Weather | The Beauty Around Us

Crazy Weather

This afternoon we went for a short walk in our neighborhood.

Looking Across Neighbors’ back yards to our house

I live in northwestern Pennsylvania. What crazy weather! It is January 1st. There is no snow, and the temperature was 53 degrees during our walk. The weather is crazy, but I like it. I would love today’s weather, if the sun was out!

Ohio Vacation Day 4 (6/28/2021)

We walked down to the edge of the wetlands this morning. There was an adult bald eagle sitting in the snag on which we have seen one or two eagles often throughout the day, since our arrival on Friday afternoon. The lighting wasn’t good in that direction, so I didn’t take any pictures of the eagle. I did take pictures of a dragonfly and turtles.

It is hot and humid, even at 9:00 am. When I returned to the house, I was drenched in sweat from my neck up.

About an hour later, while sitting in the living room, I saw an osprey flying over the wetlands. Good thing I got my camera and went out on the deck. The osprey provided a bit of excitement, at least photographically.

An osprey flying over the Airbnb wetlands sees something of interest.

The osprey soared low in the sky over the Airbnb wetlands.
I lost the osprey shortly after I took this picture,
as it dove into the pond behind one of the buildings near the pond.

I stayed on the deck, camera in hand. Within seconds the osprey returned into view.

The osprey snagged a fish; a small bird gave chase.

Late morning/early afternoon we drove to Cuyahoga Valley National Park, to the Ira Trailhead, and walked ¼ mile to Beaver Marsh. What a HOT and HUMID walk that was! We didn’t see much in the way of wildlife. We saw a great blue heron, snapping turtle (no picture), red wing blackbird and tree swallows.

Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Beaver Marsh
Great Blue Heron

Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Beaver Marsh
Red-Winged Blackbird

I captured a few pictures of tree swallows, as we spent the most time watching their acrobatic flight.

Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Beaver Marsh
Tree Swallow

We returned to our rental Airbnb and ate lunch. I ate a picnic lunch indoors, and Bob ate Ramen Noodles that he found in the kitchen.

A storm rolled through around 5:00 pm.

It would have been very nice,
if this storm had taken the heat and humidity with it when it left.
That didn’t happen, though.

The temperature did drop 20 degrees, from 90 (with a heat index of 103) to 70. It didn’t take long, though, for the heat and humidity to return.

Dreaming of a White Christmas

Pink sky in the morning…

and, YES

a Winter Storm is approaching.

Winter Storm Watch obtained from Weather Underground.

I am dreaming of a White Christmas….

The First Snow of the 2020-2021 Winter Season

Yes, I am blogging again.

It has been a little more than a year since my last “The Beauty Around Us”blog post. Have I lost my blogging friends? I hope not!

I want to share with you a couple pictures that I just took of the snow that fell overnight at my home in NW Pennsylvania.

We had new front porch steps and a handrail installed late summer.

The bird feeder is a bit top heavy.

Don’t you just love the first snowfall of the season? I do!

Full Snow Moon Followed by a Snowy Day

Various Native American tribes had various names for the different moons of the year, tied to natural phenomena that reliably occurred alongside them. February is a snowy month in the northern and eastern US; hence the full “snow” moon.

The moon rise last night happened at 6:06 pm, but it didn’t rise above the hill that blocked its view until 6:50 pm. The moon had been full 7 hours previously, so the moon that rose wasn’t completely full.

The Almost-Full Snow Moon

Four minutes later the moon had risen a little higher in the sky.

The Almost-Full Snow Moon

It was a bit chilly last evening, waiting for the moon to rise over the hill so I could see it! I had enough of the cold, so I didn’t wait for the moon to rise above the tree!

The snow moon was followed by a snowy day.

Snowy day

Currently there is a winter weather advisory in effect until 6:00 am tomorrow morning. Mixed precipitation is expected. Total snow and sleet accumulations of 1 to 3 inches and ice accumulations of up to one tenth of an inch are expected. Snow fell during the late morning and is expected to continue through mid afternoon. The snow is expected to change to sleet by late afternoon, then over to lighter freezing rain this evening.

Crazy Weather!

What crazy weather we are having here in Northwestern Pennsylvania! Bob and I went for a bicycle ride this afternoon.

We rode to Pioneer Arboretum, located approximately 1.5 miles from our house.

Today is January 21st. The temperature was just shy of 60 degrees, when we left on our bicycle ride. How nice it is to have Springlike weather in the middle of Winter!

A Few Minutes of Stardom

The past two days have certainly been days to remember!

A friend who is a Cooperative Observer for the National Weather Service in State College, reporting from Chandlers Valley PA, suggested that I send my storm pictures to JET 24, Attn: Tom Atkins. Tom A. is a meteorologist for JET 24/Fox 66. At 3:05 pm I forwarded my blog post about the “wind event” to him (sent a private message to his Facebook page). At 3:18 pm Tom A. wrote back stating “I’m forwarding this to news.” He asked for my telephone number, which I provided him at 3:21 pm.

At 3:37 pm my husband, Bob, telephoned. He needed me to come pick him up at Chestnut & 4th. He rode his bicycle into work. His back tire was flat. I left immediately.

At 3:41 pm my friend from Chandlers Valley messaged me “Jet Tv wants to come talk to you what is your #”. I was at a traffic light, stopped by a red light, when my friend messaged me. I hurriedly wrote back, giving her my telephone number, with an added note “but I am driving now”. My telephone rang perhaps a minute later. I figured that the call was from JET-TV but left the call go to voicemail because I was driving. A couple minutes passed, and my telephone chimed. Someone had sent me a Facebook message.

I arrive at Chestnut & 4th, park the car, and get out telling Bob that he is driving home that I have to call JET-TV. I noticed first that I had a Facebook message. Tom A. asked “can we post pictures from you on our Facebook page?” I responded immediately in the affirmative and told him that they should be able to share the pictures straight from my page, as it is a public album. I, then, checked voicemail. Leanne Stuck, news reporter with JET 24/Fox 66 in Erie, asked me to call her back. I returned Leanne’s call at 3:52 pm.

Next thing I know Leanne S. is on her way to Warren to interview ME. She will arrive at my house around 5:30 pm.

At 5:00 pm a JET-TV news broadcast, confirming that a tornado hit Warren County, showcased photographs that I had taken of storm damage. This news broadcast can be viewed via the link provided below. Click on the second video from the left below the video box.

My interview went well, I think. I was nervous. I had to keep reminding myself to breathe! The news story about Warren County’s tornado was broadcasted at 10:00 pm on Erie’s JET-TV (ABC) and at 11:00 pm on FOX 66. The news broadcasts were the same. They showed only a small portion of my interview, using only the part about screaming when I saw the tree falling down in front of our house and then seeing the fallen tree in our next-door neighbor’s yard. One other person was interviewed, Cindy Morrison, who is one of three Warren County Commissioners.

There you have it … my few minutes of stardom.