Category: Weather

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Tuesday Night Grab Bag O’ Thoughts

1.  Today was a very tough day at work for me and my co-workers in my building at the air base. We received the unsettling news shortly after 7 AM that one of our own was down on the street (SW 288TH St. – just down the road from the base) in very bad shape after being t-boned by a car and thrown off of his motorcycle. Word came in a short while later that he had died as a result of his injuries. Our building was in mourning for much of the day, and one of the  Base Chaplains spent much of the day with us. The guy that we lost was well liked by all, and I considered him as one of my favourite people to talk to and hang out with during the course of any given work day. Yesterday afternoon I spent the last 10 minutes of my work day doing just that – talking, hanging out, and laughing with him – not knowing that it would be the last time that I would ever be able to do that. God – Please bless Kevin up in Heaven, and take care of my buddy. I know that he’s in a much better place now that he’s with You. Thank You Kevin for being a good man – and for being my friend.

2.  This was actually the 2ND death in our base’s extended work family in the span of roughly 36 hours. The pilot who lost his life on Sunday night when his private plane crashed into the Everglades near I-75 was also one of our own. He was a Lieutenant Colonel / Deputy Commander on the base, and I used to work with him back in the mid-1990s when he was a Captain. He left work on Sunday night, went to Tamiami Airport, and took off in his plane to fly back home to North Central Florida. He never made it. He was 49.

3.  Yesterday was Day 7 of my severe cold that was born at work exactly one week ago today, and I still had a noticeable trace of the leftovers of the cold via sporadic sinus pressure and drainage issues. I’m not yet ready to officially declare my cold to be completely done and over with because I just now blew my nose quite thoroughly, and a lot of excess leftover snottage came out and my nose made some funny drainage sounds during the process. I do wish to thank my friends Airborne, Zicam, and Cold-EEZE for their great efforts to make me feel just a little bit better during the peak of the severe cold.

4.  I never knew that my all-time favourite take-out Chinese Food restaurant actually has the biggest, boldest, and bestest chicken wings in town – but they do. I deviated from my regular Lunch on Monday, as I ordered a pint of won ton soup, an order of 4 chicken wings, and an egg roll. These chicken wings were GINORMOUS. They were hot, juicy, and tasty. I highly recommend them. I must warn you though that these are your standard fried chicken wings – no sauce – no seasoning – but if that’s all that you want – and you want them BIG – then go and get you some at Shanghai over at the Waterstone Plaza in Homestead.

5.  Get ready for cooler and dryer air to sweep through America’s Riviera early this Thursday morning. Our coolest morning should actually be Friday with actual air temperatures bottoming out in the upper-50s and wind chills in the mid-50s. Friday should be sunny, crisp, cool, and dry with temperatures getting no higher than the mid-70s. It should be a little bit warmer on Saturday, Sunday, and beyond, but no rain is expected after tomorrow (Wednesday).

Be sure to check back here in about 48 hours for my weekly ‘Thursday Night Mini Thoughts’ in bullet statements of 15 words or less.

Tomorrow is Veterans Day here in the U.S.A. Never forget all of those brave men and women who have served and who are currently serving our country and defending democracy and freedom during wartime.

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Saturday Night Retro

Whenever the first two weeks of November roll around I think of cooler and drier weather, the upcoming holiday season, and The United Kingdom.

Cold fronts from the northwest are sweeping through America’s Riviera for the first time since last Spring dropping temperatures down below 72°F on a nearly nightly basis.

Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day are all within the next 8 weeks. Season’s Greetings Everyone !

These first two weeks of November also remind me of my two-year stint living in The United Kingdom serving as a young airman in the USAF. It was 24-years-ago this weekend that I departed stateside and arrived on British soil on my own to begin duty at my first permanent duty station. I served my country for two years in the U.K., and I took in all of the mid-1980s British and European culture at the time. It was a fun fun time for me and my friends that I spent it with. Good Times Forever.

22-years-ago next weekend I left the U.K. behind en route to my follow-on duty station at the original Homestead Air Force Base. Some time later on in my Life I plan to return to the U.K. to check up on the land across the sea I left behind.

Back in June of 1987 English novelty act The Firm scored one of the most unusual songs to ever hit # 1 on a major national hit music chart. It was a # 1 radio smash for 2 weeks all across The British Isles, and its unprecedented mainstream success reached deep into the European continent eastward into Asia and southward into Australia.

Here’s the original-length music video of that multi-continental # 1 smash, and it’s all about the legendary “Star Trek” television series from 20 years earlier:

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Thursday Night Mini Thoughts

– It’s been a dark and gloomy day thus far here in America’s Riviera.
– One-third to two-thirds of an inch of rain has already fallen.
– It’s because of a cold front that’s currently draped over us.
– On the other side of the cold front it’ll be sunny, windy, cool, and dry.
– We could actually see wind gusts in excess of 35 MPH this weekend !
– Hold on to your wigs and keys !
– As you probably know by now I’ve been sick at home with a bad cold.
– I haven’t gone outside since I came inside from work on Tuesday afternoon.
– After a lot of laying and sleeping around I am now vertical and upright.
– I am on the slow road to recovery.
– I don’t expect to be 100% fully recovered until perhaps Sunday night.
– I hope to venture out later today to take the trash out and check the mail.
– This is the weekend of our big air show at the air base.
– It’s our first air show since the Spring of 1992.
– Check out all of the news that you can use at wingsoverhomestead.com.
– Yes – The USAF Thunderbirds will be there putting on a show.
– At the same time as the air show it’s the Miami-Dade Parks Ribfest 2009.
– See Joan Jett & The Blackhearts and Blue Oyster Cult LIVE in concert !
– There’s a lot to do and see right here in Homestead this weekend.
– Go check them out and support our local businesses down here.
– You won’t regret it pal.

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Annoyances Blogging Commerce Driving Health People Politics Weather

Tuesday Night Grab Bag O’ Thoughts

1.  This was originally going to be a quick tweet from me, but then I decided to upgrade it to a full-blown ‘Grab Bag O’ Thought’. This happened on the way home from work this afternoon on Speedway Boulevard (Miami-Dade County’s SW 137TH Avenue in Homestead). One slow-moving vehicle (in this case a ‘soccer-mom minivan’) can disrupt the normal flow of traffic on a single stretch of roadway for miles affecting dozens of motorists. I generally drive on the slow side. Typically out of every 10 vehicles on the road today 8 will pass me at any given time, and I will pass 2 of them. When I make note of a slow-moving vehicle then it must really be a slow-moving vehicle. These drivers are generally oblivious to the rush hour world around them. Just because you’re driving real slow does not necessarily mean that you’re driving real safe. It usually means that you’re being distracted while driving. Oh yeah – get out of the left lane !

2.  Speaking of my car by chance this past Saturday morning I checked out that brand new car wash that recently opened up on Useless-One caddy-corner to The Big Cheese. I was their only customer at the time, and I got my car washed on the outside and cleaned and dressed on the inside. They took their time and did it right. My 6½-year-old car looks nearly sparkling new now on the inside. The ultimate results far exceeded my overall expectations. I plan to be a regular customer of them in the future. After I return home from my upcoming road trip I’ll be going back there for a wash and wax !

3.  It’s Election Day here in Homestead, and I’m so glad that I’ve already voted via absentee ballot. I do it that way in lieu of being insulted at the voting precinct (inside and outside). It’s just so much more civil voting in the privacy of my own living room. On this day we’ve got the incumbant Mayor who’s a loose cannon, says what’s on her mind, and publicly degrades people along the way who she doesn’t agree with. Running against her for the job is a guy with a lot of experience in Homestead politics who’s (allegedly) got a short temper and gets into street fights with citizens (allegedly). I hesitantly voted for one of these candidates – not really for the person but really more as a vote against the other person.

4.  Last Tuesday night in the ‘Grab Bag’ I mentioned the fact that I picked up several of 8 colds in 12 months from November 2007 to November 2008 at Starbucks. Once I stopped going there I stopped getting colds. This past weekend I went back there to pick up a package of VIA Ready Brew (instant coffee). I did so because it’s the most delicious instant coffee that I’ve ever tasted in my entire life. Fast forward to this afternoon, and I believe that I now have my first genuine cold in about a year. In defense of Starbucks though I don’t believe that I picked up this cold from there. I think I got the nasty germs earlier today from either Publix or our base gymnasium. I’ll be able to confirm the mere existence of this cold as soon as later tonight or tomorrow morning – especially if it gets worse.

5.  Get ready for more seasonal (normal) temperatures around these parts of the free nation starting on Thursday and continuing through the weekend. Expect mid-afternoon high temperatures right around the 80°F mark and early-morning low temperatures deep down into the lower-60s with wind chills into the upper-50s. The humidity will be low, and the winds will be brisk and cool. Later in November I’m forecasting a major continental shift in the weather pattern (induced by El Niño) that will surge much colder air deep into Florida.

Be sure to check out my ‘Thursday Night Mini Thoughts’ in a mere 48 hours or less, and until then stay up-to-date with what I’m thinking and doing via my Twitter account.