We need the rain

In honor of yesterday's ~.70" of rain, this post is titled "We need the rain". Although, actually, this area is running above normal for precipitation - both for this calendar year and extending back to last year (see plot below).



A couple of very random things from recent life.

1- I went home for Easter last weekend. It was good to see family and relax for a few days, even if driving 11.5 hrs round-trip for a visit of < 2 days is a bit much. I invited my friend Baltazar with me, but he couldn't make it due to work.

2- Owing to a pronounced upper-level ridge the past few days, we saw record (or near-record) high temperatures all this week. Yay! I always enjoy a little heat in April, when the air is still dry enough to enjoy the heat (example: temps above 80, dewpoints in the low 50s; see plot above) If this year is like last year, the next time we see air temps this high, they'll be accompanied by dew point temperatures through the roof (i.e., 85F/75F, which was a common observation for much of August last year.)

3- I've discovered a Wind Rose plotting function in Matlab. I think it will really help me examine atmospheric flow in central Chile. And it should aid my students in understanding the flow by displaying it graphically.

4- I am very excited about the SWIFT (Severe Weather In-Field Training) activity: a colleague and I will take 10 students out to the plains for two weeks of seminars, briefings, forecast discussions, and storm observations. I love the plains and look forward to getting back out there: wind in your face, long-range visibilities, tumbleweeds, minimal traffic (and I am not looking forward to "chaser convergence"... we have a 15-passenger van we'll need to find a spot for. Ugh.) Plus the chance to interact with students outside of the classroom setting.

5- I have 2 roommates: Rene and Inocente. They're friends from church and are both from Guatemala. We've been enjoying some good conversations - although we're all pretty busy and don't get much time together (example: yesterday they worked from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m., and I was at the store when they got home, so I spoke to them for about 10 minutes before heading upstairs to get ready for bed).

Ok, that's all my observations/thoughts for now. Until next time...