
10/28/11
Yesterday was a bit of a rainy day. Light showers stuck around through most of the day, on and off. Dawn and I saw a double rainbow heading to dinner last night in Centerville. It was very vibrant and it was pretty cool to watch it form and then dissipate. We were heading to dinner to celebrate our dating of four years. We agreed that once we reach our first wedding anniversary we will cut off the dating anniversary so last night was a special night. We went out to The Melting Pot. A little pricey but quite an experience and the food was AMAZING! It was super easy to fall asleep last night with a full stomach of delicious food.
On to your frosty, foggy Friday forecast. Temps this morning are between 30-35 degrees, so scrapping the windshield will be likely. Also with the rain yesterday, cool temps, and clear skies we have fog as well. Some of the fog coming into work was VERY thick and I could barely see 50 feet into the fog. We could see more frost over the weekend in the mornings, but for the most part we will have a cool, dry weekend. Maybe a shower on Monday, Halloween, and temps will warm into the upper 50's before another cold blast of air coming later next week. Stay warm and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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New Bad Habit??? AND Snowflakes?
10/27/11
I normally wait until I get to work to start drinking coffee, but I have started making my own coffee at home with coffee bags. I LOVE our new tea kettle. It only takes about 45 seconds to get the water boiling. I have to rip it off the stove so the whistling doesn't wake up Dawn at 2:45AM as I am running out the door. I am not sure it if is a good idea or a bad habit to start drinking the coffee even earlier than what I normally have been. At least I have something to drink on my way to work while I am eating my bagel. Dawn hates the smell of coffee so luckily I will be making the coffee then running to get to work.
Yesterday turned out really nice in the afternoon. We saw a few hours of sunshine before the rain returned in the evening. The rain has continued overnight and now the majority of the rain has pushed off to the east, but I expect a few light showers through the early afternoon. The next few days we will only get to around 50 for the high. Saturday morning we could see a light rain shower with a few wet flakes of snow mixing in at times. It is a weak system and moving by to our north so I highly doubt Dayton will see anything, but the northern counties should keep their eyes peeled Saturday morning. No problems on the roadways because it will all melt instantly, just some fun pre-season snow possible. We will slowly warm up into the upper 50's next week and maybe a light rain shower Monday on Halloween, but that, as well, will be very light.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Rainy Weather On The Way
10/26/11
Yesterday was a fantastic fall day, but obviously things will change. We have a few scattered showers and thunderstorms this morning. We will dry out a little this afternoon but another round of heavy rain is expected tonight. The showers tonight will linger into Thursday morning. When all is said and done most of the area will see about half an inch and some locations will locally see over an inch. So, be prepared for a wet commute tomorrow and also much cooler weather. We got to 67 yesterday for the high, today the forecasted high is 63, and tomorrow....49 for the high. We will remain chilly for the for the weekend, as well, with highs around 50 and lows just barely above freezing. We could see an isolated flurry possible Saturday as a system quickly swings down from Canada.
Dawn and I are still debating on tailgating for the Wisconsin-Ohio State game Saturday, but by the time the game's kickoff at 8PM it will be downright chilly. I am thinking staying at home and watching the game in the warmth is a better idea...time will tell. Stay dry and warm and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Aurora Borealis, Northern Lights
10/25/11
First off I have to give credit for the photo. SwatChasers Facebook page had this photo from Joseph Griffin from Beavercreek, OH. Since I wake up at 1:45AM, I had sugarplums dancing in my head when this took place. I guess there were a few rounds of it. The first was about 9:30PM and also around 11PM. Aurora Borealis is caused by sun flares and release of energy from the sun and then it interacts with the atmosphere for some amazing light shows. I got to see it once in my life here in Ohio, in 2003. Last nights northern lights looked AMAZINGLY bright and vivid. From the reports I saw online, last night's Northern Lights were seen as far south as Arkansas. Very impressive. It is very difficult to predict the Northern Lights and with rain on the way for the coming days we will have too many clouds to see it, even if it did have a repeat performance.
Today will be the nicest day of the week. We will get up to around 70 for the high and mostly sunny with a few afternoon clouds. Overnight rain will start to move in and we could see scattered showers and maybe a few storms for Wednesday with a high of 64. MUCH cooler for Thursday with pretty steady rain and a high of only 49 degrees. Heading into the weekend we will dry out and highs will only be in the low 50's and lows will be in the lower 30's...so, much cooler. I know I will be trying to soak in as much warm sunshine as possible today, hopefully you do the same. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Getting used to the chilly nights
10/24/11
During the warm months I normally just wear a t-shirt and athletic shorts around the house. With the chillier temperatures arriving, I have broken out the Browns sweatpants and sweatshirt to keep warm. Even Buckeye needs to stay warm. He never used to try to get under the covers of the bed, but we taught him a bad habit about two years ago. This morning I found him under as many covers as possible with his head and paws just hanging out the covers so he could get air. He has got to be the most adorable dog I know. Normally when I ask him if he wants to go outside he gets excited and jumps around with his tail wagging. However, this morning when I asked if he wanted to go outside, he pulled his head back under the covers a little further thinking I didn't see him.
Temperatures today and the next few days will not be too terrible. Today we will get into the low 60's and 70 tomorrow. Then we begin a cool down and by the end of the week we will be down right chilly. We will see a line of showers and storms this morning, but drying out this afternoon. More rain arrives Wednesday and Thursday and we could see another decent soaking. With these systems coming through with so much moisture...it begs the question...what will winter be like? Hmmm.... Have good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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I NEED YOUR HELP!!!
10/21/11
So we are having fun on the morning show...so if you get this before Oct 21st, 2011 at 9AM, PLEASE VOTE! http://www.facebook.com/questions/237235636334269/?qa_ref=qd Make sure to vote for Dan or Meghan so my face is not launched across the station's property. So, here is the story...we are having a group come in with a trebuchet and launching pumpkins LIVE on the morning show. The person with the most votes will have their face attached to a pumpkin and launched several football fields...or at least I think that far. The group said they are bringing a smaller version compared to their competition version because it takes several hours to set up. Anyway vote for Meghan and Dan and watch FOX 45 In The Morning. If you live outside of the viewing area, you can watch it LIVE on an Android or Iphone/Ipad device. Just download the WRGT app.
Quick look at the forecast: Finally drying out today. No rain until Monday, but even then a slight chance. We will see a better chance Wednesday and Thursday as another cold blast of air arrives. Temperatures will be mild today in the low 50's and slowly warm into the 60's over the weekend. Sunday looks awesome for the weekend, but Tuesday looks the best...partly cloudy and close to 70 degrees! WOW! Enjoy your weekend and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Impressive Storm
10/20/11
It has been a long time since Ohio has witnessed a storm like what we are currently experiencing. The area of low pressure is extremely strong and one of the strongest storms I can remember. We can occasionally see low pressure this "low" in the winter across the New England area, but for here in Ohio, in October...very impressive. The two areas of low pressure basically teamed up and thus leaving us soaking wet the last few days along with today. Winds will pick up as well this afternoon at about 20-30 mph at times with gusts over 40 mph. Imagine if this was all snow... we could have close to two feet of snow across much of the Miami Valley. Temps will remain pretty chilly today with highs in the 40's and wind chills in the low 40's thanks to the strong winds.
Tonight we could see a few flurries possible to the far northwest, but most of us will be too warm. The rain will start to leave tonight and we will begin to warm heading into the weekend. There is a chance for patchy frost this weekend in the morning, but at least the afternoons will warm up into the upper 50's. The weekend looks to remain dry, but a few rounds or rain are possible early Monday and Wednesday. Temps will sit in the 60's for the first half of next week before another cold blast of air later in the week...more on that in the days to come. Stay dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Undulatus Asperatus
10/19/11
Nope. The title is not a spell from Harry Potter. It is the strange cloud type that we saw yesterday. I have only witnessed these clouds twice in my life...yesterday and several years ago in Lima, Ohio with similar weather. I grabbed my camera and took a panoramic photo of the clouds. The normally flat, boring, stratus clouds are forced into a wavy pattern thanks to a thunderstorm following from behind and churning up the atmosphere, with it's winds, just before the rain and lightning arrives. Needless to say, we got a LOT of great photos into the weather center of the clouds. As a matter of fact, they are not an official cloud type yet...they were submitted into the World Meteorological Society in 2009, but have yet to be approved as a cloud type...no decision yet. Either way, very rare and unique weather situation for them to occur.
Today should be another day of steady rain and cool temperatures as we get into the low 50's. Tomorrow we will only get into the upper 40's with the rain slowly becoming more scattered and leaving. Cold air will punch in and still would not be surprised with a flurry or two to the northwest. The good news is that the weekend will slowly warm up and we will spend the afternoons in the upper 50's, but a chance for frost in the mornings with lows in the mid 30's. Try to stay dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Honda Hobbit Initial Thoughts & Heavy, Cold October Rain On The Way
10/18/11
We saw GREAT weather to start October. Almost two weeks were dry with temperatures well above normal...and it looks like we are about to make up for that. Over the next three days, parts of the Miami Valley has a shot to see over two and half inches of rain. Most of the area has a decent shot to see at least an inch, but isolated spots could see much more...it all depends on how the showers are tracking from day to day, so be prepared. On top of the rain, we will be dealing with much cooler temperatures. We will spend most of the next few days in the 40's and MAYBE get into the low 50's...much chillier compared to the 70's & 80 we saw just two weeks ago.
In the moped world there is a saying that once you get moped that has a variator then you never go back. Well I did a moped trade and I now have a variated moped, a Honda Hobbit PA-50 II. I agreed with Dawn a long time ago that my limit is three mopeds, so I had to part with one of my other mopeds. It is a very sleek black bike that is completely original and stock. For those of you who do not know what a variator is, or how it works, check the attached images for a diagram I found online.
It is belt driven and there are weights that spin and when the speed of the variator is increased the weights want to spin out and thus changes the gearing ratio of the belt. So when you give it gas from the start it turns the rear wheel with more ease (faster start) and when you get your speed up then the weights spin out and thus give you a higher top speed.
My initial thought is that I kinda regret doing the trade. My old stock Puch Maxi was very reliable, however people rave about the reliability of these Hobbits. I cleaned the carburetor over the weekend and it took me a couple hours to completely dismantle the sub-frame from the rest of the bike, just to get to the carb.
Now that I have been riding it a few days, it is pretty reliable, fun, and smoooooth ride, but a little more sluggish than I thought. Maybe a little work needs done to the variator weights, but I assumed that starting from a stop it would be a little quicker, however, it is the slowest of all my bikes. Once I give it gas it takes a second or two to get going. I have to pedal a little bit for it finally to really take off. I imagine with a little work to it I can make my stock bike run a lot better. Thanks to Peter for his help with his blog entry, Peters Formula: The Buddy Hobbit. Peter really knows his hobbit stuff and since I am about a year or two behind him, I will be taking any tips along the way. I have a few other friends as well that have tested Hobbits, so I will be able to play off their knowledge...thanks in advance, guys.
On to the forecast! Very chilly over the next few days as I eluded to earlier in the entry. Most of the next few days will be spent in the 40's and rather wet with a couple inches of rain possible. Still a slight chance for a flurry or two to the far north and west later Thursday as the coldest of the air punches into the area. The weekend is looking milder with highs in the upper 50's and dry, but rain will be on the way for Monday. Try to stay dry and as long as we get through the next cool, wet days...the weekend, not looking too bad. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Co-workers Wedding, Beautiful Weekend, Flurries?
10/17/11
Friday after work, I went home and crashed for a few hours...and needed it. I then packed up and went to Columbus for Nathan Baker's wedding. Dawn and I debated on get married at The Venue as well and it was an absolutely beautiful wedding. A few of the co-workers also played in the second band of the night. I normally can be found sitting and watching the dancing, however, I was on the dance floor all night long. Dawn and I hung out with Seth Bauguess and his wife at the wedding and it was great catching up with an old friend. Had a great time and congrats to the new couple.
Saturday, Nathan and Talia invited people to a cookout at her sister's house in Columbus and it was a lot of fun to just hang out, relax, and watch the Buckeyes. That game was one of the most boring Ohio State football games I can remember. Only one completed pass for a touchdown. I understand keeping the ball on the ground because of the strong winds, but it was a pretty slow-paced win. After the game I drove home into a beautiful sunset, continuing the beautiful trend of the weekend.
Dawn went to Cleveland and I went back to Dayton on Saturday. I was exhausted and I was in bed by 9:30PM...on a Saturday. I must say that was the best decision. I debated trying to stay up and hang out with friends, but I got a GREAT night of sleep. It is hard on my body to keep up much later anymore and I got to "sleep in" until 6:30AM. (four and a half hours later than a normal weekday) Browns lost just as I predicted on the morning show Friday, 24-17, to the Raiders. It is always frustrating being a Browns fan, but I wouldn't want it any other way.
On to your forecast: We should get into the low 60's today, but the rest of the seven day forecast is in the 50's, and barely there for Wednesday and Thursday with a high of 50 each day. Today will remain dry and a little breezy, but rain will arrive later tonight with scattered showers through Thursday. With temperatures getting so cold, especially the northern counties, there is a slight chance for a flurry or two on Thursday, but if we see any it will still be the far north and west...so most of us will not see any flurries. Next weekend is looking dry and partly cloudy with rain arriving late Sunday night into next Monday. Until then bundle up because with highs near 50 on the way...its going to be chilly. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Update on Flurries for Next Week
10/14/11
It turns out a lot of people are logging on here to get the updates on the "white stuff." That being said, it also looks like with winter storms on the way, I will be back on here at least daily during the week. For anyone new to my blog, I sometimes will update this a couple times a day right before a significant winter storm to keep everyone updated as much as possible. So right before a big snow or ice storm, make sure to check back in, often. All that being said, it doesn't look like a significant snow next week, but we are still watching our chances for a few flurries.
In the image you can see the blue line of where the freezing line will be about 0.75 miles above the surface. The image is the forecast model for Wednesday afternoon and the winds behind the cold front, coming through Tuesday, will be pretty strong. They could pick up a little moisture from Lake Michigan and we could see a lake effect flurry or two for the northwestern counties. Either way it will be very windy and cold later next week...but only a 10% chance for us to see any flurries in the Miami Valley.
The next few days will not be as cold as later next week, but today and tomorrow we will only get into the low 60's for highs...still pretty cool. Winds for the next few days will be strong, about 15-25 mph, out of the west which will make it feel blustery. Sunday we will warm up to around 70 for the high and then the rain arrives Monday and Tuesday before the cold blast of air mentioned on Wednesday. I will try to jump back on here over the weekend with an update. I have a pretty busy weekend...going to Columbus for the wedding of our sports director, Nathan Baker, and his fiance, Talia. I am pretty excited because their wedding is at one of the venues that Dawn and I visited during our wedding search. They are also having a big tailgate on Saturday before leaving for their Jamaican honeymoon and Nathan said I am "100%" attending. Anyway, enjoy the weekend and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Homemade Skyline, Apple Cider, and Studying
10/13/11
If you caught my blog entry a few days ago I talked about the chili cook-off here at work. I ended up winning with my chili powder-less chili... here is the recipe:
3 lb ground beef-never frozen
2 8oz cans of Rotel Zesty Tomato & Green Chili Sauce
3 14.5oz cans of Hunts Diced Spicy Red Pepper Tomatoes
1 15oz can Tomato Sauce
3 15.5oz cans of Organic Chili Hot Beans in Sauce
1/2 cup Franks Red Hot Sauce (optional dash extra)
1 onion, chopped finely
1 clove of garlic, chopped finely
1 green pepper, diced
2 tbsp black pepper (optional dash extra)
2 tbsp paprika (optional dash extra)
3 tbsp dried crushed red peppers (optional dash extra)
2 tbsp seasoning salt
2 tbsp sea salt
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3 tbsp of sugar
Throw it all together and let'er simmer.
My entire crock pot of winning chili was gone in in a matter of minutes after the morning show was finished. I still had a few quarts left at the house. Dawn and I made nachos with some of it the other day by draining off the thinner materials. Since the beef was never frozen, it was really fine due to the slow cooking. I saved the rest of the liquid chili and used that yesterday to make some homemade Skyline Chili...DELICIOUS! Another thing I love this time of year is fresh apple cider. I had a great lunch and spent it over notes and study guides for the CBM test I have coming up later this year.
We had enough clearing overnight that a little morning fog has formed. Nothing too bad for the majority of the area, however we are picking up some pretty dense fog in Springfield, OH. Later today we will see showers and storms move into the area. The storms are looking less likely to be severe. We still could pick up strong winds and some hail, but not a healthy, strong, spring-like storm. Showers will continue tonight into tomorrow morning as the chilly temperatures arrive. Friday and Saturday will only warm up to around 60 degrees. Skies will start to clear up a bit later Friday and Saturday looks mostly sunny. Temperatures will only warm up a little bit, around 70, for the start of next workweek. We are still looking at colder air blasting in here next Wednesday after another round of wet weather Tuesday. As I mentioned in yesterday's entry, I am not convinced with how "bold" the models are showing the cold blast. I will update you more on that tomorrow as we get closer. Even though the weekend looks cool and breezy, at least it will be dry, not that bad. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Flurries!?!?
10/12/11
This time of the year it is always a good idea to keep an eye to the future...with a little hesitation. The forecast models have been pretty consistently showing MUCH colder air blasting into the area for next Wednesday. The image here is the forecast model for next Wednesday, 19th, in the evening. The blue line is the 850 mb line of below freezing temperatures, so we will be a couple degrees below freezing at 850 mb (pressure), which is about 0.75 miles above the surface. According to the models there will be a little moisture behind the strong cold front, so there is a SLIGHT chance for a flurry or two. It is a long way out, but we have about a 5% chance to see a few flurries...here are my reasons why I doubt it currently: The first reason is that the first few cold blasts never turn out quite as cold as what the models forecast...they don't realize how warm we actually are, so we may be a little warmer than it shows. The second reason is that normally when we get those cold blasts of air, the air is too dry behind the cold front and it does not support much, if any, precipitation.
Keep in mind...it is still a long way out. My best analogy of forecasting is like bowling. Forecasting one day out is about like bowling down half the distance of a normal bowling alley lane...pretty easy to get a strike or at least a spare. Forecasting two days out is a normal length of a bowling lane. You can really do some damage. The further out you go, the harder it is to pinpoint EXACTLY what is going to happen. The model shown is eight days out, so there are a lot of variables still in play and will be monitored closely.
For the near future we will be keeping an eye on a few light showers this morning. The storm system across the East Coast has a few overflowing showers affecting the Eastern part of the Miami Valley this morning. They are fairly light and will lift out of here by the afternoon. Tomorrow we will have a cold front push through the area that will bring a few thunderstorms. There is still a slight chance for those storms to be strong to severe. The threat will be strong winds and hail with the storms and once they are through it will leave us much cooler for the end of the week. Highs around 60 for Friday and Saturday. Sunshine will return for the the weekend with a few clouds as well. We look to slowly warm before the cold blast, the middle of next week. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Moped Monday at my Place
10/11/11
It was another great day yesterday and possibly the last great Monday for Moped Mondays. We have cooler weather on the way and we may be hard-pressed to get another day close to 80 degrees, dry, and sunny. We had eight bikes rolling out with the group and a handful of others who didn't ride with us for several reasons. We met up at my place and then rode around the countryside before returning home in the dark. I had to try to, regretfully, boot them out of my place so I could squeeze in three hours of sleep. Thank goodness for afternoon naps. We also got in our group T-shirts and hoodies and they look awesome.
Got a lot going on weather-wise. A potentially Category 4 hurricane is about to hit the coast of Mexico where Dawn and I went on our honeymoon, Puerto Vallarta. Good thing we went during the start of the rainy season. As far as closer to home...a HUGE cold blast of air has been consistent over the last couple days' forecast models. Mid-late next week looks to be cold...AND there is a chance for a little precipitation. I will keep you posted on that.
Temps will only get into the low 70's today and down into the lower 60's by the end of this week. With a cold front plowing through Thursday we have a marginal chance for severe weather. Main threat will be damaging winds and hail...I will keep you posted on that too. The upcoming weekend, although cool, looks nice, breezy, and mostly sunny...I'll take it! Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Money Pit
10/10/11
Scrooge McDuck would swim in his money, well Dawn kinda got to experience that this weekend. Her parents were in town visiting. We hung out at home and grilled out Saturday, watched a HORRIBLE Buckeye football game, then went out. Speaking of the game, what is up Bucks!?! Four unanswered touchdowns? We had that game in the bag. Anyway, we watched the first half at home, then went to her cousins house for the second half. Then I drove us, DD, to Julia's night club so the ladies could dance and her dad and I would occasionally attempt to look like we knew what we were doing on the dance floor. After we arrived, they got their drinks and in less than a couple minutes of walking in the door, they called Dawn's raffle ticket number. We had no idea that she got to go in the money pit with the dollar bills flying everywhere. She ended up winning $81. One of the security guards said that is the most he has even seen and she was the first person to get the $20 bill. That helped buy me a few energy drinks to stay awake. I gotta say, with my morning schedule, it is very difficult to stay awake Friday and Saturday nights without a nap. I am getting so used to waking up at 2AM that staying awake until then is almost impossible without some caffeinated help. Sunday we went to Ikea and showed her parents the crazy awesomeness that it has to offer.
Well the weather last week and over the weekend was FANtastic. The leaves are almost peak here in the Miami Valley, but I think next weekend we will be seeing full color. Today will remain mild and dry, getting into the upper 70's for highs. Later this week we will be dealing with rain. There is a very slight chance for rain Tuesday for the Eastern part of the Miami Valley. Wednesday will also have a slight chance for rain to the west as our next system rolls through. It will keep us cool with highs in the 60's for the end of the week and our best chance for rain will be Thursday. Maybe a few early showers Friday, but next weekend is looking great.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Early morning chili cook-off, suuuure
10/07/11
Well we weren't eating the chili at 4AM, but we got our crock pots brewing the chili for the morning show. Meghan, Dan, and I whipped up the chili last night and the Salvation Army and the Ohio Beef Council will be in this morning to judge our chili. I did not use any chili powder so all the flavoring came from scratch. I personally love it and it has a little heat to it. Dawn, my wife, also gave a two thumbs up and she is not a fan of chili...although I am not sure if she was just being nice, we will find out later this morning.
My analogy this morning is that the weather is like a broken record stuck on the chorus of your favorite song. The blue skies and sunshine will continue today into the weekend and highs will be right around 80 as well. No complaints here and no rain until the middle of next week. I think after seeing close to 11" of rain in September you will be hard pressed to find anyone complaining about the sunshine and comfortable temperatures. This weekend may be one last bout of summer, get out there and enjoy it. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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My pumpkin friend
10/06/11
Just when you think you have seen it all... my job pushes the envelope a little further. A West Carrollton business uses a laser etching machine to design artwork on lots of things... jeans, wine glasses, wine bottles, tiles, etc, etc(endless possibilities). Well instead of carving a pumpkin and it rotting in a week or so, Laser Wolf Engraving can engrave the image into the surface of the pumpkin and it can last up to eight months afterward. I was the first photo he had tried and it was quite impressive. I did the story with him because he recently did a huge job for University of Cincinnati. They had about 1400 apples engraved and sent out to high schools to help with recruitment. Very impressive technology.
Still talking about a lot of sunshine and warm temperatures, again. I am really loving this beautiful weather. Although my grass becomes a jungle after a couple days with all the sunshine, warm temps, and wet ground from last month. We will be tapping out in the low 80's the next few days and remain pretty much unchanged for a while, BUT there is rain at the end of the tunnel, mid next week. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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My Clic Stic Pen
10/05/11
We all have our own "odd" things that make each of us unique. One of mine, I have many, is my Clic Stic pen. I LOVE them. They are simple and you will hardly ever find me without it. I am hesitant to let people borrow it and you can ask my co-workers, I always keep track of it. I tried looking to see if any local stores sell it, when my last one went dry, but couldn't find it anywhere. Dawn luckily surprised me with a dozen of them when she put in an order to Amazon. I like the fact that they are sleek, simple, and light. Just wish I could find them locally to stock up on a few boxes.
The great weather continues. Not much more I can say other than that. Sunshine with highs in the 70's and lows in the low-mid 50's, what more can we ask for? The weekend looks great for taking a look at the fall leaves. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Pulled over on my moped
10/04/11
Yesterday was a fantastically beautiful day. Even though I just spent the past weekend in Michigan at a moped rally, I couldn't pass up the nice weather and got together with seven others for Moped Monday in Oakwood last night. We grilled out, wrenched a little, and then rode around the neighborhood. He has some really awesome roads for riding. I really think we need to add some of the route on our next big ride when people come to town to ride with us. We had a few issues on the route, flat tire and bad wiring on two bikes, we fixed those at one of the DAM Rider's house. We then rode around Washington Township and then I had to break off to get gas, grab some Qdoba burritos for Dawn and I for dinner, and then head home. My taillight went out and I put on my battery powered taillight so I was still visible. My brake light worked fine, but the taillight likely blew when I was zooming down a hill and the RPMs overpowered the light.
I was on my way home and instead of taking main roads I wanted to take the side streets just to be safe and avoid the heavy traffic. I noticed in my mirror, headlights that likely looked like a police cruiser behind me, I turned around after a stop sign and sure enough, it was a local police officer following me. He followed me a few more blocks and then finally turned on his lights and pulled me over. He was concerned that my LED battery powered taillight was not as visible. The brake light still worked, but he was worried that I might be rear-ended. I told him I am a very defensive driver and that was why I was taking back roads with next-to-no traffic because the light was out and I was running off of my battery(which was still very bright, but just small). He understood that I was being proactive and after running my license, we talked a little bit about my bike and how he rides motorcycles, and he let me continue on my way, just told me to be careful. Burritos lost a little heat, but were still delicious when I got home.
Well, more sunshine today, the seven day forecast for all of Ohio will be highs in the 70's and no clouds for almost an entire week. Who can complain about that? I would almost have to say that it will be MORE than great. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Moped Rally
10/03/11
It was a pretty chilly weekend here in the Miami Valley, even a tad cooler in Michigan. The Dayton Area Moped Riders got invited to the Red October 7 moped rally. I shared my ride to the state up north with Sam. He came up to Dayton around noon on Friday and we loaded up our bikes in my truck and some of the Northern DAM Riders followed on our caravan ride up.
It was a pretty awesome ride up...got gas for $2.92. The only downside to Friday was the rain that moved in and cancelled our evening riding. We were able to hang out with everyone though and it was nice to catch up with old friends I haven't seen in about a year. Now that I am working weekday mornings I will be able to see them a little more often. We stayed at a friend's father's house and it was awesome. He opened his finished basement to about ten of us and we had a blast...we were intending to camp outside in his backyard, but they were awesome hosts.
Our chilly Saturday ride took us around the countryside around Ann Arbor and our halfway point was a cider mill...I filled up on my weekly dose of apples and cider. I ate the best caramel apple I have ever had.
Since the rally was pretty small and almost invite only...it meant that the people that rode really knew their stuff with their bikes. I have been to several moped rallies and this was the least amount of bikes I can remember breaking down and thrown in the chase vehicle. The group was much smaller than other rallies I have attended, but still, only five bikes...pretty awesome.
The only DAM Rider to breakdown was Brandon. His bike was still running, just really slow and backfiring because of his new dual exhaust. Luckily he brought an extra moped and was still able to ride on Sunday morning to breakfast...Saline Inn, GREAT FOOD! It was a great rally and props to The Guns moped gang for really showing everyone a good time.
After a taste of late fall's chilly temperatures this weekend, we will warm up a little bit heading into the workweek. Mid 60's today and then warming into the mid 70's through the week. We will have a large, powerful high pressure system parking over us through the week, so no rain on the seven day forecast at all...weeks like this, I could take all year long. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Breaking out the Sweater Vest!
09/30/11
Boy, I have had NO time after the morning show to update the forecast...so my new goal is to update my blog DURING the show...so I got to apologize for the lack of recent updates. I finish the morning show and I get assigned stories to go to straight after the show ends. It has been quite a crazy week on the morning show. We had a chicken mascot in for a cooking segment and we had the chicken try to do the forecast...I had to jump on to help out the feathery friend. We also have had a lot of fun and some AMAZING video this week.
We finally got the new bedroom furniture at home and I have been sleeping much better on the new bed. I am heading to Ann Arbor for a moped rally this week. I will try to snap a few photos while I am up there. Looks like a VERY chilly weekend. I was planning on camping out, but luckily someone has opened up their home for us to sleep in between our moped riding around town.
Coolest weekend of the fall for us, on tap. Yes, the sweater vest made it's seasonal premiere today with a high finally in the 50's. I always wait until we get a high lower than 60 in the fall to finally break it out. Temps will rebound next week with plenty of sunshine. We just have to get done with a dreary day today, and a cool, but sunny weekend... and next week is looking FAAAAAANtastic! Have a good one.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Busy week on the mornings
09/23/11
Something has been up with the blog site the last two days so I have not been able to post. I have enjoyed a few rounds of tuna salad during the morning show...very filling and healthy. I have been building graphics for our new seven day pop-out and also busy at home. I have steam cleaned the carpet and getting everything ready for our new bedroom furniture. It was delivered today and I out on the new mattress, sheets, and blankets. I jumped into the bed before my second shift today and man...it was REALLY hard to get out of bed...sooooooo comfy!
I am heading up to Cleveland tomorrow for a wedding and then the Browns game on Sunday. I think my sleep on Sunday night will be severely limited, if not null. The weather looks a little iffy over the weekend with highs in the mid 60's and spotty showers. Most of us will stay dry, but there is a chance for rain. Next week we will warm things back into the 70's with more sunshine, just a cool, damp weekend for the first weekend of fall. Stay warm and dry, but most importantly...have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Great weekend, rain to start workweek
09/19/11
Saturday Dawn and I went down to Dayton, Kentucky to spend the evening watching the Buckeyes on a friends boat. Buckeyes were a bust...going to be a long season. Sunday we got to meet Leroy Kelly, a Browns Hall of Famer who was in town. The Browns actually won and looked pretty good with only a few questionable play calls. My fantasy team also won, despite one of my players out with an injury. All-in-all a great weekend with nice weather.
Dealing with a few spotty showers this morning to start the workweek. The showers will become more numerous this afternoon with a few rumbles of thunder possible. Temps will remain mild the next few days until showers and a cold front swings through late Wednesday. That will leave us in the mid 60's for the end of the week. Fittingly, fall arrives on Friday. Stay dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Moped Mondays...Grab your Jackets
09/13/11
Last night we had Moped Monday at Nick's shop. I am totally jealous of his shop. I thought I had a decent working shop but nothing like his. I have never welded before and would have no idea on how to do it, but Nick was very generous and didn't hesitate to help out. The problem is that the previous owner of the Magnum (as pictured) put on new rear shocks that were over an inch longer than they should be. It looks cool because it really beefs up the back end of the bike, but it also made the drive chain rub into the frame. As a matter of fact it had cut a line right into and through the frame. We took off the surrounding parts that would be affected by the heat and Nick went to work welding the frame and made it look like new after grinding away, welding some more, and back to grinding... Huge thanks for that. I now have to try to sell the like-new shocks that are on there and get the proper size.
It looks like we will see a few spotty showers and maybe a rumble of thunder later today as cold front number one swings through. The time frame looks to be in the later afternoon and early evening. By the time we head into the overnight hours the skies will begin to clear as we see a brief break before more scattered showers and storms return later tomorrow with cold front number two. We do not have a lot of moisture with this so not everyone will be seeing the rain. The good news is that we will really cool things off and we will go from a high of 85 today, to 72 tomorrow, to 63 by Thursday. The weekend still looks GREAT with plenty of sunshine and highs in the low 70's. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Monday Morning Munchings
09/12/11
Another GREAT weekend! We saw a few showers and even a few rumbles of thunder. Browns lost to the Bengals in an embarrassing game for both of them. Horrible play calling and horrible execution. Ohio State barely won, but at least the weather was nice. Waking up my third week in a row for mornings has gotten a little easier. Mondays are normally the hardest, but I am slowly getting used to rolling out of bed at 2AM. I think setting one alarm ten minutes early and laying there til 2AM is the trick. Then shut off the other 5 alarms at 2AM, haha. We had the local Dairy Council on the morning show to talk about health snacks and of course the morning crew loves getting to those snacks after we wrap up the show at 9AM.
Today will be pretty nice with plenty of sunshine and a high around 80. More of the same tomorrow with a slight chance for rain later in the day and overnight as a cold front swings through the area. There will not be a lot of moisture with the system, but it will definitely cool us off into the mid 60's for the end of the week and next weekend looks GREAT again with highs around 70 and plenty of sunshine. Well time to head home and do about 15 loads of laundry. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
It's Friiiiiiday!
09/09/11
I got to be honest, it is hard to find time to blog on the morning show. There is NO down time to sit down for a few minutes to write up something. I am in the weather center now covering just in case Jeff Booth's live shot dies for Friday Night Football. As soon as his forecast is done then I am off and racing to my two football games tonight in Fairborn and Beavercreek. Heading to a few games farther from the station so I will have to hustle.
As I have mentioned in my previous entries we are doing finishing touches on our bedroom before our new furniture and bed arrive. I spent one evening painting the trim in the bedroom and it made a big difference. The old trim was scuffed and not a clean crisp white paint like the new paint.
The spotty showers will stick around for Saturday and Sunday, although they will be very widely scattered and most of the area will remain dry. Temps will continue to rise over the next week. Monday and Tuesday will be close to 80 and dry before a cold front swings through late Tuesday into Wednesday that will REALLY cool us off for later next week. Go Bucks, Go Browns, and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Two weddings, no sleep, Moped Mondays
09/06/11
With my first weekend off, you would think I would take it easy, nope. I shot high school football highlights Friday night, woke up early Saturday morning and Buckeye and I went up to Cleveland. Dawn was the Matron of Honor for her cousins wedding. It was a very beautiful wedding and a lot of fun. I didn't get to watch the second half of the Ohio State football game, but the first half looked pretty good for the Buckeyes. I just hope the rookies can hold their own until all the upperclassmen get off their suspensions. Sunday we hung out at Dawn's parents house for the morning and watched our wedding video. Some people claimed that I was not on the dance floor very much, but according to the video, I never left. We finished that (and Six Pepper wings from Cleats, AMAZING!) and then went to Columbus for another wedding for my roommate from my freshman year of college. I got home in Dayton around midnight...only to wake up at 2AM for work. Dawn and I ran a few errands yesterday and then took a much needed afternoon nap. The chilly, cloudy weather made it much easier to nap. I then went over to a fellow mopeder's house in Kettering for our Moped Monday. I got the Magnum running, but needed to be tuned better and I did not want to finish tuning it at his place because it was so hilly and I need flat ground and long straight-aways to tune it properly.
The drastic change in temperatures has really made things feel like fall. We hit 98 on Friday and yesterday we only hit 62, so a 36 degree temperature difference for the highs. Dawn made the comment yesterday while we were shopping that it almost felt like we were Christmas shopping seeing everyone bundled up. Temperatures will remain in the 60's for the next few days and with the addition of rain and winds, it will feel down-right raw. We will slowly warm up over the week ahead, but only into the mid-upper 70's for the weekend ahead. The moisture from Tropical Storm Lee will bring us scattered showers for the next few days and unfortunately we could see a little rain over the weekend as well. Stay warm and dry and I will see you back on here soon. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Super Hot and Humid
09/02/11
Yesterday, definitely hot...today, hotter. We warmed up to 96 for the high yesterday, and today I am calling for a high of 97. I stayed at work and shot some video and then worked on my moped in the afternoon. Buckeye was loving our old couch in the garage. With us getting new furniture, I have it for sale on Craigslist and it is just taking up space in the garage until we get rid of it. I know I was sweating a lot, but there was one point where I was just blown away at how much I was actually sweating...drenched.
I am shooting high school football highlights again tonight then off to Cleveland early tomorrow morning. I am going a wedding on Saturday in Cleveland and then a wedding in Columbus on Sunday. Dawn is actually the Maid of Honor for the Cleveland wedding. Rain will arrive late Saturday and we will have on and off showers and storms Sunday. Labor Day could have a few early morning showers, but should be dry for the rest of the day and MUCH cooler, with only a high in the around 70. Next week looks to remain cool and really nice. Stay cool, dry, and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Beautiful Weather!!!
08/30/11
I hope no one minded my absence the last few days. I hope you were doing the same thing as me...enjoying the GREAT weather! The blue skies and cool temperatures the last few days has kept me outside and trying to enjoy every ounce of it. I also have been enjoying leaving the air conditioner off, however with highs in the 90's heading into the Labor day weekend, I appears I will have to kick it on...bummer. Also a chance for scattered showers and storms on Saturday and Sunday, but the cold front that will bring the showers will cool us off just in time for Labor Day itself. Get out there and enjoy the GREAT weather and I will see ya back on here soon. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Painting and Visitors
08/26/11
Been a little while since I have been on here; been busy as always. My brother came on Monday and then my 14 year old sister came Tuesday and just left today...so a nice four day visit. I recruited her to help with the painting in the bedroom and helping move furniture around and unpacking pots and pans and getting the house cleaned up after the wedding and honeymoon. HUGE thanks to her for all the help. Dawn and I treated her to some adventure golf, a couple movies, and taking her out to eat a couple of times.
Well with Hurricane Irene about to graze the far eastern coast of the Carolinas and Virginia and New England states...it will put our weather on hold. This means that the sunshine and mild temperatures will be around for a while. No rain is expected for the next week. We will have a weak cold front swing through later Saturday into Sunday which will cool off the temps a little, but not a lot. The good news is that with the hurricane it will basically tear down the cold front and no rain is expected. I will be back in tomorrow, Saturday, then I will be switching my schedule at work. I will soon be off weekends and moved to mornings. Enjoy the beautiful weather this weekend and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
New moped(not mine)...home renovation
08/19/11
I recently helped out a good friend by picking up a moped while I was out of town. We now have another Puch Magnum in the DAM Riders, Dayton Area Moped Riders. He was so excited to sit on it the first time...he literally had goosebumps. It needs some work done to it because it is a mix of parts from several bikes, but give it some time and searching and that thing will be pristine by next spring. Meanwhile I have a few parts on their way to complete my Magnum. It was missing a few bearings in the front forks and without those then it is kinda silly to try to go 30+ mph on a rickety front end bike. So now it is basically hurry up and wait to get to work on my bike.
I also sold our foosball table to a coworker because we need more room in the house. I am also going to try to sell one of our couches in one of the bedrooms so that we can re-arrange the house. We basically have three bedrooms, one is an actual bedroom, another room has dressers, a couch, and the treadmill, and the third room is the computer room and had the foosball table. We are moving the treadmill to the computer room, getting rid of the couch and moving our current bed into the other room. We are also moving the other dressers from the bedroom to the new guest room because we have a new bedroom set on the way along with a bed. I am super excited to get a new mattress because the old one was a bit too firm for my liking. We are also going to be re-painting all of the rooms during the moves so it is going to be a pretty busy time around the house over the next few weeks. All this while studying for my CBM test later this fall.
Another warm day today and yet warm again tomorrow with highs in the mid and upper 80's. We could see a spotty shower Saturday afternoon, but our best chance for rain will come overnight Saturday into Sunday morning. We should clear out slowly through the day Sunday and only dealing with the low 80's for the start of the workweek with plenty of rain. I have been keeping an eye on the first few days of September because the models are showing a hurricane developing and likely bringing us rain to the Ohio Valley. I will keep an eye on that, but if you have a vacation planned for the gulf at the end of August, be prepared to possibly change your plans. I will keep ya posted because this may be our first landfall hurricane since 2008. Enjoy the weekend, stay dry tomorrow night, and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Honeymoon video
08/17/11
After a few hours of editing down the video I was able to squeeze the seven days in Mexico into seven minutes of video. Hope you enjoy: http://youtu.be/bDkNAjtQQjo
Spotty showers for Thursday and then remaining in the mid 80's for the next week and longer. The chance for rain is rather bleak and part of the area may remain dry all day. Another weak front will swing by later Sunday into Monday, but that system will have a little more moisture to work with since the humidity will be increasing leading up to that frontal system. Stay dry tomorrow and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Un-honeymooning...
08/16/11
It is soooo hard to get back into the normal swing of things. It is, but it isn't. It is nice that I have been doing weather night-side basically since we landed a week ago, but it was nice to wake up and look out at the ocean. My sleep schedule is way out of whack and I was up til 4AM last night editing honeymoon video. I cut it down to 14 minutes but still need to cut it down more. I am also waiting for Dawn to pick out a few songs to use under the entire video. It is really nice editing on the new computer Dawn got me as a wedding gift... so nice and streamline.
I have also been slowing trying to clean up the disaster zone in the house. It was hard just to find room to put the computer on the table to edit. We are trying to get it slowly organized and we are going to paint a few rooms as well before we get our new bedroom set and mattress. Busy hectic time at the house, for sure.
Temperatures were a little warmer today and will continue to warm the next few days into the mid 80's. We have a slight chance for rain on Thursday, but the cold front will not have a lot of moisture to work with so we will only see scattered precip, at best. Temperatures cool off slightly before jumping back into the mid 80's for the weekend and more rain arrives late Sunday into Monday. Take it easy and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Moped Trade & Thank You Cards
08/14/11
Today has been a long day. I was up late last night getting stuff ready for today and I woke up at 7AM to pack up my Motomarina Sebring and head to Louisville, KY to meet a guy halfway to do a moped trade. I loved my Sebring the last two and a half years, but I was kinda over the whole Italian bike thing and plus for as tall as I am, the sitting position was not great for me. I, in turn, got his Puch Magnum with a handful of aftermarket parts. It will be my new project but it will be a little while until I think it will be fully ready to take the roads. While my bike was ready right now, I want to give the Magnum a complete once-over and make sure everything is perfect before I try zipping around on it. I will say this, I sat on it and the riding position is WAY better for my long legs.
As I said I will have to wait to work on that because I have a lot on my plate. Now that the wedding is over I have over a hundred Thank You cards to write as does Dawn. I plan on starting on that tomorrow and try to get them done as soon as possible. I also am starting to study for a big test I have coming up sometime later this fall/winter. That will take a lot of my time because I need to devote as much free time as possible to keeping my nose in a book/notes/study guides.
At least it was nice weather for the drive to Louisville today. It was nice when the clouds came out to block out the sun because I forgot my sunglasses and it stayed dry and cool for the entire trip. The clouds will break up a little overnight and we could see a little patchy fog form. There are three basic ingredients for fog: light or no wind, moisture, and clear skies. We have the moisture from yesterday's and today's rain...winds are lightening up...now we just need the skies to clear up. Temperatures will remain in the 70's tomorrow and the sun will be around for the first half of the week before more rain arrives around Thursday as temperatures warm back into the mid and lower 80's. Our average high for this time of the year is 83, so the temperatures the last week have been below where they should be and I am loving how it already feels like fall...bring on the Browns! Well I will be back on this week because I will be covering for Jeff Booth and doing weather in the evenings. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Our Wedding and Honeymoon
08/11/11
For anyone who reads my blogs regularly, you might have caught wind that I was getting married. The wedding took place on Ohio State's campus at Browning Amphitheater. It was crazy rainy for the rehearsal on Friday and we ran through the rehearsal as best as we could, soaked, and remembered where we needed to be. (To be honest, it was not much of a rehearsal as much of a 'let's huddle under a canopy and talk about what is going to happen') Despite of how the rehearsal went, the wedding turned out perfect. The rain moved out of the area and even though it was a little warm, the weather was fantastic and the entire ceremony turned out perfect.
My beautiful bride looked stunning and Dawn said "I do," Before we knew it, we were walking down the isle together with bubbles flying and my former college classmates yelling "O-H" "I-O".
We had our reception at La Scala in Dublin, OH and the perfection continued to roll. The toasts from her father, my brother, and then her cousin were deep and very thoughtful. One of my groomsmen also stole the mic to give his own toast as well. After all the planning, the wedding and reception turned out amazing and to those who spent the day with us, we thank you with all our hearts.
We took Sunday to have breakfast at the hotel with all the guests and then went back to Cleveland for a relaxing afternoon at her parents' complete with steaks on the grill and an early bedtime to wake up at 3:45AM to catch our flight to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for the honeymoon.
We had an amazing time in Mexico. We got to spend some quality time together and just enjoy being together, but not without having a LOT of fun.
We stayed at Dreams All Inclusive Resort and had a lot of fun doing the activities that they offered...such as kayaking in the Pacific Ocean.
We also did a few tequila tastings (the one pictured was after our ATV excursion when we rode up the mountains and jumped off cliffs into a pool under a waterfall)
Of course we quickly made a lot of friends at the resort. In the picture are two guys from Sonoma, CA singing karaoke to Hotel California and below are two of the guys we met from Staten Island, NY. None of their wives would come dance with us because we were just having too much fun, I guess.
The two couples from California insisted that we visit them soon in Sonoma... which may end up happening... if I can build up enough vacation time.
We also met another couple on our second day that are from Ohio and got married the same day as us. It turns out that Dawn and Rachelle had more similarities than Brian and I would have liked... the talks about Investigation Discovery overtook many dinners, thanks to the two ladies. We are already planning to get together this fall for a Browns game or two, it is amazing how small the world really is.
We had an absolute blast doing excursions around the city, hanging out by the adult pool all day, and taking evening walks along the ocean.
And to finish off the day, who can forget the fun nights we had. Some of the places at the resort never really got "poppin" until our group showed up and got everyone up and dancing.
It was a fantastic trip and we got to really just relax with each other, which hasn't happened a lot recently because of the wedding preparations. Regardless of how quickly the wedding day went by or how short the honeymoon felt...I know I married the woman of my dreams and this was only the first page in a novel yet to be put into words.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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My keys & last entry before the wedding
07/26/11
One of my friends made me think about my keys recently... I took a look down at all of my keys and what they were for. He made mention that keys are a lifeline and sign of trusting friends. I currently have a couple keys that are from friends or family that have grew in number over the last few years. I then looked past my house and car keys at what else I have. I still have the M6 1.00 nut from one of my mopeds when I needed to get a properly sized bolt. I also have my moped key and my discount cards to AutoZone, Kroger, and other local businesses. Recently I added another item to my key chain that you will rarely find on any other set of keys...a wedding ring.
After doing my research on men's wedding bands I noticed the main difference was the metal. While gold or platinum are more of a traditional metal, I am more of a new edge kinda guy, or I tell myself that. Recently titanium has hit the stage because let's face it...anything with titanium just sounds cool. Titanium is also an extremely strong metal and can really take a beating and I work in the garage a lot. Well it turns out there was one better...tungsten. There are videos where people take sledge hammers to them and not even a dent...or metal files...no scratch at all. The only way to alter them or take them off in an emergency is it to literally shatter them under extreme pressure, my kinda fun.
I went around to jewelers and looked at rings for myself with Dawn. I quickly found out that they were all crazily priced. I understand I will only buy this ring once in my life, but I like to save money where I can. I also love supporting the local economy, however I don't want to over inflate it either, haha. So I decided if it is the same metal, why not see what is online. I went on Amazon and found two rings I liked... one for $9.99 and another for $29.99. I ordered them both. They arrived in a few days and I really liked the $29.99 ring, but it was slightly too large, so for another $29.99 (free shipping) I bought another ring a half size smaller. Fit like a glove.
I then had the dilemma of three wedding rings and only one bride. I decided I would keep the larger ring and JUST IN CASE I put on a little weight, down the line, I will get it blessed at the wedding too and hold on to it. The last ring that I got for less than ten bucks I put on my key chain a month ago. It goes wherever I go and is a sign of trust and the lifeline that I will be soon getting in my life. While I will have the actual wedding ring on my finger to remind me of that...I have a symbolic key on my key chain...the ring. (Still unscratched).
Still looking hot for the next couple days with a chance for rain late Friday into Saturday. The wedding is outside on Saturday in Columbus and the latest models have been trending toward less of a chance for rain, but still rather warm with temps in the upper 80's for the afternoon and a little humid. Regardless of what my final call is for the outdoor wedding or our rain location...I will be marrying the woman of my dreams. If you are interested, I will be tweeting pictures of everything leading up to the wedding on my personal twitter: http://twitter.com/AndrewBMichael It should be a fun time and I look forward to a life of happiness and fun. Until I return from our honeymoon in Mexico (hopefully not burnt), have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Six days until the wedding....
07/24/11
Well, you only have six more days to hear about the wedding preps. I have been watching the forecast models VERY closely and it is quite a toss-up on the timing of a cold front swinging through. There have been a few models showing the front coming through late Friday into early Saturday leaving the wedding dry, warm, and relatively low humidity...I hope that one pans out. A few rogue models have shown the cold front swinging through later Saturday which means warm, humid, and a slight chance for rain. Either way temps will be cooler and humidity lower than what we have dealt with the past week...AND the chance for rain will be relatively low because of the lack of moisture. I look at photos of where the wedding will be, Browning Amphitheater, and REALLY hope we do not have to use our back-up location...but it may come down the the wire.
We are finally free of warning/watches/advisories in Southwestern Ohio. This is the first time in over a week. Upper 80's for highs for the start of the workweek and then back into the low 90's for the end of the workweek and then cooling off again for the weekend. Humidity will be lower than what it was the past week, so hopefully we can escape without too many excessive heat warnings. There is a slight chance for rain for Monday as the front swings through and also later in the week as we head into next weekend. I will be filling in for Jeff Booth Monday and Tuesday night before taking my much needed time off for the wedding and honeymoon. See ya back here tomorrow...have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Remember the bitter cold six months ago?
07/23/11
Remember six months ago...snow on the ground and we had lows below zero? I dunno, I think I would take one day like that just to remember what it felt like to have your breath taken away from the bitter cold and wind.
I finished the rest of the wedding favors this morning... the only major thing that we still have to nail down is the unity sand...we are not doing candles because there is a good chance they will blow out... so we liked the idea of doing the sand. Only seven days until the wedding...
Temps will cool down a few more degrees over the next few days and we will see the chance for rain for Sunday and mainly early Monday. Lower humidity for the first half of the week before the heat and humidity returns for the end of the week...as far as my wedding on Saturday... a slight chance for rain...very slight, but it does look hot and humid...I will be keeping a VERY close eye on things.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Eight Days Until the Wedding
07/22/11
Wedding crunch time...eight days away until I watch Dawn walk down the isle towards me. It has been consuming my life. I helped my brother move to Wooster for his new job on Wednesday and I was supposed to meet with the florist, but we couldn't cross paths before she left for the day so I stayed at my brother's place in Columbus. I met with the florist, the hotel manager, and the reception manager by myself yesterday and then came home and worked on the wedding favors with Dawn. We are almost to the big day and I can't wait... I am very excited, but so busy I haven't had time to be nervous.
Today is my last morning waking up at 2AM for work until I get back from the honeymoon. I love working mornings because I have the rest of the day free, but I am excited to only wake up early to catch my plane to Mexico. Well, most days I am free...today I am heading to Clark County fair for work and then also Grilling for Terwilleger tonight...all before a final date night with Dawn before we get married. I figured something fun sounds good...maybe Dave & Busters.
Another super hot day today with a high of 95. Yesterday we hit 97 for the high, which was the warmest since July 30, 1999...almost 12 years. We will slowly cool down for the next couple of days with scattered storms possible in the afternoons. As we head into the start of next week we will FINALLY dip back down into the 80's...the wedding, right now, is looking warm and humid...only a slight chance for rain. I hope it stays dry since it is an outdoor wedding. See ya back on here tomorrow!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Google+ Phone App, Harry Potter, & Crazy Hot Weather
07/17/11
I would consider myself a forgiving person...I thought that the Google+ phone app killed my battery(double the normal size battery) so I deleted it. I even shut off all the automatic updates, notifications, and uploads, but finally deleted it. My battery worked great again. Well after a day or so I started missing the app because it is really well designed apart from the battery issue. I even discussed this issue with my friend who is running an EVO with Sprint and his phone saw no change. I decided to try it again. Sure enough after utilitarianizing the program and finally killing the app in the running services it still managed to drain my battery in record fashion. So I deleted it again...I am sure our love hate relationship will continue for the unforeseeable future.
After all the hype with the final Harry Potter movie release I have really been wanting to be taken away to Hogwarts again. I had to run to Meijer at midnight last night after work to get more food for Buckeye and I even stopped and thought about picking up the first movie in Blu-ray, but I really dislike the movies in comparison to the books. As a matter of fact I have the complete set in hardback and most of the books in paperback too. I like to keep my hardback books at home and when I travel I prefer paperback...weird, I know. I actually bought the first five in a set, then someone took Year 2 and then I just switched over to hardback for all of them. Anyway I started reading them again and it is just as good as the first time, second time, and third time. I just love the writing style and how I feel like I am actually walking down Diagon Alley and can hear all the sounds of the people picking out wands or getting sized for new robes. Great books, no doubt.
Well today we got up to 93 and it was only a TASTE of what is to come. Today our dew points were only in the mid 60's, so not super humid. Well, later this week they will be in the mid and upper 70's with temps into the mid 90's. While many people along the coast or the south may deal with this extreme heat on a more common occurrence, many in the Miami Valley are used to cold winters and often try to brave the heat with no air conditioning in their homes. This is the week you need to check on your neighbors and elderly who may not have air conditioning because a box fan will do nothing more than help bake you. The heat index, what it will feel like, will be between 100-110 for the afternoons this week. Stay cool and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Amazing Moped Ride
07/16/11
Last night was amazing. Since I am getting married in 14 days I wanted to get one last group ride in as a "bachelor party" with my moped friends. We had sixteen riders come out and it was an absolute blast. Some people from out of town really enjoyed themselves and want to jump on board with our group and ride with us more often when we do ride.
Today was a little hotter than the last couple of days, but it will feel cooler compared to the weather we have for the week ahead. There is a chance for scattered afternoon showers and storms pretty much for the entire week with the increase in humidity and high temperatures. Factor in the temperatures in the low and mid 90's and dewpoints in the mid 70's and it is going to feel like it is in the low 100's most of the day. Stay cool and beat the heat but most importantly, have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Google +
07/15/11
Step aside social media platforms for the newest kid on the block. Google + is still in its beta stages and only open to those invited. I had a friend invite me and at first it is a quite overwhelming, but after more and more time I am falling in love with the site. I downloaded the mobile app and it can automatically download all of your photos and videos to the site and back them up on Picasa. This was really nice because I had over 1200 photos/videos on my phone. It took about 20 hours for the wifi at home to complete the task, but it made me a little less worried about washing my phone and losing my data. The mobile app also allows you to scan through your photos and when you delete one from the site it also deletes the photo from your phone. I had quite a few duplicates or blurry photos that needed to be deleted. I am always so busy I normally just take another photo quickly rather than deleting the bad one...but now I am all cleaned up and streamlined. Another feature I don't know if I like yet is how the phone will automatically upload my photo to the site once it is taken...I don't have to do anything. It does not automatically publish it, but keeps it hidden until I want to post it. Another nice feature is the "circles." You arrange your friends or contacts by how you know them so you can post photos just to your friends or just your family or coworkers...however you want to arrange everything. Cool stuff, just takes a little time to understand the product because it is not like Facebook...sorry for those Farmville lovers.
I had the last two days off and they were filled with wedding preps. It consumes my life. Dawn has been in Lima training for her new job and we met with our pastor for the wedding Wednesday night in Lima...which worked out perfectly. I did take my moped and ride with my friend and groomsmen, KZ, who works for the Lima News. It was nice meeting up with him and riding to their local Dairy King for his dinner break. I hadn't had a chance to see him in a while so it was nice to catch up and hear about the recent moped rally in Chicago and all the fun that they had. I love Chicago and I love mopeds...mixing the two would be heavenly. I then rode back to the hotel where Dawn was staying and other than that been doing a lot of wedding preps. I have been working on mailings, favors, and other little odds and ends that get wrapped up in the final days...15 to go! Today is my last bachelor moped group ride. We will be grilling out at my place and then riding around Dayton tonight so maybe you will see our group out and about.
The weather looks to be increasingly warm over the next seven days. Today we will get into the mid 80's and then we will continuously climb over the next seven days with many of the days getting into the 90's...pending no showers kicking the temperature back down a few degrees. With highs in the 90's and plenty of humidity we will see pop-up showers and storms as well. Nothing widespread because it is going to be a while until we see a decent cool down...hopefully by the wedding. Stay cool and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Wedding is almost here
07/10/11
Everyone said that the year leading up to your wedding would fly by and they were absolutely correct. Dawn and I are only twenty days away from our wedding and part of me wishes it was 1 day and another part of me wishes it was 100 days still. I am very ready to get the wedding done and over with but it would be nice to just relax, but MAN, I have not had time to do that! I put together another mail today because we got a handful of RSVP's back yesterday. Many of the guests are not familiar with OSU or Columbus so we felt it was our duty to try to give everyone a little background information since the wedding will be on campus. I really am excited for the day and to be able to relax afterwards.
Today was a scorcher. We got up to 90 in Dayton and luckily it was not super humid, however that will be changing tomorrow. We should get up to 91 the next few days and the humidity will make it feel closer to 100. Afternoon and evening showers and storms the next couple of days and then a little cool down for the middle of the week. Next weekend is looking warmer...there is a slight chance for rain next weekend with a frontal boundary sitting near us. Well I am going to jump off here and get as much stuff ready for the morning show as I can...Working day 17 straight and only have two more after today til I get a day off...well kinda... have to drive to Lima and meet with the Pastor for the wedding...no sitting still!! Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Starting a new project
07/09/11
Well after a lot of thought...I think I am going to go ahead with my plan...I am working on a new moped that has never been built before...no details just yet, but after doing a lot of thinking and talking to Briton Bees, I am totally pumped to start my build. It will take me a little while to accomplish because of the wedding and all. I also will be using the help of some of our new members of the Dayton Area Moped Riders. We have a few fabricators that will be helping out with some stuff that I do not have to tools to do, but it should turn out to be a fun little project and I started on the rough blue prints tonight.
I am finally free of the morning show and back on nights for the weekend. I have been getting an average of three hours of sleep a night because my body just cannot full adjust to mornings when I fill in for a week. I work tomorrow night and then I am back on the morning show on Monday and then free to sleep in for a few days. I also am currently working day 16 straight and have three more after today...can't wait for a day off. I love what I am doing, but man...it takes a toll on you...
The weather today was BEAUTIFUL!!! We were in the mid and upper 80's and we were dealing with fairly low humidity. Tomorrow will be warmer and a little more humid...feeling like the mid 90's, typical summer in Ohio. More heat for Monday, but showers and storms will roll into here later in the day and linger into Tuesday. Another front will sit to our south for later next week so it looks like we could deal with a spotty shower or storm, mainly south, for Wednesday and possibly Friday. Wednesday and Thursday looks to be a little cooler with highs in the lower 80's after the front swings through Tuesday and then stalls out south of us. I am really hoping Friday drys out because we have a moped ride planned. Anyway, enjoy tomorrow and its heat...have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Moped-dependence Day
07/05/11
Well after my quick switch from the Sunday night shift to the Monday morning show shift I was wiped out... I went home and took a three hour nap and then met up with my fellow mopeders for an afternoon ride. It was about a 40 mile ride with great weather.
Today will be warmer than yesterday getting into the upper 80's. We will continue to stay warm tomorrow but a chance for storms later Wednesday into early Thursday. It does not look like a lot of rain unfortunately...we really need the rain. Temperatures will remain in the 80's as we head toward the weekend so I hope you like the heat. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Back in...kinda
07/03/11
I am still sick. This week has been so busy, it made my previous "busy" weeks look easy. The wedding is less than four weeks away so there has been a TON going on with that. I also am currently on day 10 of 19 straight of work. Between those two things I have had very little time for much else, but I did manage to squeeze in some late night moped riding Friday night. I am working tonight and will be back up at 2 AM, after 90 minutes of sleep, for the morning show...no wonder I am still sick, my body can never recover. I am filling in all this week in the morning since Mike is on vacation. Needless to say I will be sleeping as soon as the morning show is complete tomorrow morning. This week I also have a lot of other stuff planned...getting our marriage license in Columbus, stopping by the florist, meeting with my parents about wedding stuff, consultant meeting at work, turning my Where You Live story after the morning show, AND grilling for Terwilleger on Friday night. OH! I did forget to mention I got pulled over on my moped on my way to a meeting for work Thursday... the sheriff deputy ran the wrong license plate and then let me continue....slowly...on my way.
It has been rather warm and humid the last few days but the humidity will be dropping through tomorrow, however, there will be a slight chance for isolated showers/storms. Another week cold front will swing through late night Wednesday into Thursday with a chance for rain, but only a slight chance since we will be so dry. This week basically looks very dry and warm with temps in the mid 80's most of the week. We really need the rain, I noticed the corn leaves have started to curl. I would say 2-3" would take care of things for now, but we really need a lot of rain....in a slow and steady form. Enjoy the Fourth of July tomorrow and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Tornadoes and sickness do not mix
06/28/11
Yesterday I was suffering from some serious illness... I still am not sure what it is but today is getting slightly better after 11 hours of sleep, hydrogen peroxide in both ears, and regularly using oregano oil under my tongue...I am slowly feeling the sickness take the back seat. However yesterday I felt horrible...no energy at all and my throat felt like I was swallowing razor blades. Had it not been for Jeff Booth taking the day off I would have called in sick for my second time ever. However, like I said, I am feeling much better. Hopefully after another good night of sleep and napping between my three meetings tomorrow (spread out through the day) I will finally say goodbye to whatever this is.
So anyway, I was trying to rest as much as possible yesterday at work...all of the storms had left the area except for one...a fairly weak shower(no lightning), but sure enough a few reports of a funnel cloud and I had to cut on for about twenty minutes for a Tornado Warning. Luckily the funnel did not touch down, but just south of there in Georgetown there were two confirmed EF1 tornadoes with winds about 90 miles per hour. There were a lot of people very upset because I cut into their programing, but it was a VERY serious situation and people's lives and property were in danger. Luckily no one was injured with yesterday's storms only several farm buildings.
Today turned out fantastic...humidity was right around 35% for the afternoon, which is very low for this time of the year and takes an alright summer day and turns it into a fantastic summer day. Tomorrow looks like a repeat and then starting a warming trend for Thursday. Friday and Saturday a high pressure system will be sitting over us, however the models are hinting at a few systems trying to enter the area. It will be a battle of the forces, but I think there is a very slight chance for rain...the high pressure should limit development of any cells. Unfortunately a better chance for rain will be arriving late Sunday into Independence Day on Monday and into Tuesday as well. The rain will be scattered in nature, so as far as things look right now not a wash out. I will keep you posted on the holiday forecast for the days to come. Enjoy tomorrow before it heats up and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Busier than I thought
06/26/11
I know sometimes I talk about being busy, but after taking a look at the schedule, I was unaware that I am currently on day three of a 19 day streak...possibly longer. Now two of the days I have two hour meetings, but regardless, I will be at work, at the station for nearly three weeks... I guess it is good I like doing weather and doing my job.
Well it was about five months ago that I sold my Puch Magnum moped and I wrote the blog about it... Well I contacted the guy that bought it and it looks COMPLETELY different. He has made it into a racer and and took off anything that was extra weight. We are having a moped ride in July and I invited him back down to the area to join in and there is a good chance I may be riding along side of my old bike once again.
We had the rain push in early today and the afternoon turned out mostly sunny. The winds have switched to the south and the humidity will continue rising overnight and Monday and so will the thermometer. More storms will roll through late Monday and overnight into early Tuesday. They will be strong to severe, but on the good side of things we will be cooler for the middle and end of the week...before we start heating back up, again. Enjoy the next couple of days and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Wedding / Bridal Shower
06/25/11
After my mother came up to Cleveland for Dawn's Bridal Shower and saw that they had the groom there...she thought it would be a good idea for me to be at the shower that my mother threw for Dawn. This way Dawn would not be as nervous to meet new people and I could help out with things like reading the cards and such...sooooo guess what I did this afternoon? I came into work early and got the forecast almost completely put together, other than tweaking a few final numbers, and then drove Dawn and myself up to the farm. They had signs up and balloons and it was really a very nice shower that they threw for Dawn. Almost all of the women came from my side of the family and my grandfather hung out in the garage for the afternoon with my dad and brothers. My dad even made a card he kept sneaking to the guys that said: "The real bachelor party is going to be in the back room with movies." He and my grandfather thought it was hysterical. Anyway it was a lot of fun and I got to hang out with a bunch of women...again. Thanks to all who came out and I hope you all had a fun time as well.
It was just a beautiful day today with a mix of sun and clouds with low humidity and a light breeze. Tomorrow we will see more clouds and a slight chance for rain. Showers and storms look to move just to our south and west so we may tap into some of those, but the latest models have us remaining dry for most of the day...if not all of the day for some places in Southwestern Ohio. More showers and storms for Monday and Tuesday, which will be scattered, as the humidity increases along with the temperatures. Mid to late week next week looks to remain mild with highs in the lower to mid 80's and lower humidity...but the good news...dry. I need a few good days of sunshine on my off days so I can work on my tan...I can't be getting fried and burnt in Mexico in 37 day...only 35 days til the wedding..GETTING CLOSE! Enjoy the rest of the weekend and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Busy days off...now back to work
06/24/11
I have been up to my elbows in mopeds the last few days. I was off Wednesday and Thursday for my weekend and I was able to fix a moped for a friend... the spark plug boot was bad along with other small problems. My friend Wes came over with his newly rebuilt Dart moped. He has it down to the bare bones now...no lights, no electronics so it is not street legal, but it is a blast to ride. We rode it around my block and since there is basically nothing to the frame it can really move!
Dawn and I have been cleaning the house...mostly Dawn...because her mother and grandmother are stopping by this weekend as they visit my parents house. My mom is throwing Dawn a bridal shower Saturday and it appears I will be there as well because my mom didn't want Dawn to be nervous since she hasn't met everyone from my side of the family. Along with the cleaning; I cleaned out the garage. We have slowly been accumulating boxes over the last 14 months at the new place and MAN was there a lot of boxes. I was basically just cleaning out everything in the garage and tidying it all up...not that it was that disorganized. I also finished working on the rest of my mopeds. I have all of them 100% running. I even finally installed kill switches on them instead of just the stray wire to tap to the body to kill the engine. My next project is to figure out how to mount my cell phone to my dash so that way I can use that as my GPS. The speedo cables on two of my mopeds have a tenancy to break. I will be sure to let you know what I come up with.
It was rather cool last evening with the spotty light showers...and today will be much of the same...light spotty showers with cool temperatures...we may be hard pressed to break the 70 degree mark. Remaining cool and dry for most of the weekend, but more showers and storms are possible as we head into the later part of Sunday. More scattered storms for the start of the workweek as temperatures bump back into the mid 80's along with humidity slowly rising. Enjoy the weekend and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Nice night, interesting day
06/19/11
Well my foot is on its way to recovery... The medicine started working and the color started going away as did the swelling... as a matter of fact when I woke up I was still in pain and started trying to loosen up my ankle/foot by rotating it in circles and it popped and seems to be much better... maybe the swelling dislodged it. Either way it still has a little tender feeling, but much less pain.
It was quite a pesky day with just light showers and sprinkles. I had a few moped friends try to get together to ride, despite my soggy forecast...but they ended up just sitting under the canopy at Riverscape. The evening turned out awesome after the rain cleared out and the sunshine was quite an uplifting addition to Father's Day.
More showers and storms possible tomorrow as a warm front lifts through here. It was already a little humid today, but it really looks to get sticky for the next couple of days, especially Tuesday. The cold front out west will slowly arrive mid-late week with more showers and storms and leave us nice and cool for next weekend. Stay cool and dry...and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Out of commission, X-ray letdown
06/18/11
Well I had a fun last few days...but today was the letdown back to reality...and worse. I saw the movie Tornado Alley in IMAX in Cincinnati and it was awesome, just kinda short. I also got to hang out on the boat on the river for a while, play in a golf outing and filled in for Mike Terwilliger Friday morning. I spent last night babysitting Dawn's nephews and niece and went to bed feeling full health. Well for the last year or so I have had weird discoloration in my right leg and absolutely no fat where the discoloration is located. This morning I woke up it had spread to my foot and I felt that my foot broke because of the sharp pain. I could barely walk and Dawn insisted that I get it checked out immediately. We debated on the emergency room or urgent care and decided I could get quicker attention at urgent care. After about three x-rays and the doctor basically throwing out my family doctor's thoughts on my leg. I had no fractures and I have an infection under my skin. I know it's gross...just hoping it is all healed up in time for the wedding in just over a month.
More showers and storms will stick around for Father's Day tomorrow. The best chance for rain will be in the evening, but they will be scattered so just keep an eye to the sky if you are firing up the grill. Temperatures will max out on Tuesday with a high near 90. Tuesday may also be the only dry day in the area...just hot and humid. More showers and storms for the mid and late week, BUT we will see cooler temperatures by next weekend.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Graduation Day
06/12/11
I am a little ahead of schedule today. I came in around 9AM to get my forecast started and most of my graphics made for the show. I left a little after 10AM to head to Columbus to watch my brother, Bryant graduate from The Ohio State University. It has been three years since I graduated from there and it is was much cooler today than what it was in 2008. This year they had nearly 10,000 students graduating... crazily impressive and the largest graduating class in the world from what we were told. The entire ceremony lasted just about two hours with everyone coming in and all the PhD and Masters students getting their names read as they shook hands with President Gee. He briefly reflected on the recent turmoil with the football program but reminded people of the past great players and how hopefully this will only be a small blemish in the tradition and heritage that is Buckeye Football.
Dawn and I met up with Bryant briefly before heading back to Dayton...we also ran across my grandparents there as well who came up from Cincinnati. Bryant will have a bright future with his degree in Chemical Engineering... he has three job offers on the table right now, likely making a LOT more money than me, haha. Luckily we were sitting in the shade at graduation. With the low humidity the sunshine and UV rays cut through the atmosphere much better and it does not take long to get a sunburn on a day like today. It is not nearly as big of a problem for me, but Dawn's Irish skin burns under a 100W bulb. Anyway, I am back in the weather center getting as much done early so I can hopefully watch the Mavs win the NBA finals tonight.
Not much change in the forecast...cool and low humidity to start the workweek, then we slowly warm up and slowly add more moisture to the air with scattered showers and storms possible Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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So long heat & humidity
06/11/11
Today was a pretty hot & sticky again. I spent the morning at the soccer fields watching Dawn's cousins play for the last time of the regular season. While it was still warm and humid, it will soon be over...at least for a few days. The cold front is slowly pushing though this evening and with it moving through so slow it has only tripped off a light shower or two... most of the area has remained dry.
Yesterday was another story. We had storms in the morning while I was filling in for Mike on the morning show. The storms cleared out and then fired up again in the late afternoon. I got together with my fellow Dayton Area Moped Riders for a moped ride around Middletown and the surrounding communities. The rain scared off a lot of people, but after waiting out the first storm for fifteen minutes we diehard riders were golden the rest of the evening riding around to different parks. It was a lot of fun because once the storm rolled over we rode toward it...nothing cooler than zipping along on a two stroke bike with continuous lightning exploding out of the sky in front of you.
On a side note, the lilies that Dawn and I transplanted from our old place in Sidney have started blooming... a true sign that summer is officially around the corner. I moved them further away the house this earlier this spring to make sure they got more rain and sunlight and they seem to be loving the new location.
As I already mentioned...cooler temps and lower humidity for the next few days, but the humidity and warmth will return slowly for the week ahead. More storms will arrive MAYBE late Tuesday, but a better chance Wednesday and Thursday, but they still appear to be in the scattered nature and not a washout as a warm front moves through. Enjoy the next few days and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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100+ degrees
06/10/11
Yup, that is correct... 100+ degree heat inside my house the last few days. The A/C went out early Tuesday and the house has been a sweat box since. Luckily it was fixed late last night and the house cooled off pretty quickly, but MAN it was hot! We maxed out at 101.4, but it just sat there... I think the sensor on the weather station maxed out there regardless...but the 78 degrees when I woke up felt wonderful.
We already have a few storms popping up this morning. The humidity will help fuel the storms later today and into tomorrow until the cold front finally pushes through. Some of the storms later today and tomorrow will have the slight chance of becoming severe... the main threats will be strong wind and large hail, but there is a very small chance that the storms may become tornadic...mainly for the Northern Miami Valley. The Northern part of the area will have the best wind shear, change of direction with height...which helps with rotating updrafts. No worries, we will be monitoring the situation closely through the day and if severe weather does happen, we will be ready to let you know. Keep an eye and ear open for that...but start planning for Sunday because it is going to be awesome outside! Low humidity, cooler temperatures...I may need a jacket after getting used to 100 degree heat the last few days, haha. I will be back on here soon, until then have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Hustle Bustle
06/05/11
I had a jam filled weekend and it looks like the week ahead is going to be much of the same. I met up with some old friends Friday night and got about three hours of sleep before getting up to meet some of the DAM Riders for the Daddy Katz swap meet in Moraine. There were only about five DAM Riders initially, but we had about eight or nine people there for the afternoon. The majority of people there had motorcycles or scooters...we had to make a statement about our pedals, haha. I had to leave early to get ready for work and with severe storms for much of Saturday night, I was quite busy. Today has been a little more laid back. I tried fixing someone's moped this morning, electrical problem, and then a semi-relaxed day doing the weather. This week I have a few meetings, doing weather for Booth on Monday and putting together my Where You Live Yellow Springs story....not to mention nailing down more stuff for the wedding in Columbus.
It is going to be quite a hot week for us. We should be into the 90's for the middle of the week and humidity will make it feel like it is closer to 100. With the increase in humidity and temperatures isolated showers will be possible and scattered storms later in the week as a cold front brings in less humid air for next weekend. I am just hoping Friday night stays dry... One of my friends is hosting a moped ride in Middletown... riding 50 miles in the rain just doesn't sounds as fun. Stay cool and have a good one!
Best
Andrew Buck Michael
Strawberry Festival and Storms on the Way
06/03/11
I did the forecast from the 35th Annual Troy Strawberry Festival for the dinner time shows today. It was a BEAUTIFUL day for the festival to get kicked off. I had a few friends show up on their mopeds just to rub in the fact that I had to work and they weren't. I was thinking about riding a moped, though.
The humidity and heat will return tomorrow and will help fuel a few thunderstorms later in the day for Saturday. The storms will be riding along a cold front which will cool us off into the lower 80's for Sunday and Monday, but by the middle of the week will be pushing the upper 80's again with humidity returning... It is weird to think that summer is still two weeks away officially. Some of the storms may be severe later tomorrow so keep an eye to the sky and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Yardwork in the Heat
06/01/11
After looking at the sub-par flower bed, I decided to fix things up. I killed all the weeds coming up through the old mulch and put down new mulch...in the 90 degree heat. I love working up sweats like that...it feels like the job was much harder than what it really was, since it only took 30 minutes. The good news...lower humidity will roll into the area later today.
I had no plans on Memorial Day so I rounded up a few friends and we rode mopeds out to the Germantown Dam. It was a nice slow ride and a few of them ended up cooling off in the water for a bit. The heat wasn't too bad while you were riding, but once you stopped...man it was toasty. We are getting another big group together again on June 10th in Middletown. The guy hosting was hoping for a mini rally, but I think we will only be having about 10-15 people... and I think you need about 25+ to be considered a rally, in my opinion. Anyway, I am super excited for the ride. We also added new stuff to our website, DaytonAreaMopedRiders.com.
Milder and drier air will arrive through the day today... but the heat and humidity will return for Friday and Saturday... Pop-up showers and storms, widely scattered, will be possible for the weekend with the excessive heat and humidity. For the most part we should stay dry the next seven days... just an isolated chance for rain... Enjoy the lower humidity today and tomorrow and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Wedding Shower...Hot Week Ahead
05/29/11
I have been off the ranch the last few days spending time in Cleveland. It was a lot of fun to get away for a couple of days and relax. I hung out with Dawn's family and friends and then yesterday they had a wedding shower for Dawn's family and friends. My mother and sister also came up for the shower. I guess Cleveland showers have the groom present...was not aware of that...but it was a lot of fun and my mother-in-law to be made an awesome center piece on the desert table. She made a tornado and put a truck on it with Dawn, Buckeye, and me... it was pretty funny and awesome. Huge thanks to everyone who came out... my mom said she may want me there for my side of the family as well so Dawn can relax a little more.
Getting ready to come home this morning from Cleveland, I had to rearrange the gifts in the back seat of my truck. I was bringing home two other members of her family to Dayton, and with their luggage and such, there was no room. I should not have taken a shower beforehand. I broke a sweat about five minutes into the half an hour ordeal. I took everything out, raised the back seat and then made everything fit nice and snug... with a little room to spare. I did also turn on the A/C at the house for the first time this year... So far we have hit 88...the warmest day of the year so far.
Monday is the unofficial start to summer as Memorial Day. We should hit a high of 90 both tomorrow and Tuesday before a few storms roll into the area. They should be scattered and will drop our temperatures into the mid 80's for the rest of the week with plenty of heat and humidity. Stay cool and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Severe Weather Likely Today
05/25/11
After what has happened in the Plains this week, I hope that people take the warnings very serious today in Ohio. We normally can have quick spin-ups of tornadoes, but today has the ingredients for tornadic storms unlike anything Ohio has seen this year. Based on the forecast from the Storm Prediction Center, the Southwestern part of Ohio is in the Moderate Risk for severe storms, which I believe is the first of the year. While strong winds and hail are a real threat, isolated tornadoes are possible as well.
As a matter of fact, the Western part of Ohio is in the 10% chance of a tornado within 25 miles of a given point. Much of the rest of Ohio is in the 5% chance. This is a very serious matter. Even though we may not see the best chances for tornadic storms, the warnings should not be taken lightly. We had two tornadoes in the area two days ago and hopefully with the media's display of the deadly storms in the Plains people have thought serious about that they would do if the situation happened. A NOAA weather radio is a great idea. They are about $30 and extremely important in situations like this, where staying alert may be the factor between staying alive or not. This may come off as harsh, but please heed the warnings today. Stay safe and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Super Sonic Ride Recap
05/21/11
What a beautiful day yesterday! Plenty of sunshine after a gloomy week and to top it all off we got the moped group together again. We ended up getting eleven people together for the picture for our website, DaytonAreaMopedRiders.com. It was quite a story though to get to the eleven people.
Eight of us met up at my place around 6 PM and we started off by heading to Sonic down the street. Sonic is great for groups because almost each person paid with a card once they ordered right at the kiosk. Simple and fast.
We took off from Sonic and the eight of us went to Oregon District Park. Two guys found our website and emailed us about getting involved and ride their stock mopeds with us... So we rode down to the park to meet them and pick them up for the ride. We rode around Fifth Third Field with the Dragons playing...lots of smiles and waves from the fans.
As we were going around the ballpark people were trying to flag us down at one party and then a block later some guy with a bicycle with a motor rolls up next to me. He said that they wanted to start a moped gang and that his company was having a grill out and had free hot dogs... even though we just came from Sonic, we had to see what it was all about, so we followed him.
We rolled into the Real Art Design Group's parking lot and there were about four people with video cameras and others with still cameras capturing our pit stop... good times. It turns out that none of them have mopeds yet, unless you count the motorized cruiser bike. He did take an old Sachs moped, gut it, rebuilt the frame and put a Briggs and Straton motor on it... no pedals... and barely an improvement on performance... heavy as a beast... but I admire the enthusiasm. We hung out with them for a little bit and gave them my contact information and told them as soon as they get mopeds, to hit us up.
We did tell the guy with the bike to ride over with us to Deeds Park two blocks away, across the river. We figured we would throw in his bike for the website pictures, just for the fun of it. Wes's bike was not part of the picture because he tried pedaling his moped around to try to see if he could stir the pot with a park ranger... I think a few of the other guys did get a picture with all of the bikes when Wes finally came back.
We then slowly split up... a few guys hung out downtown and the rest of us all went through University of Dayton and then rolled around Carillon Park where the Blues and Brews Festival was being held. I had to stop and throw off my helmet because a bee flew in my helmet and stung me in the ear... luckily no swelling, which never happens.
The remaining seven got less than a mile from my place before two people busted their throttle cables... I guess they weren't ready to mash the throttle yet. After trying to get the bikes running with no decent results, I ran home to get my truck and picked the two of them up.
It was a complete blast to get together and ride with everyone...and the weather could not have been better! I can't wait to do it again.
Today's weather looks to be great again, a little warm, but I will take it! A chance for pop-up showers and storms starting tomorrow and lasting well into the workweek ahead... and highs will be in the low 80's most of the week. Enjoy and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Reds Game
05/19/11
After my last experience trying to head to a Reds game turning into a washout and the game getting postponed.... last night was a whole bucket of fun. I went with Dawn and two very close friends, KZ and Melissa. There was a very light mist by the end of the game, but not enough to get the rain coats out. We had fantastic seats, and guess who was sitting two rows behind us...one of my aunts. She was there with three of her friends and they started yelling at me and I thought they meant someone else, goodtimes. The four of us came home and watched the Bulls lose to the Heat...sad times.
I actually worked before going to the game yesterday and finished putting together my allergy series and also my Where You Live story earlier in the week. Today, I have the day off and I am about ready to head outside to mow the grass then head out for a moped ride. More work tomorrow morning and then moped get-together later in the day and then Dawn's neighbor from Cleveland, Theresa is coming to visit for the weekend...so I got a fun filled next four days!
The rain may come back from time to time today, but tomorrow should be fantastic!! The warm temperatures will return with highs around 80 starting Saturday and can't rule out the chance for isolated thunderstorms from Sunday and on into next week. Enjoy the next couple of days and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Tornado Warnings
05/14/11
Well tonight was interesting... I ran home for dinner pretty quick with NO rain in the area... and as I pulled back into the parking lot of the station a Tornado Warning was issued for Miami and Shelby County. I was on-air for the warning for about an hour and a half until 8:45 PM because the warning was extended. There was a tornado spotted by Miami County EMA first, then by storm spotters, then also by law enforcement. The spotted funnels and possible tornadoes were very weak and a few reports were spinning up a little debris. We will have to wait until tomorrow to see what the National Weather Service has to say. Mad props to Malcom Maddox for helping with the cut-in and also Jeff Booth, who got ready came in on his anniversary...not to mention the production crew, producers, reporters, and photogs behind the scene, great work guys.
The next couple of days still look like persistent showers. They will be on and off, but a rather wet, cold, dreary day. Temps will barely get into the 60's tomorrow and only the mid and upper 50's for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday...which is when we will finally start drying out. Temps will warm up for the end of the week with partly cloudy skies. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaack!
05/13/11
I have been super busy the last four days. I worked about 24 hours between Wednesday and Thursday and I barely have had time to sweat... I take that back, I have been sweating the entire time... man has it been hot... I know by the time the end of summer rolls around we will be like...85, ehhh, nice day. However, it is still the beginning of May and our bodies aren't acclimated to the temps yet. The inside of the house has been about 85 until about midnight... then it drops to 83, haha! Dawn and I refuse to turn on the heat until it is unbearable. I spent Monday and Tuesday working on a few of my feature stories and shooting a few stories for the news. Wednesday I was working the morning flooding in Clark County and then a few other odds and ends. Thursday a few other odds and ends and then covered the 675 semi accident where the semi went flipped over a bridge onto a lower highway... very sad and graphic scene. That would bring us to Friday, my day off this week. I spent the morning going with Dawn to the allergist so she could get tested and I then ran a few errands before a lot of laundry and cleaning.
Looks like the next few days we will slowly cool down with scattered showers around the area. Highs will drop back into the 50's and 60's so as much as it pains me to say this... enjoy the heat while it is here because you may still need the heater. By the end of next week we will start to warm up again, but cooler weather will prevail until then. Got to run... Dawn and I are having a night out on the town since I am off. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Pedal Power
05/08/11
I own a few bikes. I have a mountain bike that I left on the farm and my parents and siblings left out in the rain a few times which rusted and left it in horrible shape. I also have a cruiser that is ugly as sin, but a blast to ride casually and got me through college. After doing a couple stories on the local network of bike paths and local bike shops I had caught the biking bug. I am obviously fully infected with the moped disease, but there is something about the quiet, self-propelled commute through nature that bit me recently. After looking through Craigslist the last week or so, I finally found a bike worth jumping on. It is not a well known brand or have anything flashy...just a ten speed in excellent shape with new tires, grips, and detailing...not to mention 63cm, which was important for someone as tall as myself. Another thing that really caught my eye besides the shape, size, and care for the bike was the price... it was less than a tank of gas. I was called back today and picked it up... only thing was...was that the guy had to remove about ten of his other bikes so he could get to this bike... he obviously knew his stuff. I took it out for a short ride before work today, and can't wait to adjust a few things and take it for a ride along the river...maybe I will see you there!
Today turned out beautiful for Mother's Day in Western Ohio...Happy Mother's Day Mom! Tomorrow looks to be much of the same, but a little warmer. Showers and storms will return later Monday night into early Tuesday morning... and with more sunshine, temperatures will continue to climb into the low 80's for Wednesday with humidity riding on it's back for the climb. More showers and storms for Thursday with a few lingering showers on Friday as temperatures fall back into the mid and upper 60's heading into next weekend. Enjoy the sunshine between the rain and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
A Weekend With Buckeye
05/07/11
Dawn is in Cleveland getting fitted for her dress... which leaves me riding mopeds, working on mopeds, and hanging out with Buckeye. He is one of the most chill dogs I have met... that may be because of his lack of vision, but he loves to just chill. I usually bring him out into the garage with me and we work on mopeds together. He likes to wonder out the garage door, on a leash, and soak in the rays, but if it is rainy I normally just keep the garage door shut. Regardless, he loves to be in the garage sitting on the carpet by the stoop just turning his head at me as I talk to myself working away...
I worked on my moped brakes this morning. I have tried a lot of different things to try and help me stop better, but nothing worked. I think I may need to take the wheel hub to a machine shop and try to get it re-lined. The good news is that our decal logos for the DAM Riders, Dayton Area Moped Riders arrived. I put them out my headlights and a few of the other guys started using theirs as well. I like it a lot. Brandon thought the fist was like a mound of dirt...dam, and we liked the spark plug wrench, so I added that to the image as well. We are really starting to get more and more people involved and it is a great feeling to ride with a group...not that riding alone isn't fun.
More showers and maybe even a few storms will remain around the area tonight and early tomorrow. The second half of Mother's Day looks to try out a little bit and turn partly cloudy. Monday looks great and then more rain for Tuesday and Thursday. There is a slight chance Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, but it looks very isolated for now. Temps will get into the upper 70's if not 80 for the middle of the week and humidity will be creeping up as well. We hardly ever have spring in Ohio... skips right from winter to summer... oh well, I will take it...that and more sunshine. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Evening Moped Ride
05/06/11
Well for the first time I blasted my moped around downtown Dayton. I have always rode around Dayton, but I felt that in order to really enjoy, the first time, it I needed others to help turn heads. Shawn, Wes, and I finished trying to work on Shawn's Tomos...pain in the rear, and we went out for an evening ride since it will likely be the only dry day between 12 other wet days. We rode up and down Oregon District and got shouts and fist pumps, and then rode around the Dragon's Game at Fifth Third Field. We stopped at Deeds Park for a quick photo...(love the skyline from that angle and time of day)... and then we proceeded back home through downtown. Shawn's moped was loosing bottom end, so I had to assist him by putting my hand on his back and pushing him up hills. I was even able to push him up the huge hill on Dorthy Lane... who ever told me to gear higher and get a different pipe!?!?! Haha. I still wish I was more in line for top speed, but I love my low end with my set-up. Wes and I got lost from Kettering to West Carrollton because we wanted to ride the back housing areas rather than the main streets... We got all turned around and then eventually got back onto Stroop. We also found a permanently fixed MPH radar gun next to a community park... by the time I saw it I wouldn't have time to get to full speed, but I still got 37 up a little hill. Two thumbs up! I got home and Dawn had finished packing(heading back to Cleveland Friday to get her wedding dress altered) and we watched The Office. No where near as funny now that Steve Carell has left.
Well the rainy days have returned, only a shower or storm here or there the next week or so. There is a small chance every day, but there may be a day or two where someone else will see the rain, but you will remain dry. Monday looks to be the best chance for dry weather... isn't it weird how we now forecast the dry days..haha. We will start to warm up and by the middle of next week, we will see our first humid week of the year. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Still Here
05/04/11
Been super crazy busy the last few days. Work, Work, Reds Game, Work, Neil Young concert, Work.... I have not had any time to sit down hardly. Just wanted to pop on and drop a line. I am off the next two days, sorta. Looks like a few showers today, but much nicer for Thursday, before more rain arrives. Ugh, right?! Enjoy tomorrow and I will be back on shortly....Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
I hope you got out there and enjoyed it.
04/30/11
Spring in Ohio...75% rain...seems more like 90%. I have been on my moped as much as possible the last two days. Dawn and I bought her wedding band yesterday at James Free Jewelers...there was a HUGE sale going on. I then had lunch with her and her cousin's...I can't remember what the sandwich was called...pork, ham, melted cheese, mustard, pickles...all made in a panini press...delicious. I then went home and watched the final episode of The Office with Steve Carell, very sad. I then rode my moped to meet the Mayor of Dayton. I did a story with him about how he rides his scooter...and me on my moped. HUGE props to our chief photographer and producer for getting some awesome video of us riding together. Dawn and I went out to dinner last night and came home for a relaxing evening. I woke up early today and changed the brakes on my truck and then mowed the lawn. I took advantage of another beautiful day and rode my moped to work. It has been just such a nice couple of days yesterday and today that it is too hard to pass up.
More rain is on the way for Sunday, Monday, and early Tuesday. It looks like most of it will be scattered showers with a few rumbles of thunder. It will be off and on, so not a complete washout. Sunday will be mild with temps in the upper 60's but only the mid 50's for Monday and Tuesday. Sunshine will return for later Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.....before more rain. Hopefully we get to dry out soon...farmers have to be going crazy with the muddy fields. Keep the rain gear handy and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Severe Weather Again Tonight
04/27/11
Well it has been a few days, and again...very busy. I had a kinda short day on Monday, 13 hours Tuesday, and earlier today, Wednesday, 12 hours. I am back in, at 8:30 PM and will be working until at least 9:30 AM tomorrow morning. As you can see the warnings and watches as of 9PM tonight is probably the craziest I have seen in forever. Tornado Watches (yellow) from Indiana and Ohio down to the Gulf of Mexico and east to Maryland and New York. That is insane how large of an area that is under a Tornado Watch. There are also over a handful of Tornado Warnings through the Deep South as well as Flash Flood Warnings.
Here in the Miami Valley we have a line of storms in Illinois and Indiana that will be rolling through late this evening and into the early overnight hours. With us under a Tornado Watch until 3AM, I will be here working until my reporting shift will start... we will see how that two hour nap will do for me. Jeff and I will be keeping an eye on things through the next few hours so rest easy, but stay alert.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
A Bit About Buckeye....and the Forecast.
04/24/11
Buckeye has to be the best dog in the world...seriously. When Dawn moved in with me about to two and a half years ago there was one stipulation...Buckeye was coming. She was living with her parents and working in Cleveland and she moved in with me to better our relationship and I love her the world over for doing that. Her parents worked and her brother was at college so no one could check in on him through the day...so he had to come. However, I was not really a dog person. I remember seeing the back of our family's dog's throat once after pestering it a little.(I know my fault.) I could stand dogs, but really had no desire to live with a dog inside the house. Too bad, he was coming. I completely regret having any reservations about the pup since.
Buckeye is currently 9, I think...maybe 8, but his birthday is this August. He has had cataracts since birth. He was taken to the vet shortly after the family got him wondering why he couldn't see very well and he has basically been nearly blind since birth. He can see things out of the far corner of his eye occasionally and when a bright object catches him off guard he will jump back. For the most part he remembers where everything is inside the house, and unless I get him hyper he never bumps into anything. He also has a tumor on his back near his tail. It is a bulge a little larger than a golf ball, but it is non-cancerous. His real name is Buckeye Butler, but sometimes we like to call him Flawless.
Buckeye loves to sleep. He loves to feel the warmth of someone who has just left the bed. Sometimes he will know you got up, and when you come back he will be sleeping on your pillow just to soak in as much warmth as possible. When he gets super comfortable he will sometimes roll onto his back during a deep dream and occasionally paw at the open air.
Something that only happens on occasion is Buckeye howling along with a fire truck. He will only do it to the long high pitch that slowly drops over a 20-30 second period. At first it would normally only be in the spring or fall when the windows were open and he could howl along and try to mimic the sound of the siren. Dawn and I have tried making the sound ourselves and have gotten him to start howling along. Afterward, we always tell him how good of a dog he is...if the house ever catches fire and we are sleeping, at least he will howl as the firetruck is rolling up the street.
Another thing that Buckeye loves more than his dog treats is being outside or in the car. He loves sitting in the car and I often wonder if he wonders where the next trip will take him. I probably take him in my truck too often, but I know he likes taking trips to run errands. He loves putting his head out the window and often the cut-off is about 40 miles per hour. I will say that one of my favorite pictures of him was when I lived in Lima. After my last TV station was bought out, I had a month of so of waiting until my next job. I was particularly depressed during this time and often found myself wanting to be outside in the sunshine. Of course Buckeye would want to be out there all day as well. I remember sitting on the front steps of the apartment in the warm sun with a million questions flying through my head...but Buckeye... not a care in the world. He put his front two legs on the next step down, sat on his back legs and would turn his head as each car passed the steps...soaking in the sunshine. He could occasionally bark if a diesel truck passed or a bicycle rolled by and the pedals were going reverse so you get the ching-ching of the freewheel... he hates those sounds. He sat there loving every second being outside and just lived in the moment. It made me appreciate the small things in life and to be thankful for what I had at that very minute. I think he is the best dog in the world and I am thankful that my fiance decided to move in with me, and bring him along.
More rain for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Wednesday looks to be the heaviest of the rain and there is a slight chance every day for severe weather. Although it is a slim chance, make sure to be prepared. Maybe a few showers early Thursday with cooler temps in the 50's, but at least clearing skies will finally try pushing into the area for the end of the week. Continue staying dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Moped Get-Together and More Rain
04/23/11
Yesterday we officially got the Dayton Area Mopeders together at my place for dinner and a ride. It rained most of the afternoon and I was getting heckled for arranging this on a rainy day... but I was planning this about three weeks out, so forecasting a chance for rain would be a crap shoot. I did take a look at the radar after dinner and we had a dry slot moving into the area and we were able to go for a 13 mile ride. No one broke down and we even had a chase vehicle. We stopped before returning back to my place for a group picture as well. It was a great time meeting everyone and I look forward to getting together again, soon.
On to the weather... More rain for Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. We can expect to see a LOT of heavy rain. Some locations may see half a foot or more of rain. Flooding will be a huge concern. If you live in a flood prone area, make sure to prepare. Temps should get into the 70's for Monday and Tuesday, but much cooler for the end of the week, but at least sunshine will return to the area. Stay dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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More Rain On The Way
04/22/11
Thursday was such a beautiful day it was hard for me to stay inside. Instead I was outside as much as possible, despite feeling horribly sick...but I was sick for a good reason.
In my last entry on Tuesday I mentioned how dangerous the weather was likely to be Tuesday night. Well sure enough we had two tornadoes. The storms were not expected until after midnight and I was able to go to the Reds game, thanks for the tickets sis. It is always fun going to watch the Reds, even if they do lose. Well after the game Dawn and I hurried home, I geared up into the station vehicle, and hit the road. I started north when a tornado warning was issued for Mercer and Auglaize Counties. I arrive into Celina shortly after the storm came through and before some of the local city workers arrive to stop traffic. There was damage like I have never seen in the Miami Valley for several years. Cars were tossed like toys, advertisement signs leveled as if a giant stepped on them, and sides of buildings torn apart to mimic a bomb going off next to it.
Just as I was leaving they had started turning on the lights at the Walmart and other local fire departments were showing up with generator lights to light up intersections and such. The more lights that were turned on, the more devastating images started popping up. I also stopped by a country road that was upstream of the damage and found a few houses torn apart and talked with a few of the people... everyone was devastated, but at least there were no injuries. This is why a weather radio is so important... you can set the alarm to go off when storms like this roll in, and you will be able to get to cover. I pray that everyone will recover from the tornadoes and realize how lucky they are to have no injuries.
After getting video for that, I booked it back to the station and reported for the morning shows and then came home and went to bed after being up for about 32 hours. I slept most of the day on Wednesday until Dawn came home and woke me up. Yesterday was nice and sunny meaning two things.... mow and not sit inside. I felt pretty sick, I am sure from walking around soaked in the rain in Mercer County with the tornadoes. I did finish working on my moped last night. I changed the wheels and handlebars while putting on a new magnum dashboard with ignition switch.
Anyway on to the forecast: Lots of rain is headed to the area. We are already very saturated from Tuesday/Wednesdays storms. We could easily see 2"-3" of rain over the weekend and some places could see up to 5" if they are where the rain keeps training, back-building. We have a slight chance for severe weather, so stay on your toes. We have the chance to see rain almost every day through the middle of next week. Temps will be in the 60's for highs, so at least it will be mild. Watch out for flooding and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Severe Weather Likely Tonight
04/19/11
I really should be in bed. I had 50 minutes of sleep two nights ago and only 3 hours last night.... And however long I get to sleep before 4PM today (Max 2.5 hours) is all I am going to get tonight. However, it would be a huge disservice by not writing a quick entry. Tonight we have a very good set up for severe weather. This does include the chance for isolated tornadoes. Right now the Severe Prediction Center of the National Weather Service has most of the Miami Valley in a Moderate Chance for severe weather. The worst part of this will be the timing. These storms will likely arrive to Ohio around or shortly after midnight, while everyone is asleep. They will plow eastward and be out of near by sunrise tomorrow. The main threat looks to be straight line winds and large hail, however as I mentioned before, there will be the chance for tornadic cells as well. The low pressure looks to track just to the north which will allow directional wind shear.... varying directions of the wind throughout a column in the atmosphere. This is a very important for ingredient for the formation of tornadic supercells. Like I said, I will be up chasing these storms getting video of them and then reporting in the morning on the morning show. I need to head to bed now because my 13 year old sister gave me Reds tickets, and I will be darned if I can't use them. So time for bed, Reds game, storm chasing, then reporting... then back to bed again. I HIGHLY recommend getting a NOAA weather radio and using it tonight. Night time storms are much more deadly because people do not seek shelter like they should. Be safe and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Back in the Weather Center
04/17/11
I am back in the weather center and fully re-energized. Thursday I went on a 25 mile moped ride with my friend Wes. We rode the route we plan on taking for the Dayton Area Moped (DAM) Riders get-together. It was a great ride. I then came back, mowed and got ready for my trip to Cleveland. We got up there Friday and hung out with Dawn's family and went to a wedding on Saturday.... my first weekend day off since the middle of December. It was the last wedding that Dawn and I will be at until ours at the end of July...so we really had to cut the rug and get our dance moves fine-tuned. It was an absolute blast... I hardly ever dance, but I got a lot of compliments so maybe I will bust a move a little more often.
It looks like the upcoming week is going to be pretty wet. We will see the chance for scattered showers and storms every single day except on Thursday. Temperatures will max out in the beginning of the week near or better than 70, but only getting into the lower 60's for the end of the week. Right now we don't have a great shot of severe weather, but some of the storms Tuesday into Wednesday could be interesting. Get that rain gear ready and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Checking in
04/13/11
It seriously feels like it has been a month at least since I was on here... Monday was rather wet and dreary. I worked on a few of my stories and made calls for my next couple of stories. I also kept an eye on the radar, but luckily none of the storms were severe... just a few rumbles of thunder. Tuesday I had two shoots for stories and today I edited them. It was nice to get back ahead of schedule to start planning some springtime stories to talk about allergies and the like. I worked extra hours Tuesday so luckily I was able to clock out early today. I am off for the next three days. Saturday is my first day I have requested off since before Christmas... close to four months.... excited to get a little time to relax.
Today has been BEAUTIFUL weather. I wish I had an outdoor job on days like today... even pouring the concrete like the crews out on my street repairing the curbs. Tomorrow looks a lot like today, maybe a few degrees warmer. I am hosting a moped get-together next week and I am riding the route for our ride to get a rough time estimate. I will have to limit my speed to account for the stock bikes. I think we should have about a handful or two of people. I am excited to get a lot of the local mopeders together to meet each other and mingle. We are doing most of our communications via the internet, but there is nothing like meeting someone in person. Anyway, I am riding the route tomorrow, mowing, getting measured for my wedding tux, and laundry. I am leaving early Friday to head to Cleveland for a wedding for Dawn's longtime neighbor. I am excited to wear my suit I have not wore yet. It is too classy for television.
Tomorrow's weather looks great, sunshine and temps in the upper 60's with light winds. Temps will stay in the 60's for the most part over the weekend and into the beginning of next week. Rain will arrive later Friday and stick around through Saturday. More rain is expected for early next week as well....you know what that means...use a personal day tomorrow and enjoy the beautiful weather! I am just kidding. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Warm One Today
04/10/11
Today was absolute bliss. We broke the record high temp in Dayton by two degrees. The previous record of 82 was set in 1905, and we broke it by 3PM. I sure hope everyone took advantage of the beautiful weather because tomorrow is going to be rainy with a few thunderstorms and no temperatures in the 80's on the 7-day... as a matter of fact, no temperatures in the 70's. I rode my moped into work today and it may take me about 3 minutes longer to get to work...but totally worth it.
Dawn and I also went wedding band shopping today. We are still in the research stage and did not jump on anything while we were at the stores. Her ring is very hard to try and find a complimenting wedding band. Our search will continue as we add check marks to the to-do list. OHHH! We had a low key evening last night and stayed at home and watched "Worst Week." I don't know if any of you have seen that television series, but we both find it hilarious. It only lasted one season before being cut, but we have no idea why. You should try to check it out. The DVD can be found almost anywhere, we found ours at Big Lots for only a couple bucks....score!
Like I mentioned, showers and storms for Monday and a few showers possible early Tuesday. Then we dry out for the middle of the week with more rain on the way for Friday, Saturday, and unfortunately also Sunday. Temperatures will be seasonable all week with highs in the 50's and 60's. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Soggy Saturday
04/09/11
Well we had a few showers and rumbles of thunder for much of the early afternoon. The rain shield held farther north than expected. At least temperatures were in the 50's and 60's for most of the day. Tomorrow will be much warmer. Since we did not get into the 70's today, it may be hard for us to make the jump all the way up to 80, but I have hope.
I have spent the last few days working for Jeff Booth and in the mornings I have been slowly cleaning the garage. The tool bench and the rest of the garage was slowly getting a little unorganized so it is nice to finally walk in there and see things organized again. I still have held off mowing the grass. Many of my neighbors have started, but I have always noticed that if you cut the grass before it really starts growing in the spring it shocks it a little....so I am giving it a fighting chance, at least for another day or two.
It is hard to believe that our wedding is only 16 weeks away. We have almost everything nailed down and planned, but there are small things that we still need to nail down. I think one of the biggest things that we still need to do is get our wedding bands. I know what I am getting, but Dawn is still up in the air. We put together the archway for the wedding and are still on the prowl for a great deal for one of the pop-up canopy tents so the musicians can sit under... they can't have their instruments in direct sunlight. Anyway, we have PLENTY of time right? 16 weeks!?!?!
Tomorrow it looks like we may break the 80 mark for the first time this year...the more sunshine the better, but we will have partly cloudy skies with more clouds later. Showers and storms will roll into the area very early Monday morning and will drop our temperature back down to seasonal temps..upper 50's and low 60's for much of next week. Enjoy the great weather tomorrow!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Warm, Wet Weather Ahead
04/07/11
Nice afternoon with plenty of sunshine, but the clouds rolled in pretty quickly. I got the new moped running and it inspired me to ride my Sebring into work this afternoon. It rode awesome until I got about a mile from home during my dinner break. I think there is something clogging the fuel line that is very, very old. It had bright spark, compression, but not a lot of fuel. Dawn made dinner and it was already ready so I called her to come pick me and the bike up. I could have tried pedaling or walking the bike home, but I knew she was hungry and that would only delay dinner longer. I will have to take a look at it in the coming days....good thing I have others.
Showers are already rolling into the area and they will continue on and off overnight with a few rumbles of thunder possible towards daybreak. The showers and storms will become more scattered as the day progresses and we could even see a few scattered showers and storm Saturday, but less likely. We will get into the mid 70's for Saturday and possibly into the low 80's for Sunday if we see enough sunshine. More storms will roll into the area late Sunday night and through the day on Monday with highs back in the mid 60's for the middle of next week. Enjoy the warm temps and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Warm Snow
04/05/11
There was just enough sunshine to pop up a few showers this afternoon with a little instability left from yesterday's storms. Well despite the temperature 46 at the house, it fell as SNOW! The freezing level is so low in the atmosphere that there was not enough time for it to melt before reaching the surface. It was only flurries where I lived, and by the time I could find a flake land and try to snap a picture, it had already melted. The radar did show a few very light cells across the area and I even got a few Facebook comments about others seeing the snow as well.
Temperatures will be chilly again tonight, but much warmer are will arrive later tomorrow. We will be into the 70's for the weekend, maybe trying to give 80 a run for its money. We will also see scattered showers and storms Friday through Monday, but hey, it's going to be warm! Time to make dinner...have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Severe Weather For Monday
04/03/11
Today turned out BEAUTIFUL. We had the clouds move out mid morning and only the Northern part of the Miami Valley saw light sprinkles. With all the sunshine, we were able to climb up to a high of 73 for the day...not to shabby. The air is still very dry, which may affect tomorrow. Severe storms are still expected for tomorrow, but I do not anticipate them quite as severe here in Ohio as compared to the Tennessee and Mississippi Valley areas. They will have much more moisture and fuel for the storms. St. Louis actually reached 90 degrees today. The upper level trough and jet max will be just behind the front. If it rolled through together then it would be much worse as well. With all of this said, we still have a lot of key ingredients for the weather to turn very nasty. With the surface winds as strong as they are, they will fuel the storms as much as possible. They will roll through in the late morning and afternoon so make sure to stay alert.
I highly recommend a NOAA weather radio. The one that I own only costs $30. Some people think that that is a lot, but how much is a tank of gas? How much is your life worth? Exactly. Buy a NOAA weather radio, program it to your county, and be prepared when severe weather hits. It will sound an alarm to let you know if severe weather is rolling into your county. Since the National Weather Service is the one that issues the warnings, you will get the warnings straight from them as soon as they are issued... no middle man to relay the information. When there is a Tornado Warning in the middle of the night, the alarm would sound and you would be able to seek shelter immediately.
Wrapping things up... cooler weather will dive in for Tuesday, but should be warm and dry for the rest of the week until Friday, and scattered showers will stick around until the weekend. Stay alert and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Busy Day, Severe Weather On The Way
04/02/11
I never seem to get time to sit down for long. Yesterday I met up with a few friends at Bill's Donuts in Centerville. They stopped on their way to the moped rally in Nashville this weekend, so I figured the least I could do was ride over and grab a donut with them. After that I stopped by Dawn's work for a few minutes and then off to Greenville to move a piano my mother got for my sister. It was quite heavy, but with four guys we managed to get it into the basement, thank goodness we have a walkout. I then came home, watched a movie with Dawn and we went out for a little while last night. This morning I was a "celebrity" judge for the Submarine House's Super Duper Cheese Steak eating contest. 16 inches of food, weighing in at over 40 oz. (2.5 pounds).... and the winner downed it in 2:19 minutes. That's right. It was quite entertaining, but just watching it made me not hungry for a cheese steak, for a few minutes.
As far as the weather is concerned... the cold temperatures may be over for a while. We warmed up to 51 for the high today and that was enough to trip off a few isolated showers and sprinkles. You could see the clouds bubbling up through the afternoon thanks to the "warm" temperatures. The air was so dry that much of it did not reach the ground, which is called virga. You can see the precipitation falling from the sky, but it thins out and evaporates before it reaches the ground. Once the sun set and the temperatures started to drop, the showers and clouds quickly disappeared into thin air.
Tomorrow we could once again see the pop-up showers. Temperature will be about ten degrees warmer and winds will be about 15-25 mph through the day. These winds will continue pumping in warm air into Monday. The mix of the warm temperatures, added moisture and a few other upper atmospheric conditions will all add up to a chance for severe weather on Monday. While the Miami Valley may see a few strong to severe storms on Monday, the real punch of dangerous weather looks to be in the Tennessee Valley. Strong winds, large hail, and even a few tornadoes are likely with the set-up on Monday between the Ohio Valley, Tennessee Valley, and Mississippi Valley. This is all in front of a cold punch of air that will leave us in the mid 40's for Tuesday, but we will rebound quickly into the 50's and 60's for the end of the week. I will update you again soon...have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Moped Tank, Reds Opener, Severe Weather
03/31/11
It is amazing what vinegar and salt can do. I finally took out the vinegar/salt acidic solution out of the moped gas tank and as you can see it ate away at the rust and grime right out of there. I made sure to neutralize the acid with baking soda and plenty of soap and water before a little rinse of gasoline.... and now as good as new. I liked taking my time with this one. Now I just have to wait for new tires to get it out on the road so others can ride with me.
I made sure to get done wrenching in time to head back inside to watch the Reds Opener. It was a little disappointing to have the first batter up from the Brewers knock one over the yellow line for a home run. The good news is that the story didn't end that way. Dawn got home in time to watch the bottom of the ninth with me and watched Hernandez hit a walk off home run. What a way to start the season! Come back kids! I love it!
Temperatures staying in the mid and upper 40's for the next few days for highs, and a slight chance for rain late Friday into early Saturday. It does not look like a lot of rain, but Monday into Tuesday we will see a much better chance for rain and much warmer temperatures. As a matter of fact we may see a decent shot for severe weather on Monday. The atmosphere may be setting up just right for strong winds, large hail, and even a few tornadic storms. I will keep a closer eye on things, but make sure to watch out for dangerous weather on Monday. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Rare Find
03/30/11
Every now and then there comes along a really rare item. Whether it be ancient artifacts or something like the Heart of the Ocean in the movie Titanic. Well someone uncovered a MINT Puch Magnum moped from a warehouse that used to be used as a showroom moped a few decades ago. This bike has only 23 miles on it and not a speck of rust or dirt. There are still four hours left on the bidding and it is up to $1400. I would never pay that much for a moped. Mine are normally closer to $100 or $200, but then again, I never get mine in great shape, I have to put some elbow grease in them. Is it worth that much money?!?! Obviously someone thinks so. I am interested in seeing how much money the auction ends at.
Today turned out fairly snowy. While most of the snow melted as soon as it hit the surface, it fell at times fast enough to leave a dusting in spots, only to melt again shortly later. This all is leaving the area and the next few days we will remain in the mid and upper forties. I think we may be hard pressed to break the 50 degree mark for the weekend. Later Friday and early Saturday another system will bring cooler air into the area and a chance at rain, maybe mixing with a little snow. Monday and Tuesday look especially wet with the potential for quite a soaking. The good news. Still looks mild and partly cloudy for the Reds opening day tomorrow. Go Reds and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
New Switch, New Friend, New Desire to Ride Mopeds
03/29/11
Well after a lot of consideration, I decided to take the second headlight off of my Maxi. It just looked scooter-ish, and the output of light was nothing greater than the single headlight. I ordered a kill switch from Treats and installed it cleanly on the dash in the old hi-beam light switch hole. Very easy to do and worked great. Wes showed up this afternoon and we went over to Shawn's house to help him on his Tomos. Wes is a great guy, but lives on the north side of town so its hard for us to ride together in a group, unless it is a special occasion....luckily Shawn lives like two neighborhoods over. Anyway we went over to meet Shawn for the first time and help him get his bike running. The previous owner tore the bike apart. The spark plug hole was badly stripped out so I ran home to get an a3 head to throw onto the a35. It looks hilarious, but it held compression and that's what matters. Wes and I messed around with the wiring a little bit to finally get spark while Shawn worked on installing new handlebars. Shawn was waiting on his low 50's jets to arrive to run it, so I grabbed a 71 from my bag and tried it...just to get it to turn over, we knew it would foul the plug. We got it to fire up! Very exciting. I have rode through his neighborhood before and it will be much closer to get together to wrench and ride. I am excited to get another moped enthusiast on the road in Dayton. He even mentioned getting another moped in the near future...he said for his girlfriend, but we all know it is for him. Either way I am stoked.
I got home from that and I made dinner for Dawn and I as the repair man took a look at the furnace. I guess a sensor went bad and that is why the heat hasn't been running properly the last three days. We wake up with the house in the upper 50's...which isn't sooo bad, but when you jump out of the shower...it's downright chilly. He will be back tomorrow once the part arrives. We also put together the archway for the wedding and while doing so I got a call from work. I guess Jeff threw out his back and was told to take the rest of the night off so I came in to do the weather for the late shows. It works out great because it was either work tonight or work Thursday. Now I will get Thursday and Friday off.
This afternoon turned out really nice. A little sunshine, but at least the temps were mild. We still stand to see a few flurries overnight, mainly south of Dayton. Temperatures will remain in the 40's for highs for the rest of the week, but into the 50's for the weekend. We still have a slight chance for rain/snow Friday night, but a much better chance for rain later Sunday into Monday. The weather is looking GREAT for the Reds Opening Day on Thursday. Partly Cloudy with light winds and a high of 50. Go Reds and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Tuesday Night's System Knows We Want Spring
03/28/11
The system is really taking the hint that we are sick of the snow for the year. The entire storm has shifted about 75 miles to the south, with the heavy snow band in north-central Kentucky. I think the Southern Miami Valley may see a flurry or two, but for the most part we will stay dry for the middle of the week. Fine with me. I am ready for warmer temperatures and even a few thunderstorms. Next few systems tend to take the same Southern path and we slowly will warm into the 50's for next weekend with a chance for rain next Sunday-Monday.
I might have told you about my Where You Live story on the Dayton Dragons... I worked on it today and it is AWESOME. If you want to see the true side of my creativity, this is it. Make sure to catch the story. After work, Dawn and I picked up a new couch and love seat.... well kinda. It used from a friend of the family. They decided that they needed a new couch because their old couch didn't look good because the brown leather turned tan where everyone had warn off the darker color. Great couches, just a little discolored, fine with Dawn and I. I couldn't sit on our old couch because it threw out my back. Despite two new huge pieces of furniture, we still made room for it and put the old couch in the treadmill room for guests to sleep on.
Enjoy a beautiful Tuesday and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Another Beautiful Day...
03/27/11
Despite being chilly again today, there were blue skies and plenty of sunshine. Dawn and I went to a birthday party for one of her cousins and it was quite funny to watch a three year old open up presents and say "Thank you." I don't know if it is my size or what, but little kids are scared of me... perhaps not when I have my own....one day.
I am still cleaning out the rust in my moped gas tank. You can see in the picture that the vinegar/salt acidic mixture is slowly eating at the rust and grime inside the fuel tank. The picture is taken from where the fuel cap is located. It looks like most of the rust is gone, unless the acid turns it into that grime-looking-stuff. There seems to be places where the grime is thicker and chunkier and some of those are missing later... I assume just sinking to the bottom of the tank. I am not sure how many more days I am going to let it sit, but I am trying to think of good ways to get something in there to wipe down the inside walls... maybe some fabric and a wire coat hanger?!?! I will have to rinse it out well with baking soda to neutralize the acid... maybe when it bubbles (baking soda and vinegar) it will clean some of the grime out of there. I think I like using a mild acid like this more than stronger muriatic acid, which I used on my last two bikes. Muriatic acid can only sit in there for about 30 minutes or it will eat through the metal. At least this attacks the rust slowly and evenly.
Well the far south saw a little snow overnight and some places around the Ohio River had a couple inches. Temperatures will slowly warm up through the week with Wednesday the only day where we will see a dip on the thermometer. This is because another system will likely swing through later Tuesday into Wednesday with cooler air. Right now we are on the rain/snow line....maybe a little closer to the snow line. This could mean an accumulating snow for early Wednesday. I will keep you posted on the track of the storm in the coming days, but man.... I really want spring to arrive....despite my allergies being out of control. Forget it, I want summer because by then at least I can breathe. Anyway a few more systems will roll near the area Friday and Sunday, we are right on edge of each system. Well enjoy the coming sunshine and warmer temps and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Attachments:
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Snow is almost here
03/26/11
Well I spent yesterday running errands and then working on the new moped in the afternoon. I managed to find a few surprises in the gas tank. I pulled out the rusted petcock (fuel valve) and two measuring cups for the two stroke oil. They normally are mounted on the inside of the fuel tank cap, but if someone isn't careful they can fall into the tank. I pulled those out and tried to use water to get as many rust flakes out as possible, but it was still pretty nasty looking into the gas tank. I tried using strong etching acid before, but decided to use the slow and steady approach and trying vinegar mixed with salt for several days to remove the rust. I had read a few blogs about it and hopefully it works. So far it has been in there for 30 hours and I can tell it is starting to do some work. Now all I can do is wait patiently....
Dawn babysat her cousins yesterday and I went over to help while their parents went to dinner. We had the kids in bed in time to watch Ohio State play the worst basketball game of the year for them... Want to score on the Buckeyes? Just drive to the hoop. Whatever, I am glad I never turned in a bracket for money. Today Dawn and I went up to my parents and had lunch with them and my two younger siblings. My brother has quite the zoo in his bedroom with more aquatic animals inside than outside on the farm. We stayed there a while and then came home so I could get ready for work.
The snow is just about to move into the area and I think yesterdays totals may have been a tad too high. I think that the Northern part of the area will wake up with no snow at all. The I-70 corridor may see a dusting and the south may see up to an inch. There is a chance some areas to the far south may see a little more, but the real heavy snow is much further south into Kentucky. Sunday we will get into the upper 30's and then we should be tapping into the 40's for the rest of the week ahead....maybe even warmer by the end of the week. Drive safe and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Moped twins & Coming snow
03/25/11
Well, a new moped was added to the family....a twin as a matter of fact. Well kinda. The one I picked up yesterday is three years older and was fairly cheap and rightfully so. It has definitely been sitting out in the sun for a few summers because of the faded paint on it. It also is missing some stuff like grips and stuff and the rear rack is busted. Just minor stuff, but will need to be addressed regardless. It also has straw and weeds stuck in the fins on the cylinder, which leads me to believe that the previous owner drove it around on the farm through the fields and such. The engine does turn over, but is constantly engaged. I am betting they didn't check the transmission fluid in it very often, if ever. It also locks up going backwards, which means the sprocket freewheel is broken. (The sprocket on a bicycle that you can pedal forwards, but just makes that chink, chink, chink sound when you pedal backwards.) It also is going to need new tires and tubes... other than that, just taken apart cleaned and hopefully I won't have to break into the engine case to rebuild....but if I do, I already have a great stock cylinder, piston, and crankshaft from my last rebuild. The first task at hand is to clean all of the rust and junk out of the gas tank.... It is looking pretty nasty in there.
I couldn't have gotten the bike at a worse time. I already got to ride in Spring-like weather and have the itch to ride more...but snow is on the way. The snow looks to arrive Saturday evening and move out of here around daybreak on Sunday. This system is moving by to our south, so the Southern Miami Valley will see the most snow. Right now, I think the Southern Counties may see 1-3" with some locations seeing closer to 4", The central Miami Valley in the I-70 corridor may see up to 2", and then north of I-70 may only see around an inch or so. The further south you live the more snow you will have. It will need to be watched closely over the next day and I will be back with any updates on the snowfall. The cold temperatures will stick around for a while and we may not see the 50's for another week or so... Bundle up and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Back online
03/24/11
So much has happened since I have last checked in. I was told to take the day off Tuesday to save my hours for weather coverage for Wednesday and Thursday. So I ran a few errands and then that evening I went to the funeral for our News Director, Pat Casey. It was very sad, especially when his twelve year old son got up and read a note... all I remember was "My dad..." and then he and the entire mass broke down into tears. Such a very sad day, and he was right in his prime of life with three kids and loving every minute of life and working...man, he loved his work. After that Dawn and I went out to dinner with one of the producers from work, Molly, and a friend of mine, Josh. I had not had anything to eat in about nine hours so I was starving.
Yesterday I worked on my Dayton Dragons prep story... a lot of work goes on before opening day and I have a lot of fun with the Dragons' mascot, Heater. You will need to make sure to catch that story. I then got an hour break at home before the storms started firing up. I chased one storm through Darke and Miami Counties that dropped hail larger than quarters. Hail was the main threat from the storms yesterday, despite the Tornado Watch. I then did a few LIVE shots on the storms and went home...only to get back up at 2AM for more LIVE shots on the bitterly cold temps that were ushered in and recap on the storms as well for the morning folks.
It looks like the cold weather is going to stick around for a while... Maybe a little accumulating snow as well Saturday night into Sunday morning. I will update you on that tomorrow... I know I will have time to jump back on because that is my day off...haha. Got to run...have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
'ello Gov'na
03/21/11
You never know what to expect working in the news. I rode in today and I saw an unmarked police vehicle in the parking lot. It still took about an hour before I was told that Governor John Kasich was stopping by the station. I was sitting in the weather center, working on my graphics, while Jackie Couture was interviewing him on the economy of Ohio and what kind of changes the area will be facing in the future in his opinion.
Before work I managed to pull a few mulberry trees from the fence line and do a little "manly" work. I got about four trees cut down or pulled out of the ground before a thunderstorm rolled into the neighborhood. It was hard to cool off after all the hard work, especially since today was the warmest day of the year so far with a high in Dayton of 73.
More showers and storms tomorrow, remaining pretty widely scattered, but a much better shot of rain will arrive on Wednesday as the cold front plows through the Midwest, possibly a few flurries Wednesday night. We will see much colder air around the area for the rest of the week and weekend. Highs will be in the mid and lower 40's with overnight lows into the 20's. That in addition to moisture on Saturday and Sunday could mean a chance for....snow... I will keep ya posted. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
First Day of Spring
03/20/11
When we moved from Sidney, Dawn and I brought along our lily flowers that we had there. When we moved in to our current house we planted them in an open spot in the flower bed which already had other flowers.... well that spot was open because it gets no rain because the roof hangs over by three feet... Silly us. Well the flowers struggled last year, so I transplanted them today to the front where they can get more sunshine and more fresh rain. I know I could water them, but they like real rain and not tap water. Sure enough as I was digging them up, I noticed that they were just popping up through the mulch...a sure sign of Spring arriving today.
I worked on editing the station tour video and left it upload while I was at work. Apparently it didn't fully upload so I will need to redo that tonight. This will be awesome for the kids and adults alike so they can see the station and what the studio actually looks like. I have to admit, when I do the talks, I often forget that the people I am talking to never actually get to see the magic that is LIVE TV.
During the early newscast I challenged the viewers. The equinox was at 7:21PM local time, so the earth was at the perfect access for gravity to balance out. In school the teachers would try to balance eggs on their end and would show the class this. I was always too shaky to get it to work properly, but figured I would have some fun. I challenged any viewer who could balance the egg and send in a picture, I would use the pictures for the evening news. Below is a picture of some of the entries we received. Despite the equilibrium, I guess it couldn't keep the dog Red standing up straight.
Chance for a few isolated showers the next few days, and a better chance for showers and storms on Wednesday when a strong cold front will punch through the area. Until then our temps will remain warm with highs in the 60's. I honestly think the next couple days will be dry for the most part, just a shower here or there. Thursday we could see a few flurries early as the cold air mixes with the moisture, but still not sold an any accumulations... I will keep you posted. Temperatures will rebound next weekend with another shot of rain. Stay dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Attachments:
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Beautiful, Time-Saving, Sad Day
03/19/11
Today has had more emotions than I can remember in a long time. Dawn and I fell asleep really early last night and got up at a reasonable hour this morning. I think we were wiped out from St. Patty's Day. We got up and watched the rest of Fringe, which we missed because we fell asleep with a few minutes left. I fired up the grill and did a little yard work while I was doing that. My neighbor came over and we decided to tackle the problem of the mulberry trees that are making a mess out of our fence line. He is going to start this weekend and I will try and finish next week on my "off" days. It was just a great day to be outside...I couldn't pass up the chance to ride the moped to work. Since I have rebuilt it and put on the bigger carburetor it is only getting about 50 miles per gallon. However, with only having a tank that is 0.8 gallons, I can only go about 35 miles until I have about 5 miles on the Reserve...an extra fuel supply to get you to a gas station. Now that I know that, I can plan better and not get stuck in the middle of nowhere.
I was called before leaving for work and left a voicemail of sad news, but I will finish this entry with that.
Work was pretty good. The weekend staff is my favorite because we all have to work weekends, so we all mesh really well and just get our jobs done and there isn't any interruptions. I shot some fun video of me holding up the "Super Moon." The full moon is the closest it has been in over 20 years so it is larger than normal so I rolled up my sleeves and had the photographer shoot video of me holding it up in the sky. I also decided that I was going to save some time when it comes to doing school talks. They always want to see the station, but taking 100 kids on a tour is out of the question, so I decided I would bring in my personal video camera and have someone shoot video of me giving a tour. It turned out awesome. So now I can show that video and answer questions about it while I am doing the school talks, or like this week...I am meeting with the city of Miamisburg to talk to their police, EMS, etc. Pretty cool if you ask me.
Quick look at the forecast, chance for showers/storms later tomorrow and that will remain scattered pretty much until Thursday. The warm temperatures and a few waves of energy will keep things wet on and off for a while. A cold punch of air will arrive later in the week...could that mean a few flakes of snow?!?!?! Maybe, I will keep you posted.
Now to the phone call. Our Assistant News Director called me to personally tell me that our News Director, Pat Casey, passed away this morning. Pat, 54 years old, had been battling brain cancer for the last year. Pat was a one of a kind person. He had vision and drive to deliver the news like no other person I have met. Even though I have been in the industry for a handful of years, I have been under 8 different news directors' management. Pat hands down ran the smoothest operation thanks to the hours and his attitude. He comes from a HUGE Irish family and he called me on St. Patty's Day two years ago...so I knew he meant business. He offered me the position here and I was thrilled to return to the area where I grew up. While he was healthy he would put in easily 60 hour weeks and still want more. He would make the best of a bad situation and would take breaking news to the people and in situations when breaking news happened. He would pull out the best ratings in the area in situations like the airshow plane crash or the Hurricane Ike wind storm.
I was called today because the Assistant News Director said he knew that I had a close relationship with Pat and he wanted to let me know before an email was sent out to the staff. Pat and I did have a close relationship. When I started two years ago he told me I could not use the name on-air that I used in Lima, Andrew Buck Michael. He said there was no way I could use three names and I had to chose between Andrew Michael and Buck Michael. I told Pat that my mother would not let my dad name me Buck as my first name when I was born, so she would be upset, and I also am not in the adult film industry, so I was not going with Buck Michael. Pat smiled at that comment and said we would go with Andrew Michael. He then jokingly said the rest of the staff could have 10 free slip-ups a year if they called me Buck on-air since they all call me that off-camera. Pat would have us meet him in his office every afternoon with close to ten people crammed in his small corner room to give them updates on the weather, sports, then news. He loved knowing everything that was happening. I remember pulling into work one day about ten minutes early from my drive from Sidney. Pat was pulling out of the parking lot to run to the other building and said, "Ten minutes early?!?! You won't get anywhere in life with that kind of attitude!" He then smiled and pulled away.
While living in Sidney I asked Pat: "When am I going to get station-issued gear and start a Northern Bureau for you guys?" He smiled and joked, "As soon as you buy your own camera." Sure enough I bought my own professional grade equipment and that changed my news/weather outlook completely. By pairing that up with my laptop, I was able to travel anywhere in the world and send stories back to the station via wifi with an FTP server. Pat then would only call me the "FTP Boy". I would walk into his office while he was on a conference call and he would tell the others on the call that the "FTP Boy" just walked into the room. He would tell everyone about what I was able to do with FTP and technology and he was truly amazed. The joke he made about me buying my own gear has allowed me to report on breaking news, breaking weather, and even travel to Philly to watch the Reds play in the playoffs. Thanks Pat.
He knew what stories people would want to see and would talk about around the water cooler the next day. He may have caused some people to pull their hair out by pushing their limits, but in the end they would pull off what they thought was impossible. Pat left behind his wife and his three children. While I have not been able to interact with Pat a lot over the last few months due to his condition, I have followed his wife's blog and he was still the same old Pat that inspired me and that I will always respect. Rest In Peace, Pat.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
(FTP Boy)
ADDITION:
After hanging out with some co-workers and reminiscing, I remember Pat's last day at the station... very unique day, a day that defines Pat. He was in and out for a while and after talking with everyone, his last day working was December 30th. I remember this day VERY vividly. There was an earthquake centered in Kokomo, Indiana around 7 or 8AM. I remember phone calls coming into the newsroom about the shaking here in the Miami Valley while I was doing the weather on the morning news. Pat jumped into action and had me out the door as soon as I was off-air to head to Kokomo, IN. I went there to shoot some teases for the news and a short story about what it was like in Kokomo. Pat was very big on updates from the road and he didn't like to talk much. Once he got the point he was on to the next task. I called to tell him I had everything shot and was heading back to the station, he responded, "Good job" and then hung out. Always on top of his game, even while battling the brain cancer for nearly a year at that point in December. We lost a great man.
Allergies and Showers
03/18/11
I don't know about you, but this morning was ROUGH!!! I woke up a few minutes before my alarm went off and could barely breathe thanks to my allergies. I love spring because of the warm weather, but I would trade that for no allergies. I have tried lots of medicine, but nothing ever really has worked for me or helped out.... I just hope we have some torrential rain to wash all of the pollen away.
With the nice weather, I was out on the moped quite a bit yesterday. I also rode into work this morning....love it. I am still breaking-in the new motor, but so far it has held up awesomely. With the nice weather today expect me back out there as much as possible....after a quick nap...this morning show messes up my sleeping pattern.
This weekend looks pretty nice, but an isolated shower could be around the area for part of the weekend. I think most of us will stay dry, but you can't rule out a slight chance for a sprinkle or light shower. Early-mid next week looks like a much more promising chance for rain. At least temperatures will be mild for the weekend and early next week. Later next week we will see the temperatures drop and become downright chilly once again. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
St. Patty's Day
03/17/11
Whew.... been busy... It is only 10:30AM on St. Patrick's Day and I have already changed the oil in Dawn's car and my truck, and I also did some wrenching on my moped. It has been acting a little sluggish and I have been running a little rich with the warmer temperatures, so I down jetted. Yesterday I ran a lot of errands including the BMV, barber shop, auto parts store, and grabbing lunch with my good pal Josh Fox. This was all before 2 in the afternoon and then Dawn and I went to Lima to meet with the pastor for the wedding. He lives near Toledo so Lima was a halfway point. Before meeting him Dawn stopped by her old office of UNOH. On the way from UNOH to Beer Barrel Pizza to meet the pastor, we had to drive by our old apartment. I remember sitting on the steps out front on warm spring days like today with Buckeye. Buckeye loves the heat and he was as happy as could be sitting in the warm radiating sunlight. Even though he can't see the cars passing by just a few yards away, you would think he knew all that was going on and he was the one in charge of it all happening...such a great dog. Our meeting with the pastor went very well. I had not seen Pastor Dale in several years so it was good to see a long lost friend.
So now I am done changing the oil and running errands for my "weekend" so I am going to tidy up around the house. Run the dishwasher and do a couple loads of laundry to make sure I can ride my moped later when it warms up into the 60's. I don't know where I will be riding to, but sometimes that is half the fun of it all when you jump on the moped... you can ride wherever you want on next to no gas at all and have the time of your life. Well, I hope you have a fantastic day today and make sure you are safe with any festivities. I will be back up at 2Am to do the weather on the morning show....early night ahead of me. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Getting a little dirty
03/14/11
I spent the day today working on my Where You Live story that airs tonight... it should, again, be pretty funny. I also lined up my story that I am shooting tomorrow. I also changed a tire on one of the station vehicles and went to shoot video of a press conference... so a pretty busy day. I thought I would jump on here real quick before I leave for the day. I am a little dirty from changing the tire, but I love doing stuff like that... which is why I wear black Dickies most of the time... its like having shop towels always available...
I thought about going to Cleveland on Friday to watch Ohio State play in the first round of March Madness, but after looking at the tickets... I think I will just hang out around here. The prices for tickets are a lot more than I had expected...even for bad seats. At least watching it at home I will be able to watch ALL the games.
Still looking like a rainy day tomorrow, so it is a good thing I will be stuck working... I am hoping for nicer weather for Wednesday and Thursday with warmer temps for my "off" days. Dawn and I are also meeting with the pastor for our wedding this Wednesday in Lima. It will be nice to see him again. Dawn also took off the afternoon so we will be visiting her old office so she can catch up with all of them. Maybe a few light showers on Friday as well and then mild and dry for next weekend.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Spring cleaning
03/13/11
I would like to first say that my belongings make up about 15% of the weather center...Mike has about 20% and Jeff has the other 65% with a drawer and several paper boxes of...stuff. Not there is anything wrong with how much each of us have here, but I slowly went through and picked everything up and organized the weather center. It took a while and it finally looks decent. We all laid down papers and weather print-outs from time to time and I finally at least put then in the same order and tidied up a bit. It is amazing some of the material we have here when you go through a lot of it.... I guess I am making it out to sound like it was a pig sty.... it wasn't that dirty or that much, but it didn't hurt to organize things and get a little more work space.
I was able to go to a few basketball games the last few days with Dawn's nephews. I was there for one of their first baskets of the season and it was quite a hoot to see his mom go crazy with excitement. I guess the team has even tried trick plays go get him to score a basket, but it wasn't until the tournament that he finally scored. It is amazing how much more in depth the 9 year old boys would play the game...offensive plays, defensive strategy, etc. The 6 year old boys would just guard someone and had fun and occasionally set up and run a play...if they did, it was probably not known to them.
Watching moisture build to the south and it looks like rain may develop later Monday with cool temps. Light rain will stick around through the middle of the week, but not a lot of rain is expected to fall... just a light on and off rain...occasionally moderate, but nothing super heavy like we have seen the last few weeks. By the end of the week temps near or into the 60's with another slight chance for rain by Friday. Grab the rain gear and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Spring ahead
03/12/11
Today sure felt like spring...right on cue for us to move our clocks ahead one hour. If it wasn't for the wind, I would have asked for days like today to last the rest of the year. We hit a high of 58 and it was gorgeous! I even rode my moped to work today. I went home for dinner and I ran out of gas with about five miles left and I had to switch to Reserve and it was just enough for me to get to my street. I am sure the hills kill my mpg on the moped...I think I only got about 60 miles per gallon...maybe 70, haha.
Tomorrow will be a little cooler, mid 40's for highs, but less wind and plenty of sunshine. Monday much of the same and a slight chance for rain showers late Tuesday and Wednesday. The rain looks to be very light and we could again see light rain for the end of the workweek. Well time to get ready for the news, have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Horrible Sleep, Mopeds, Dreary Weather
03/10/11
The last week I have been getting horrible sleep. I wake up remembering I had a really weird dream, but can't remember it. Every night the dream seemed to progress and I couldn't remember any details other than waking up worried and stressed...so not a great night of sleep. (I also would like to add that Dawn only sleeps with the TV on, and it is on Investigation Discovery....serial killers, murder mysteries, etc, etc, etc) So FINALLY this morning I half-wake-up in this lucid dream and can recall my dreams for the entire week. To shorten it up, I was the designated driver one night and took someone home who had been drinking a lot. I don't remember if they murdered someone or what, but they only got video of me in the car at the front gate on security camera so I was being framed for whatever happened. I was in the middle of all of the investigation and I was likely to be found guilty because my drunk passenger was in the back of the vehicle and never shown on the security camera. Weird, I know. I eventually woke up and realized why I haven't been sleeping well... I am just going to count sheep tonight falling asleep or listen to headphones to tune out the TV.
I wired up the switch and second headlight on the moped today. They look really nice together and after a little test drive, I realized I need to play around a little more with the bulbs. Since the high beam light goes through the switch, it takes more wire and more energy for the electric to flow to it, so it is currently a little weaker in strength...the opposite of what I was aiming for, but I am going to see what I can achieve by switching different watts of bulbs. Should be easy from there. I still need to order a voltage regulator so I don't blow bulbs at the high RPMs...maybe placing that on the circuit at specific places will help my cause. Either way, it is wired and ready to ride...the only thing holding me back is this weather.
It is only 37 degrees outside right now, so riding is quite numbing. Not that I haven't done it before, but I would rather wait 5 days when there is sunshine and temperatures are back into the 50's. Light snow could form tonight with less than an inch expected. While we have seen a lot more than that this winter, people always forget how slippery snow really is in the roadways when they haven't been on it for a few weeks. Temperatures will slowly climb through the weekend and sunshine will also slowly return... Let's bring on spring! Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Velvet Underground, Mopeds, Hot Tea, & Laundry
03/09/11
Sounds like a great combination if you ask me. I got my new matching headlight today. I went out to see what the dual headlights would look like and I am digging it. Not only will it allow me to add a switch for a high beam headlight for the back roads heading to and from work, but when the RMP's get too high for a single light bulb, it will knock down the voltage across one light and keep them from blowing.... come to think of it, I may just power them both constantly and just use the open hole on the dash for a kill switch. Lot of options and with this weather, lot of time to decide. So now I am back inside deciding what I want to do, drinking hot tea to suppress this cold I have had for nearly two weeks. I have a little remedy that works wonders to make me feel better....so I have been slamming my BuckTea throughout the morning listening to Velvet Underground. I don't know where all the clothes come from between Dawn and I, but it seems like it was only a few days ago that we did laundry....however, I am doing a few more loads today. I also shipped out a few moped parts today to PA for a guy who just got a Puch Newport. I offered a little advice to him and hopefully I see him at a rally soon.
I also met up with my parents for some fresh eggs, milk, bulk hamburger, and butter all from their farm. I met them on their way to Cincinnati and traded off coolers and my mother was pleased to see I brought back her gallon glass jars. She hates it when I come empty-handed. Well to be honest, it was Buckeye and I...he loves to ride along in my truck and rather than putting him in the bedroom while I was out, I brought him along. We also stopped by Abraham Lincoln's house to drop off a media file for him. He wants to post the story I did on him, so when he does that, I will be sure to re-post it on here. On tap for the rest of the day: treadmill for about an hour, maybe a little moped work, and then dinner at Milano's to help out my cousins little league baseball team....20% of the meal is donated back to the kids for their team...pretty cool if you ask me.
As for this nasty weather that I am getting sick of... the light rain will continue on and off through the rest of the day into tomorrow as well with the chance for a little snow mixing in at times later Thursday. I don't expect a lot of accumulation, but with temperatures falling overnight we could see a few slick spots. We will have to wait until next Tuesday/Wednesday for the temps to get back into the 50's....until then, highs in the 30's and lows below freezing. But as for the good news...the river has dropped just enough for my shortcut to work to dry up. I was able to sneak through there coming back from Abe Lincoln's, but with nearly an inch of rain already, it may flood back over within a day or two...good thing today is my "Saturday". Stay dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Editing
03/07/11
I spent most of the day today working on my Where You Live story that airs tonight and tomorrow morning on Abraham Lincoln and his many blogs. The story should turn out really good. It is a little longer than normal and the producer cringed when I told her how long it was, but she didn't get to watch it yet and realize that it all is very important for the story. Hopefully you can catch it.
I also am still slamming my hot tea. I think I am becoming accustomed to it. Dawn claims that I am becoming addicted, but I dunno about that. It was pretty cold outside today and so many people are still sick at work that I feel it is good to get my antioxidants.
Still looking like about an inch or rain on Wednesday so flood warnings will be likely again... I just want the rivers to drop enough so I can cut my drive home by half again and I can take the shortcut along the river... give it time. I have Wednesday and Thursday off this week... the two worst days of the week with rain and then the chance for light snow and cold conditions Thursday. I will be back in doing the weather Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night. Time to go, have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
New App
03/06/11
The flooding has gotten worse. Last night I knew I had to slightly re-route around the already flooded road. Well West Carrollton street crews closed my re-routed road, but I thought I could take a detour around that and get to my usual bridge to cross the river... after taking the five minute detour I was turned around to head back. Here is the thing. I saw the street crew drive through the roadway they just closed and half of it was still pavement and above the water.... Well the road I was sent back on was still "open" but the river was up over three quarters of the pavement on one part. I am glad I don't live that low because peoples driveways were becoming lost in the river. Anyway, my normally 9 minute trip home turned into a 30 minute trip to finally get to a bridge that was open. The good news, today we didn't see any rain or snow, so at least we weren't adding to the problem.
I downloaded a new app for my Android phone, OruxMaps. I have been hunting for a program like this for a long time coming, to actually show elevation. I started "tracking" my phone when I left the house and let it go until I got into work. I happen to live in a fairly hilly location and I got a steep grade to climb to get to work. You may ask, who cares.... well when you are riding around on a one cylinder moped, you want to take a flat grade of roadway. The steep hills are killer on a newly rebuilt engine. I need to take it easy on the moped for a while, so I am trying to find a route to work that is quick and contains as few hills as possible. While it was cool to see what the program did, I have to throw out the data because I drove way out of the way because of the flooded roads.
Most of the rivers have crested, or will overnight, so the water will slowly be going down over the next few days. We will drop below freezing tonight so watch out for slick spots in the morning. We will see plenty of sunshine to start the workweek, but rain still looks to arrive late Tuesday night and last into early Wednesday. The rain only looks to be around 1". Considering we just saw 2-4", anything is problematic, but at least it is much less than what we just saw. Partly cloudy and mild to finish off the workweek with only a slight chance for rain next weekend. Well, time to get ready for the 10PM news. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Rain Rain Go Away
03/05/11
The Severe Weather Symposium was great yesterday up at Ohio State. Walking back around campus is so nice. I totally miss going to school there. Even with the rain constantly pouring down and soaking everyone, it still made me smile just to be back on campus. The speakers were great at the conference and the last two speakers were my favorite. I love lightning so that discussion was awesome, but every time I hear Harold Brooks give a talk I am blown away. He is a fantastic speaker and just a hoot because of his jokes that he makes up off the cuff. A handful of my old college buddies met up afterward along with one of our favorite professor and it was great to catch up and see what was on everyone's plate.
Well as the title says, I am sure you would agree that this rain is getting a little old. The back edge of the rain is about ready to push through and possibly a little snowfall overnight...with the ground being so wet I would be surprised if we even got a dusting. Regardless temperatures will be cold enough that we may see a little icing on bridges so be careful. I am still re-routed around the flooded road that runs alongside the Great Miami River and I can't wait until my shortcut is open again so I can get to work faster. Within the last 36 hours much of the area has seen at least 2" of rain with locations in Darke, Mercer, Miami, and Shelby counties seeing between 3-4" of rain...not to mention their 3" of rain last Sunday, and their 2" of rain a few days before that. So within a week and a half some locations have seen OVER 9" of rain....that is insane. While most of that is runoff, because the soil just can't take that much water, the farmers may have a pretty sloppy spring ahead of them.
The Miami River in Sidney is cresting tonight almost three feet above flood stage and the crest, or wave, if-you-will, of water will slowly ride down the river until it crests in the Southern Miami Valley sometime later Monday. More rain is expected on Wednesday, but it does not look like nearly as much. Temperatures will be above freezing every single day with overnight lows dropping below freezing, so watch out for a few slick spots. Plenty of sun for later Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday...Rain on Wednesday...Then the return of sunshine for the end of the workweek. Stay dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Register, Flooding
03/03/11
Despite feeling under the weather still, Dawn managed to get me to leave the house today. It turns out that her boss is extremely sick as well, and since it is only her and him who run the company...she got the afternoon off. We finished up our registry at Kohl's and Bed Bath and Beyond...then we got to do the "manly" stuff. We went to Sears to get some of the things that we could use around the house, like a new grill, a few new tools, etc, etc. It was a lot of fun, but I am happy to be finished with that for the wedding. I also booked the "limo." I say "limo" because in order to get our entire wedding party from point A to B, we need a bigger vehicle and ended up going with a "Party Bus." Might not be quite as classy on the outside, but hey, plenty of head room inside! I will be glad for that!
Tomorrow I will be heading to Columbus for the 15th annual Ohio State Severe Weather Symposium. I remember when I put this on back in 2007 and how hectic this time was...the night before. I have went for seven years now and always very pleased with the speakers and of course reconnecting with old friends and colleagues.
Tomorrow rain will arrive and last into the day on Saturday and we looked to get SOCKED. We have already had such a problem with flooding this week already and we haven't dried out nearly enough yet. We stand to easily pick up about 2" of rain with some locations picking up 3"+. If you live in a flood prone area, be prepared for problems. It is just a shame to see this a problem because you know it is coming, but all you can do is prepare to the best of your ability. Stay dry and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Moped part arrived...now what?
03/02/11
The speedo cable came in today from Treats. I threw that on in a few minutes and then tried mounting the headlight, but even after Dremelling out the previous holes about a quarter of an inch, it was still too close to the speedo cable and would have snapped it again.... I remembered that I had a few metal brackets that were about three inches long with holes in each end... So I mounted these to the headlight mounts and basically made the headlight into a recessed headlight that hung lower than before. When I rewired the bike last year I only ran the necessary amount of wire, so it was too short to try to raise it up higher so I left it hang low. When you first look at it from an angle it doesn't look too bad, but when you look at it from the front it looks horrible with the three inches of plastic dash and three inches of air before you get down to the headlight....yuck, so much plastic and wasted space...plus you can see all the wires in the opening.
So now I need to decide what I want to do. Should I try to mount a second light above that...more light at night is always nice....or possibly find a fairing to cover the hole. Or I could grab the grinder and drill, shorten the brackets, and raise it up to cover some of the plastic. Either way I need to use the brackets... I will give it some time to think about, but at least it is back and fully functional.
After working a double yesterday, my body really took a hit. I feel way worse today than what I have the past week. I met Dawn for lunch today and the waitress even told me to get better because she said I sounded like I was dying. A handful of people at work have pneumonia and I have had it before, but this doesn't feel like what I remember. I only got four hours of sleep after the demanding day, so just adding insult to injury. The good news is that my talk with Greene County Safety Council went very well early this morning. A lot of people had very interesting questions and it was great to get to meet some of the local officials or safety officers for companies and construction crews. I was afraid I was going to lose my voice, but I never did. Well the sun is shining and I am going to lie here and wish I was out riding on my moped instead... but I got to get better first. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Double Shift
03/01/11
Well even though I have been under the weather and still got the sniffles...I wasn't sick enough.... Soooo many people have called off from work that I got knighted into working a double shift. I am now at home taking my "break" blogging real quick.
I mentioned a while ago that I was afraid I was going to have to find a secondary route to get to work because my road runs along the Great Miami River... well sure enough, it flooded over the road. It is deep enough to swallow a small car and still want more so I had to re-route. I had an awesome interview today for my next Where You Live story about a local man who has an interesting life. He served in the military, wrote quite a few books, and despite being "almost 77," as his profile says, he has more than a handful of blogs and a strong following....his name Abraham Lincoln. For real. Third Cousin once removed from President Lincoln. Actually it turns out that we live in a small world, he graduated from the same high school as myself and he even painted two HUGE paintings that were in the old Arcanum High School building. I remember sitting on the steps of the entrance during drama club talking with others about how it was so funny that someone named Abe Lincoln painted those....who woulda thought?!?! He is also an avid photographer and even grabbed a picture of me working, yes working. Thanks Abe. (for the photo and showing my receding hair line)
Well I guess I better get off here, put Buckeye back to bed and head back into work.... but its so nice... too bad I can't call off....hahaha....I am the only photographer working tonight because someone else has to edit the video for the news shows. At least I only have to work a couple of hours tomorrow and then get a three day weekend for working the double...and I couldn't have forecasted better weather for my "weekend." Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Severe Weather Night Recap
02/28/11
We already had to stick around longer on a Sunday night thanks to the Oscars going until about 11:45 PM-ish, but my night was just beginning. I was in the weather center for about 16 hours, well into the morning, and was on part of the morning show with Mike Terwilleger tracking the storms. I had been talking about the chances for flooding and chances for severe weather for Sunday night and it didn't disappoint if you are a severe weather junkie. I will say, that for February, it was an impressive set-up as far as the atmospheric conditions, but I still was slightly skeptical that it would have turned out as active as it did.
We had the Flood Watch through Monday evening and strong storms were rolling in from Indiana as the cold front approached. We had a handful of Tornado Warnings throughout the overnight hours that I cut into programming to update the viewers. All of the tornadic cells were only radar indicated, meaning no one had spotted any funnel or rotation (at night its next-to-impossible unless lightning helps out), but the radar can detect winds and there was very tight winds going in opposite directions which indicates rotation and that's why the warnings were issued. No confirmed tornadoes here in the area, but there was one confirmed tornado just to the east of Columbus. The storms were moving about 70 to 75 miles per hour at times, so very strong winds were on the leading edge...I noticed a few of my neighbors yards are in disarray thanks to the strong winds. Despite the threat of winds and tornadoes... it turns out that the worst part of last nights storms was the flooding...
We had already seen three inches of rain within the last week putting our rainfall close to two inches above normal for February....well last night some locations tacked on an additional 2.5 inches... that is insane! Needless to say there was a flood warning for almost all of the Miami Valley all morning and it remains in effect for much of the area. The rain came down so fast that a Flash Flood Warning was issued for Darke, Shelby, Miami, and Logan counties where they saw about two inches of rain in an hour. Flash flooding is extremely dangerous because the water can rise much more rapidly than you can anticipate and often claims the lives of those who do not respect the warning...if not their lives, their property. I had heard of several people who tried driving across a flooded road this morning only to find out the water was about three feet deep. Not smart, at all.
Good news: Mild weather for the middle of the week with plenty of sunshine. Hopefully we can dry out a little before the next rain moves in later Friday into Saturday. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Eating my words
02/26/11
Two nights ago I turned over to Dawn and said, "We have been lucky and haven't really gotten too sick this winter." She doesn't look at me at first, she turns over and knocks on the end table...then she turns at me and scolds me, "Why. Wh- Why? Why would you say such a thing?" I smile and knock on a dresser on the way to the restroom. Well low and behold midday Friday I start feeling sick. I spent 13 hours in bed last night and all I want to do is go back to bed now. I have had my hot tea with me last night and this morning and already taken my share of vitamins, Airborne, and cold medicine... Now I sit here with the biggest coffee mug I could find, drinking my hot tea remedy, and blogging. Dawn is not feeling as bad as what I am, but she just left for Cleveland for a bridal shower for her next door neighbor... It's just Buckeye and myself...I could mention something about his health, but I wouldn't want to jinx him...
I did accomplish something awesome earlier today. There are less than a handful of moped parts dealers, and I normally get mine through Treatland...their shipping is freakishly fast and their prices are very competitive, and will even price match competitors prices. As you may recall, I had to buy a decent amount of parts a short time ago to rebuild my e50 engine. Treats has this awesome new addition called Club Taco. You buy parts and for every dollar you spend, you get a taco. You can later turn in twenty tacos for a free dollar towards a future purchase....pretty simple. Remember how I busted my speedometer cable a week ago...well I was able to order a new one with shipping and pay for it with tacos.... Awesome! The owner or Treatland, Benji, may be a bit quirky and mentally stuck in the late 70's or early 80's, but he is an awesome business man...rumors even have surfaced that he will run to the post office in his bathrobe to ship out your parts.
On to the weather: The forecast held pretty solid with the last system of rain and snow. Here at home we have seen over three inches of rain in the last week alone, and another couple of inches are expected Monday. It is likely to start late Sunday night and pick up in intensity off and on through the day on Monday. Some of the forecast models are showing close to 3 inches possible in some spots and the ground is already very saturated. Localized flooding will likely be a problem for Monday into early Tuesday, not to mention a few strong, possibly severe, storms with embedded lightning and thunder. A light snow may form on the back side of this rain for early Tuesday, so we, again, could see slick roads. Here is the good news, cause I always love to end on good news....temperatures will get above freezing every afternoon for the next week, so the snow should not stick around for long....slow and steady melting, just watch out for refreezing at night. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Update on coming storm
02/24/11
I first have to start this off and tell you how horrible I feel. Last night Buckeye was whimpering to go outside in the middle of the night while it was raining, so I let him out. He normally is outside for three or four minutes when it is dry and only a minute tops when it is raining. Well I waited around until he barked for me to let him come back in and after five minutes or so I decided I would wait to hear him bark from the bedroom since it is against the back of the house. Well I fell asleep and he was outside for about twenty minutes and I felt horrible because even though temperatures didn't fall below freezing last night, Buckeye was very cold. I feel horrible. It is a good thing our roof hangs out three feet, otherwise he would have been really soaked....regardless though, I feel really bad and plan on spoiling him today since it is my day off and I got a lot of chores to do around the house.
Now on to the next system. The lower two thirds of the area will start out as rain, and the Northern part of the area may see it start out as sleet/freezing rain and quickly change over to snow. Yesterday I was calling for 4-6" for the Northern fringe of the Miami Valley, but that may be a little closer to 5-7"+. The further south you live the less you will see, but we will see a brief transition from rain to freezing rain back to snow. The roadways will be pretty bad Friday morning. Much of the north may see 3-5", with again, the far north seeing the 5-7"+, such as Mercer and Auglaize Counties. The central and Southern portions of the area will see 1-3", and the far south may be lucky to get a dusting. The switch over will start around midnight for the north and slowly make its way south throughout the overnight hours and nearly everyone should see the transition over to snow by daybreak. The snowfall will continue through the morning hours and start tapering off midday tomorrow. This is a lot like what we saw Monday-Tuesday, but more moisture and slightly colder temperatures. Be careful out there and have a good one.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Get ready for a 1, 2, 3 Punch
02/23/11
Well I guess that title is a little misleading, we already saw our first punch of rain two days ago on Monday. The Dayton International Airport broke the record of rainfall for that day receiving 1.38 inches or rain. Tomorrow into Friday will be our second punch. The forecast models are showing around another inch of rain for the central and Southern portions of the Miami Valley. The Northern part of the area will likely see a decent snowfall because the rain/snow cut off will be pretty sharp and if it remains mostly snow for them Thursday night, they could likely see 4-6" of snow....again, the far north fringe could see that much. We will transition back to freezing rain over to light snow, but again, it will be light for the areas seeing a lot of rain.
While the first two systems have the potential to be historic, the third punch will be a doozy, for lack of better words. Right now temperatures look to remain warmer for Sunday-Monday, but we will see a lot more moisture. This system looks to drop at least an inch or rain. The rivers are already pretty high around the area. The road I use to get into work rides along side the Great Miami River and it only needs less than 10 more feet to get onto the road. While that may seem like a lot, think about all the surface area of the Northern Miami Valley and it all runs into the GMR until it hits the Ohio River. YOUR rain may cause me to find a different route into work, or at least equip my moped with floaties, haha. Either way, we are in for some really dicey weather over the next few days. Watch out for the icing and especially for localized flooding. With overnight freezing of the surface, much of the rain will become runoff.
To end on a good note....today is my Friday, I am off the next 70 hours and plan to enjoy it as much as possible. I got some loose plans that involve meeting some people for lunch the next few days, laundry, and cleaning up around the house.... but I am excited. I finished off my Friday as a photographer and shot a few breaking news stories...bank robbery, gas prices, house fire, etc.....and a cool school story with Pete Scalia today. I don't want to bore you with any details so I will let you go and I will go work on my moped...haha. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Weather Graph = Thousand Words
02/22/11
Don't worry, I wont ramble on for a thousand words. I just thought I would share this with you because you may find it just as interesting.
I added the blue vertical blue line on top of the data. This is my station at home and in the last entry I talked about how the rain had switched to the freezing rain. You can see in the top diagram that around 7 Monday evening the temperatures fell below freezing. Since then we have stayed below freezing (barely) the entire day so far today and already starting to drop again, so no melting until Wednesday.
It is pretty easy to see that the Barometric pressure dropped when it was raining as well.
Here is the cool part, despite what the reading shows, we have not been perfectly calm since 7PM yesterday. The freezing rain has frozen the anemometer stiff, so until we finally see the melting, no wind readings. It also froze the weather vane so the direction is stuck on Northwest.
Anyway, I found it pretty cool....yes, I am a weather geek.
I was just outside of Arcanum today reporting on the icing that parts of Darke County had seen last night. The parking lot was a solid sheet of ice with the exception of tire marks where someone last evening drove through the slush and it froze in the shape of their tire. Only a few flurries up there this morning, but it looks like more winter weather could be on the way.
On the horizon: Thursday we will see more rain and that will continue into Friday. Isolated flooding may once again be a concern with around an inch or more of rain expected on our already saturated soil. Temperatures will fall below freezing Thursday night and more snow can be expected, especially the Northern part of the Miami Valley again. Almost a repeat, but the rain to snow switch over will be slightly later in the evening. Another difference is that there does not look like as much freezing rain as what we had seen last evening. The positive news is that the next days will get above freezing for part of the day so we will see a little melting, just watch out for refreeze. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
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Internet/Cable Out...Thanks Ice
02/21/11
Thank technology for allowing me to post via my phone.
The weather station here at home topped out at 51.4 degrees just after 6AM. The rain has been pretty constant throughout the day. Before the weather station went offline, thanks to the freezing rain, we had 1.60 inches of rain the last 24 hours...again obviously before the freezing rain. The Northern part of the area has seen much cooler temps through the day leading to earlier and more ice. That has switched over to snow as well with some locations seeing a few inches of snow. Here in Dayton we are still seeing the freezing rain and the moisture is almost out of here. We may see a dusting or up to an inch of snow, but the best chances for the snow will be further north through the night.
Roadways will be horrible in the morning so be careful. Obviously that means one thing...I will be out reporting on the conditions, so I gotta get going. It looks like an almost identical situation Thursday with falling temps early Friday morning. I will update this tomorrow when I can get my hands on some high speed internet, until then travel safe and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Rain Now, Ice Later, Snow Tonight
02/21/11
The front is currently sitting just between Dayton and Cincinnati. Cincinnati is currently in the lower 60's and Dayton International Airport is still in the lower 40's so there is a pretty big temperature difference. At this point we may see it break through the Dayton area, but I am becoming more and more skeptical. The rain showers will continue through the rest of the day. Watch out for isolated flooding with the ground still VERY saturated across the entire Miami Valley. It may not look saturated, but if you saw any of the rivers or steams late last week you would have noticed them very swollen from the melting ice and snow still. Cooler air will settle in across the north, they stand to see a light icing with freezing rain and sleet causing problems. I believe the freezing rain will be more of a problem and obviously the refreezing of the rain that has already fallen. A light snow will move in this evening as well and that will add to the problems. The far north may see around an inch or slightly more, but much of the Miami Valley seeing up to 1", maybe only a dusting in spots. Working on Where You Live stories today, but will be monitoring the weather situation. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Wrenchin Kinda Day
02/18/11
Since I had to stick around the house today so the cable/internet guys could work...(still wont be til next week til it's installed, so kinda wondering if this was a good choice)...I decided to work on my moped. I bought a mag dash, Dashboard for a Puch Magnum, a while back in hopes of mounting it on my Maxi. Well with nothing to do around the house today except watch Planet Earth, I decided to tackle this task. It really was not a super difficult task, but took a while due to the modifications. The threaded bolt holes in the frame were about half an inch further apart compared to the dash. I had to Dremel the bolt holes on the dash out a little bit (without making the dash look like crap), toss four washers under the metal frame of the dash so the bolts held, grind down the old handlebar clamp to account for the newly added space of the dash/washers, and then bolt it back on. The wires ran through holes in the dash, so I had to take them all off and reconnect them, I can see my friend KZ cringing to the thought of that since he fears messing with cables and wires. When I put the headlight back on, I noticed something I should have worried about a little more. The speedo wire was at a slight angle. Had it been an electrical wire no problem, but since it is a rapidly spinning wire to let you know how fast you are going....it busted about two blocks into the test drive. So I will need to move the headlight out a little bit and replace the speedo wire. I will just have to eyeball my speed or rely on GPS for the time being. I honestly could probably go and replace all the wires to be honest, they are 31 years old....hahaha. Speaking of which, I want to get new chains as well. Anyway, got the new dash mounted and now have to fix more stuff...silly mopeds. I also thought about installing a kill switch in the opening on the dash as well, and debating on how else to pimp out the dash. I like the stock look of the bars/seat and liked the idea of adding the dash to the kitted bike. I'm out, have a good one.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Switching Cable/Internet...wait, not yet?!?!
02/17/11
After having numerous problems and tired of paying so much for less than great service, Dawn and I are switching cable and internet providers. A company that Dawn and I were wanting to get finally installed service in our neighborhood, so it was time to switch. I sat around waiting for them to arrive today and then once he tried hooking up the outside connection, it turns out there is a bad wire somewhere. So now I have to wait until someone else fixes the wire outside either tonight before sunset or early in the morning... I am betting on the morning. Luckily we haven't disconnected our service yet, so I was able to jump on here real quick before dinner. Anyway, the guy today was climbing in the trees outside to try and see what he could do, but unfortunately he couldn't get anything and had to call in someone else with more equipment. I am not too worried, Rome wasn't built in a day.
It was nice outside, but with the strong winds it was kinda nippy. Yesterday was a little better and obviously sunnier. Regardless, I still got out and put another 20 miles on the moped...still running strong and hopefully I can get back out there tomorrow once the rain stops and before the temperatures plummet once again. Winter isn't over yet. We may see more rain for early next week, but could also see snow on the back side of the system. Still a long ways out to call just yet, but you can bet your dollar that I will be monitoring it to see what is in the works. The good news is that it doesn't look like the frigid weather we have seen the last month. It looks like we will be above freezing almost every afternoon, so at least if it does snow, it wont stick around too long this time. Anyway, gotta run, have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Whew, time for a break.
02/16/11
The last few days seem to blur together......just go, go, go. I have a few stories that are in the works. We are in Moraine for It's Where You Live this week and next week is Where You Work. I think that my story that is airing for Where You Work week will be one of the better stories I have ever put together. We are highlighting professions where people have worked in the same job for a long time, and what better profession for that than the job that makes up about 75% of the land area in the Miami Valley....farming. I talked to a few local farmers and it should be pretty good....funny in parts. The week after that we are doing Englewood, so I got some fun stories lined up...and of course some food.
I will be wrapping up my week of work here in less than an hour and I will be "off" the next few days, but AT&T is coming Thursday afternoon and Buckeye goes to the groomer on Friday. It looks like the showers tomorrow will be widely scattered and it will be dry most of the day....so I will be out breaking in my new engine on the moped as much as I can, it needs about 300 miles of very careful driving, and so far, I have only rode it about 20 miles, so 280 left. Friday will be warm as well, but it looks to be slightly wetter. Either way, you can't complain about the weather today and for the next two days. I know the little time I was outside working today, I was like, "Man, this is the weather I love!" I know Dawn and I are making homemade pizza today for dinner, maybe I can talk her into eating outside or playing a little game of corn hole afterward in the front yard. Hope you can get out there and enjoy some of the great weather as well...have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Beautiful Day...More On The Way
02/13/11
Well with temperatures in the upper 40's today and only thin upper level clouds through the afternoon before clearing skies this evening.....you would almost have thought today was April. Maybe even June after the last few frigid weeks we have seen. We will cool down a little tomorrow, but at least remain mild in the lower 40's. Another weak system will scoot by just to our north so the Northern counties might see a quick passing isolated rain shower tomorrow morning, but almost all of us will remain dry for the start of the workweek. Speaking of rain showers and staying mild...tonight we may have our first above freezing night since mid January, two thumbs up! Much warmer air will arrive for later in the week, but light scattered rain showers will be around for later Wednesday through Thursday and becoming a little more numerous on Friday. However with temperatures getting at least into the mid 50's...I will take it for my days off this week.
It might be hard to try and think of things to do with the chances for it raining, but I am hoping to find a few dry spells for a few extended moped rides...only problem is that my days are booked. Working Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday...then Thursday we are switching cable and internet providers, and Friday Buckeye has to go to the groomer. Come to think of it, last time he went to the groomer it rained....weather dog?!?! Not only that, but I want to get my taxes done sometime this week. I already did a rough calculation on scratch paper just to make sure it all looked right, but I still need to do it for real. The good news is that I should get a little back because I always have them take out more than they should, but the funny thing is that I could have had that $$$ in my pocket (or put towards the wedding) a month ago if I was on the ball... Oh well, the one thing I procrastinate in I guess, but at least not as bad as some people I know. Anyway, busy week for me ahead, but I will jump on here from time to time. Enjoy the warm week ahead and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
My friend wrote a book
02/12/11
While I know a lot of my friends have skills that would surprise me, one of my friends absolutely floored me. I will not release any names or any specific details for their privacy, but I am going to try to explain how reading the story has changed me. I also must add that he has no plans of publishing the book, but was only written for close friends and family to help them understand what he has went through and then he said he is going to "bury it and be done."
He had went through a very tough break up with someone who he loved more than I have ever seen anyone love. Imagine the love in The Notebook, yea I know you have seen it, but multiply that love by ten. Now imagine a break up in the worst possible scenario. That is basically what he went through and over the last few years he has poured his thoughts, memories, and emotions into this story. I received a copy of it today and I literally could not put it down. The memories where short just like memories are. The love was true like love was meant to be. There were times when he was remembering the good times and I actually laughed out loud during several of the memories, which made the heartbreak so much worse. The heartbreak was so real you felt that lump in your throat start to grow. While it has been extremely hard for him to get over the situation and we as friends have tried to help; this book does justice into explaining the thoughts he had felt and why he feels the way he does.
I stopped reading it at one point to call Dawn several times until she finally answered (her and her mom were bridesmaids' dress shopping). I called until she finally answered, but she sounded busy and she asked if she could call right back, I told her no worries, I only called to tell her how much I loved her. That is how much of a great book this is. While I may hold Dawn a little closer while watching The Notebook or other "chick flicks" nothing has ever compelled me to show my love for her like his book.
He goes through ways that he could have done more to show his love and possibly still be with her. He talks about feeling the end coming. While never releasing any real details that would be mean or below the belt, you felt like you were there with him through the situation. He uses analogies to help get out what words may have a hard time doing justice. It was superbly written and had it not have been his heart poured out and vulnerable, I would highly recommend publishing it, but fully understand his reservation.
So I hope you tell your friends and family you love them the next time you see them. You never know when may be the last time you get to see them and spend time with them; so make every moment count and soak it in. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Frost Quake explanation and could we get into the 50's?!?!
02/11/11
Right now it appears we may give the 50's a run for their money next Thursday and Friday, (conveniently my days off next week) This weekend we should get above freezing and stay around 40 for the high for the start of next workweek, but then the real surge of warm air will arrive at the end of the week. There is a down side though, (there always is), we will see the chance for light rain showers for Thursday and Friday.... so at this point it is still a toss up whether I will be riding my moped or not.. still a long ways out to know if it will be scattered or a washout. I sure hope it is not a washout.
Anyone in the west central Miami Valley or east central Indiana might have been woken up yesterday morning to shaking and a loud boom. The ice storm we received last week left the ground soaked or covered in about a inch or two of frozen water. Over the weekend we rose above freezing briefly which allowed the ice to melt a little, but refreeze even harder and become more solid than before, both on the surface and the top layers of the soil. Well Wednesday night much of the area dropped to -5 and -10 degrees. These frigid temperatures allowed for what is known as a Cryoseism, or a frost quake. When water freezes it expands because of its molecular make-up, H2O. Think of ice in your freezer at home... if you put in an ice cube tray, the ice cubes get larger than the original water. Or toss in a full, sealed bottle of soda... just make sure you are prepared to clean up a mess... it will explode. Same will happen to any kind of bottled liquid: pop, water, beer, etc. Some liquors will not freeze because their alcohol content is so high, so that is not a good example, but back to the frost quake. Basically we had so much ice on the ground and frozen into the surface of the soil around Randolph, Darke, and Miami Counties that it caused the ground to "explode." The pressure of the ice, expanding under the surface, had to give and that caused very localized "earthquakes" where the ground had to buckle and thus causing a boom and tremor. There were places as far away as Clinton County (40 miles away) that felt it and more than likely what happened is the initial tremors in Randolph, Darke, and Miami Counties cause aftershocks. This likely happened because once the ground started to shake, other areas also buckled thanks to the added energy of the initial shake. It is extremely rare, especially for Ohio, but after doing some research over the last 24 hours it seems more than likely that a cryoseism what happened. Our temperatures reached the second coldest they have all year and the ice storm last week along with the brief thaw several days ago all lead up to the event. Very interesting and more than likely a once in a lifetime experience. Just goes to show you that the weather affects your day to day life more than you expect and also shows you how mind-boggling something as simple water freezing actually is, ehh?
Well anyway good news is that we are slowly warming so no frost quakes anytime soon, but we could see a light dusting tomorrow morning of snow. Break out your spring clothes for later next week, (along with your umbrella) and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Down on the farm
02/09/11
Today I went back to Darke County to work on an upcoming story. In past blogs I talked about how bad the icing was there about a week ago, and the roads are still solid sheets of ice. There were a few spots where pavement would show its face, but almost all of back roads were ice-packed. To make matters worse, the open terrain has allowed what little additional snow they have seen, blow right across the road and make it even worse...snow on top of ice...not cool. Tonight with clearing skies we should easily be able to drop to -5 to -10 BEFORE factoring in the wind, so just stay inside. However, as I have mentioned in the past few entries, the 40's are likely for highs next week, and possibly get into the upper 40's by the end of the week. Did someone say moped ride?
I also finished off my "workweek" today and start my "weekend." It is kind of weird having my Saturday and Sunday on weekdays, but hey, at least the BMV is open my entire weekend...haha. Not sure what I got on tap for the next few days other than cleaning around the house a little bit and spending time with Buckeye.
I have thought of a new idea to motivate me to work out a little more. As you may know, I am a HUGE fan of the television series "LOST." Well Dawn and I have have all six seasons on DVD now, so I figured I could watch the entire series, 122.5 hours, while on the treadmill...a "weight LOST" plan if you will. I have been really wanting to watch the series again from the start and this will be the best of both worlds...LOST, and making sure I fit in my tux come wedding time, haha. It are the little things in life that make me laugh and smile. Keep warm out there and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Yuck!
02/08/11
The snow and ice the last few weeks has not only caused slick spots on the roads...they also have caused millions of potholes...AND, if you hit them juuuuuuust right, you might be able to pop off a hubcap or two... Luckily I can't with my truck since I have rims, but others haven't turned out so lucky. To be quite honest, I may look silly driving down the road swerving to miss every hole that I can. Potholes along with dirty snow and mud along the side of the roads has left everyone's car less than shinny.
The bad news is that temperatures may reach the coldest they have all year the next few days...but there is light at the end of the tunnel. For the rest of the week our lows will be near or possibly below zero. Highs will only be in the teens and low twenties. Late the weekend temperatures will slowly start to rise and we still could be on tap for 40's for part of next week. The good news to go along with the cold is that there will be a HUGE arctic high pressure system through the end of the week, so at least no accumulating snow for a while. Bundle up the next few days and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Snow Won't Stick
02/07/11
There has been a light snow through much of the day here where I live, but with temperatures remaining just above freezing all day long, nothing will stick on the road or grass. The weather station at home only dropped to 33.6F There was a brief period this morning where it started to stick, but that was because it was falling too fast for the snow to melt....but with time it finally did melt. Basically it has been a pretty dreary day. Light snow falling....watery, slushy roads, but at least the winds have been fairly calm. Still looking at very cold temperatures moving in starting tonight, so watch out for refreezing roadways. The very cold air will last through the rest of the week, and when I say very cold, I am talking about with chills below zero....BUT I do have good news on the way.... The forecast models have all been pretty consistently showing us getting into the 40's for early next week.
Grab the extra comforter and the pair of long johns and stay warm later this week...until we meet again, have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Super Bowl Sunday
02/06/11
I may not be eating for a few days. Everyone on the weekend staff brought in some sort of tailgating staple and I am currently stuffed! I personally brought in some cheesy salsa dip, but there are pies, pizza rolls, candy, sausage, crackers, chips, and dips....and the list goes on... I feel bad not trying someone's special dip, and it is so hard not to love them all.... It is currently halftime and it's a decent game so far, but Packers have been owning the green.
We are still looking at a chance for snow tonight and tomorrow, but only thinking about 1-2" now because there is not a lot of moisture and by the time the southern system and the north system collide, it will be a little off to the east.... so the western counties may only see a dusting up to 1". Regardless it will be enough to coat the ground and cause slick spots...along with the refreezing roads. A lot of the back county roads are ice packed from last weeks storm. We did get above freezing today, so there should have been a little watery layer form between the pavement and the ice... so if you got a shovel or blade underneath of it, you might have been able to scrape some of it off. However, when the temps fall overnight the new ice will adhere to the surface and be just as hard to get off as before, if not worse. So best of luck getting the ice off. Make sure to travel safe out there, and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Happy Weatherperson's Day!
02/05/11
It is very flattering getting a basket of cookies; especially if one of them looks like me. Cookies By Design got the weather team a basket of cookies for National Happy Weatherperson's Day. I have not broken into them yet because since today is the holiday, I have to save the basket to show it on-air and thank them... so if you missed the newscast, Cookies by Design, thanks!!! (Apparently they forgot I was trying to trim back a little for the wedding in less than six months....yikes!) I can also tell that they were hoping for spring because my cookie figure does not have a sweater vest on....meaning it had to be at least 50 degrees or warmer. Good thinking!
After a pretty average snowfall for January, 10.2 inches compared to 9.8 average, February is starting off to be quite a snowy one. We saw a few inches around the area today, the heaviest to the north. That makes our second system of the month so far, and we have another one on the way for Monday. The system on Monday will bring a slight chance for a wintry mix for the southern Miami Valley and a couple of inches for the rest of the area. The far north could see 1-3"; the central part of the area along I-70 or near it could see around 2-4"; and the far south may only see 1-3" with the wintry mix cutting back on their snowfall totals. The latest models show that we may be a little more on the lower end of those ranges. The higher end of the ranges may be possible, just not as likely. I will check back in tomorrow and give you an update. After that, temperatures will fall into the single digits for lows the rest of the week and highs in the teens or lower twenties..... yuck. I know I am not alone in this one, but I want spring! Keep warm and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Superbowl Football & Forecast
02/04/11
If anyone was able to watch the news this morning, Jon Scott, our morning producer did a story on the Ada, OH Wilson football factory. Jon was the sports director at my last station in Lima and he had done the story in the past and he called up there again and lined up the story once again. I was lucky enough that he asked me if I wanted to go along and shoot the video for him. It was amazing that all of the balls are made by hand and not machines. Each ball is inspected several times and it is quite a sight to see these 60 people making footballs for the Superbowl in such a fast pace. Of course they make thousands of other footballs, but each football is stamped with the teams playing in the big game as well as the current Lombardi logo of the Superbowl. It was quite the experience and they were nice enough to give each of us Superbowl footballs to take home.
Well on to the weather. Saturday morning we will see more snow move in from the southwest and we are still looking at a few inches... Yesterday I was calling for 1-2", but I think we can bump that up to 2-3" of new snow by the time we reach Saturday night. Sunday will be cold and dry, but Monday morning another system will move in. We will be very near the freezing mark, so we could see the chance for more icing... we will have to wait until the time gets closer to give you a better idea, but if it stays all snow it could be another few inches. Once that system moves out, VERY cold air will swing in for Tuesday and the rest of the week. Low temperatures could likely be below zero with highs in the lower single digits. One additional note, late next week, Thursday-Friday, another strong system will develop. The last 12 hours of forecast models has this system sneaking by our south and dropping a lot of snow over the east coast. If this system happens to swing north instead we will be in for quite a lot of snow....but right now it looks to avoid our area. I will keep ya posted, but for the meantime only two systems for the next week or so. Enjoy the sunshine and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Great Day for a Moped Ride
02/03/11
Well after working 4 hours on my day off, no better way to enjoy the precious time in the late afternoon than a cool moped ride around the neighborhood. It was my first time "testing" out the motor since I did the rebuild. I need to ride it carefully for a while because the new cylinder needs to be broken in properly...ya just can't get on there and go full blast, otherwise you will blow it up. I didn't get a chance to really open it up and run full throttle for a long time, but the short time I did, I could really feel the difference in power compared to the old motor. I am really excited to get it out and ride more often. As for the temperatures being in the mid 20's, well it wasn't honestly that cold. My hands were the worst part, but that was cause I got them snowy trying to take the picture. Well, I take that back, that was bad, but my helmet fogging up was a real pain in the rear. I either had to open it up to see clearly to let the fog go away, or drive with it foggy... I mixed it up, but with it open...my face would freeze on a long ride.
More snow likely on Friday night into Saturday, but that is only looking like 1-2" for the most part, so not a lot. The system, Sunday night into Monday, will be interesting because temperatures will be near freezing again and it will have a decent amount of moisture. Not nearly as much as our last system, but it will have enough to cause problems possibly, so it will need to be watched closely. Well time to start dinner. I hope you all are keeping warm, have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Groundhog's Day
02/02/11
What a cold, windy day! I woke up at 2AM for work and we were at 37F so the inch of ice that was on the trees and power lines had started to melt and fall off. There were trees down everywhere on my way to work and despite trying to get around a few on the road, I had to say on the pavement and take a couple grazing the side of the truck. I will say that West Carrollton Police are awesome. They traveled the back roads and laid out flares so drives would know they were coming up to a hazard... Awesome job! I got to work and limbs and ice were falling there as well. As a matter of fact HUGE chunks of ice were falling from the transmission tower so I had to park all the way out by the road on the frozen tundra to try to avoid getting my windshield bombed. I did live shots all morning in Kettering where the power had been off for the entire night and was not on by the time we left at 10AM. The winds were at least 30 mph at times and it was absolutely frigid facing the wind for over five hours doing live shots.
We were lucky in West Carrollton, our power was not knocked off, just the cable and internet. They are obviously back on now, but others on the street could not care less. The other side of the street is without power and has been since I woke up at 2AM. I would offer some hospitality to the neighbors across the street that we occasionally talk to, but they must be out of town because no one has been around all day. Anyway it has been a nice day. Since the weather was bad Dawn took care of scheduling at work to get a lot of the work done early yesterday and they took the day off today with the exception of doing a few odd tasks. So I got to spend the day with her and it has been a lot of fun just staying inside and making the best of this winter storm. It looks like we got more snow on the way for Friday night and Saturday. Right now it looks like a few inches, hope to have a definite number for you tomorrow. Keep warm and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
More Ice Tonight, Snow and Wind Tomorrow
02/01/11
After a much needed nap, it has already started freezing rain again. I dropped Dawn off at work this morning and just got back from picking her up...her car is too light for the ice and my truck so far, knock on wood, has been awesome. On the way home the sky light up bright blue from a transformer blowing, supposedly in the Kettering area. I have been fairly close to two transformers blowing in the past, (one an ice storm, the other from lightning) and seeing one blow is epic. If you can actually see it, it is the brightest thing you will probably every witness. Super bright blue light and you feel like you are in the middle of a war. Hopefully those people prepared for their power to be off for a while. Ice not letting up for tonight though. We could see another half an inch at least tonight and parts of the south may actually get above freezing for a little rain. Temperatures will plummet around daybreak tomorrow for all of us with the chance for about 1-2 inches of snow, maybe more farther off to the north, through the day tomorrow.
Winds still look to be 20-30 mph tomorrow morning and gusts around 40 mph. With the inch of ice across parts of the area, power outages will be more than likely. Of course I will be back out in the thick of things in the morning... See ya then and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Icy Morning
02/01/11
Well I have been doing live hits from 75 and 725 by the Dayton Mall all morning and boy is it icy!! The freezing rain has tapered off for now but it is a sheet of ice everywhere, especially sidewalks, parking lots, and secondary roadways. We will see the freezing rain taper off for the mid morning a little, but more will arrive later today and tonight. So far we have a quarter of an inch here in Dayton, but areas to the north already have half an inch on limbs and power lines. Tomorrow winds will pick up to around 20-30 mph tomorrow so power outages will be a continuing problem with the additional icing. So far, about 1200 people are without power here in the Miami Valley. Be careful if you have to head out, or better yet break out the board games. Have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Evening Update
01/31/11
Well it is shortly before 10PM and parts of the Northern Miami Valley have already seen a decent icing... as a matter of fact some schools have already canceled for tomorrow. The far northern part of the area is seeing snow, but a transition to freezing rain will slowly continue overnight. Good news for the Southern part of the area, the first wave of icing has missed you and came in from Indiana north enough to give us a little breather while the north wasn't so lucky. Darke County is already under a Level 1 Ice Emergency already, and I will be up in about 4 hours reporting on the weather.... from the looks of it, more than likely heading in that direction. Tomorrow's forecast still holds true from last post. Freezing rain will continue on and off through Tuesday night and a brief period of liquid rain may occur, especially south, Wednesday morning before temperatures quickly fall and we transition to snow and could see a couple of inches on the back side of the system on Wednesday. Strong winds and icy limbs and power lines do not make a good combination, so hopefully you have prepared for the worst, just in case. Time for bed if I am waking up at 2AM, be safe out there and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Monday Morning Update
01/31/11
Not a lot has changed since yesterday, however there is one minor change... The switch from freezing rain to rain may be pushed a few hours into the future prolonging the icing. Some locations could see half an inch of icing or more here in the area, mainly the Northern Miami Valley. Power outages will be a big concern, so make sure to plan for that in advance. If you have a generator get gas, but if not, make a plan just in case you are out of electric for a few days. Hopefully you won't be powerless for that long, but its better to plan for the worst.
Recap:
Light snow/sleet arriving this evening. Snow/sleet will change to freezing rain from south to north, so the north could see a few inches of snow before the icing begins. Icing continues through Tuesday and as temps rise we will see patches of rain begin to mix in from south to north(midday-midnight). Temps will rise until around 5-7AM Wednesday then plummet through the morning. Strong winds, frigid temps, and light snow will be on the back side, the north could see a couple of inches, and the south right now looking at maybe an inch.
I must also note I had to give in and get coffee this morning. I only got about 50 minutes of sleep last night, so I needed something to keep me going this morning. Oh well... I may be needing it for the coming days as well....who knows what my hours are going to be like. .It is going to get very dicey the next few days; be careful out there and have a good one.
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Detailed look at the storm
01/30/11
This system still could shift, but here is my detailed thoughts as of 6 PM Sunday.
We will have a lot of moving parts and a lot of variations of precipitation. Light snow/sleet arriving Monday evening. This will transition over to sleet/freezing rain around midnight and continue on and off for the overnight hours.(The northern Miami Valley may see the snow stick around longer as their temps will be slightly cooler) On Tuesday, temperatures will slowly rise above freezing starting in the south and lifting north. Above freezing for the far south (meaning turning to rain) will be around the morning commute on Tuesday. Dayton area and areas along I-70 will get above freezing, (meaning turning to rain) roughly midday Tuesday, and the above freezing line reaching the Northern third of the Miami Valley by the evening. Temperatures will remain above freezing into early Wednesday morning until around the morning commute then they will plummet and fall below freezing quickly during the morning hours. Once we fall below freezing Wednesday we will see the possibility of the rain turning over to an inch or two of snow (maybe more north), along with strong winds.
Breakdown by area:
Parts of the Northern Miami Valley could see a couple inches of snow followed by at least half an inch or more of icing by Tuesday night. (when the rain should begin and last briefly)
Central Miami Valley could see a light dusting of snow before it changes over to up to half an inch of icing by Tuesday midday. (when the rain should begin)
The Southern Miami Valley could see a light icing, around a quarter of an inch before the rain arrives Tuesday morning.
Of course this system could still shift slightly, but recent models are starting to agree on its path. I will be back on to update any changes. I will also be on in the morning doing the morning show, so I will be sure to give you a Monday morning update regardless. Stock up and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Frustrating Computers
01/29/11
Several reasons to be upset with computers.... first of all... I was trying to edit my story that is airing next week on Bellefontaine, since we are there for Where You Live. Well it turns out that that folder has been open on some computer for a week and I can't figure out where. I checked all the editing systems and I can't find any that have my folders open. Regardless, I missed the little red locked padlock and I didn't realize until I finished editing the video and tried to save and it crashed the computer....so I lost it all.(When it is opened somewhere else, it can't save the other opened file) It has to be some ghost computer, but anyway.... I will try again tomorrow or resort to other methods to ensure it works properly.
On to the other issue, but not nearly as upset about this... since weather contains millions and millions of variables. So the fact that the computers can't yet agree on the track of the upcoming system is expected(can't wait for the day they do agree). We could see a flurry or a quick light snow shower tonight, but only expecting a dusting in isolated areas, while others may not see anything at all....so roadways shouldn't be a big problem for the morning commute to the grocery or church. Still keeping my eyes pealed on Monday night through Wednesday. Here are my current thoughts, but this low pressure system has been all over the place, so if it moves, we could be dealing with a different scenario. Most tracks have been a little further south, but I am going with the northern routes on this system with the low tracking right through the southern heart of the Miami Valley....
Monday night looks to start out with a little snow turning to freezing rain and sleet for the overnight hours, which means Tuesday morning will be bad on the pavement. With the low tracking this close, it is likely that we will see a little rain sneak in as well on Tuesday. This will change back to another round of light icing then back to light snow showers once the low pressure moves away with frigid temperatures and strong winds. The ice band will be from southwest to northeast and the area just north of the ice band will see a significant snowfall. This system looks to bring a lot of moisture with it, so if you REALLY want a lot of snow, pray that the low pressure pulls farther south. Regardless, I will be back with an update, so check back. Until then, stock up on salt and have a good one!
Best,
Andrew Buck Michael
Moped Ride
01/28/11
Well after a day eating doughnuts at work... yes, that is the story I managed to arrange, I came home to a deliver of my last moped parts to get it fully functional. Back to the doughnuts, the bakery is known all around the world. so when we do Where You Live, Springfield, you will get the idea.
Got that done and came home for a little moped ride up the block and back and it was great, cold, but great! All the pieces are back in running well. I am going to wait to really take it out though. I need to run it about 300 miles to really break in the new cylinder...don't want to blow up the engine. Anyway, now that that engine is built and the other moped needs no work at all.... I will be l