My subscription to Life expired, but I still have a subscription to Mad.

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Vote for The Pieman

I entered Q.T. Pie in the Spay Day Pet Photo Contest. Please vote for Q.T. Pie here--you'll save animals' lives and help us win fun prizes!

Friday, January 29, 2010

Surfin': Radio-Spotting Through the Windshield

On the road, this week's Surfin' views the world of radio through the windshield.

snow diary

Yesterday, approximately 3 inches of snow accumulated.

As I left the house in the morning, I noticed a few flakes of snow, but as I continued on to work in a southeasterly direction, the sky was clear to the east, the snowflakes stopped, but I could see a big bank of clouds following me from the west.

It snowed lightly all morning and into the afternoon. The sun broke out about 2 PM and by the time I was on the road on my way back home, the Interstates were dry and the local roads were wet. However, as I got closer to home, I could see that Southington and Compounce Mountains were hidden by a white cloud. (I live on the top of Compounce Mountain.)

As I reached the base of Southington Mountain, it began snowing lightly. The sky was a very odd, dark color like during a summer thunderstorm. As I was going up the last hill (a 2-mile leg of my journey), I saw a flash of lightning and ran into a snow squall. Visibility was down to about 100 feet and the wet pavement was instantly covered with a half inch or so of snow.

With my all-wheel-drive Subaru, I had no problem getting home and the squall let up about 15 minutes after my arrival.

Weird!

Total snowfall this month is 6 inches; not much for a January in these parts. The total snowfall for the winter season is 20 inches; not much for a winter in these parts.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

weird weather

Just like the rest of the U.S., we have experienced unusual weather.

Yesterday, the temperature reached 54 degrees Fahrenheit with high winds and heavy rain (2.81 inches recorded at my weather station). The winds and precipitation amounts are not unusual, but the temperature is sure way out of whack for Southern New England in late January.

Even at the top of the mountain, most of the snow is gone, which is very odd for midwinter. Most winters, once it snows, it just keeps piling up and we don't see dirt until the spring thaw.

Definitely weird!

Friday, January 22, 2010

Surfin': My World Is a Radio

This week, Surfin' views the world through radio-colored glasses.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

red snow

It began snowing at 3:45 PM today. About an hour later, I noticed that everything outdoors had a red orange hue. Sunset was at 4:48 and the red orange light of the sunset must have been reflected by the snow. I have never seen anything like it before.

I shot the above photo about two minutes after the red orange hue had peaked.

Friday, January 15, 2010

Surfin': Addicted to the Internet

This week, Surfin' discovers what it takes to have an Internet addiction.

By the way, "Astor Paradise Suites" (aka Hilton Garden Inn) did not repair their Internet access during my stay and I will never stay there again.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

WB6ACU on Ringo's New Album

There is an interesting story in today's edition of USA Today about Ringo Starr's new album, Y Not. The article includes an interview with the former Beatle, as well as with Joe Walsh, WB6ACU, who plays lead guitar on Ringo's new album.

In the "I Didn't Know That Dept.," Ringo and Joe are brothers-in-law.

Friday, January 8, 2010

snow diary

Today, approximately 1 inch of snow accumulated.

Total snowfall this month is 3 inches; the total snowfall for the winter season is 17 inches.

Surfin': Collecting Radio Stamps

This week, Surfin' considers the connection between ham radio and stamp collecting.

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

snow diary

Sunday night through Monday morning, approximately an additional 1 inch of snow accumulated.

Total snowfall this month is 2 inches; the total snowfall for the winter season is 16 inches.

Sunday, January 3, 2010

snow diary

Snow showers began Friday evening, continued throughout Saturday, and are still occurring Sunday morning. However, snow accumulation has been negligible during that time.

Total snowfall this month is less than an inch; the total snowfall for the winter season is 14 inches.

UPDATE: The snow fell at a steadier rate in the late morning and early afternoon resulting in an accumulation of over 1 inch. So, total snowfall this month is 1 inch; the total snowfall for the winter season is 15 inches.

Friday, January 1, 2010

Surfin': Visit the Online Ham Radio Stacks

This week, Surfin' checks out the stacks at Linux Journal and Tucson Amateur Packet Radio.