Sue's Musings

NASA released a new study yesterday sugggesting that in seventy years or so, summers in the eastern United States could average ten degreees warmer than now.

Around these parts, daily high temperatures in the summertime average in the low-to-mid 80s.   The NASA researchers say that by the 2080s, the average highs during typical summers will be in the low-to-mid 90s.

The researchers say they reached their conclusions by using nearly 30 years of  observational data...plus computer model simulations that used soil, atmosphere, and oceanic to project changes in greenhouse gases.

It's all quite complicated, of course.  If you want to read the entire press release from NASA, click here.

So, what do you think?   That's a pretty extreme jump in temperature in less than a century.   Not surprised?   Getting ready to install a swimming pool in the backyard for the grandkids?

 

 

Do you have special rituals you use to mark time?

At our house, there's a gorgeous dogwood tree in front of our house.   It blooms every year during the week of our daughter's birthday.   So, we call it the "Nia Tree."

The blossoms are particularly gorgeous this year.   Our little girl turns ten on Sunday, and we'll take photos in front of that tree, just as we have each year since 1998.

Those rituals are somehow comforting, even as we ask ourselves where the time has gone.

What are your rituals for time passages?

 

 

WHAT'S GOING ON???

That's what we want to know from you.  (It's also the question we're asking Mother Nature this morning!!)

With the Nasty Nor'Easter lingering through today, and precipitation changing from rain to snow...not to mention the extremely high winds...this is a mid-April morning we won't soon forget.

We need your input!!!

Conditions will be changing constantly throughout the morning, and with such as vast viewing area, we need you to be our eyes.

Let us know what's going on where you are, and we'll make sure our Good Day viewers know, too.

Good luck....stay safe...and thanks in advance.

I'm tired, and I miss my Percosets, but I sure am happy to be back on Good Day!

I've been "knee-high" in emails, and it has been wonderful.    Just knowing that  "a-knee-body" noticed I was gone means so much....I mean it!

Thanks so much to Dr. Craig Israelite, the surgeon who dug in and cleaned up my meniscus issues last Tuesday at Penn Presbyterian.    I was quite nervous about this procedure, since I hadn't had any surgery since my tonsilectomy at age five.   Every single person I encountered at the Short Procedure unit was so kind...thanks for getting me through in my hour of "kneed."

I've posted a few photos of my trip to the hospital.   Of course, I brought Bus Stop Buddy with me.....I couldn't dress him in scrubs, but my daughter did color him in nicely.

Still to come....a few "knee-slapping" television reviews, since I watched a ton of tube while I was laid up. 

And for all of you who have asked about Dorothy.  I spoke to her today, and she's working hard to rehabilitate her poor back so that she can "stand tall" and be back with us very soon.

 

The first time I ever heard the word "meniscus" was in chemistry class in high school.   You might remember that we measured liquids, the teacher told us to use the bottom of the meniscus, which is the curve you see when you look at the top of the liquid in the glass.  

If you do remember that,  good for you.  I actually didn't until recently.   

 The next time I heard that word was from our former host Mike Jerrick.   He used to joke about his "meniscus issues" whenever he wanted to get out of physical activity on the show.

My latest meniscus mention was from the orthopaedic surgeon I consulted about the severe knee pain I've been having for more than a month.   He told me that the meniscus is the cartilage underneath the kneecap.    An MRI told him mine is torn.

I wish I had an exciting bungee-jumping or rock climbing story to tell about how it happenend, but I don't really know.   Bummer.

Why am I telling you all this and assuming you care?

I'm having arthroscopic surgery next week and won't be doing the weather on Good Day.   A few of you have seen me limping around with a cane, and have been very kind.   I thought the thing looked so cold and sterile that I crocheted a cover for it with fuzzy yarn.   It's goofy for sure, but that, too, has been received well.

So, it looks like it'll be while before Dorothy and I will be reunited on teevee.   We'll have to find the old Peaches and Herb song when that happens.

I'm hoping to return on April 9th.    With luck,  the joint will be jumpin' when I get back.   get it??????

As the expression goes, "you can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family."

That's certainly true.   In most families, there are those you are crazy about, and those who are merely tolerated, but you're all connected.    Every so often, we find ourselves  longing to strengthen that bond by reaching out for a connection to relations far and near. 

If you're feeling the urge to round up the relatives for a reunion,  I've got the perfect place to start:

It's the Family Reunion Conference, taking place this weekend (March 15 - 18) at the Marriott Philadlephia Airport Hotel.   The conference is presented by Temple University's Family Reunion Institute, which was founded by Dr. Ione Vargus (who is the mother of our own Bill Vargus....and my mother-in-law).

At the conference web site, there are tons of workshops to help you get started.  If you're already having reunions,  there are workshops to enhance the gatherings and make them more meaningful.

I'll be conducting a workshop on scrapbooking on Thursday, the 15th at 2 pm.  You can learn about storytelling, tracing your roots through DNA, and involving the kids in the reunion.   There are presentations from numerous cities and sites that are happy to host reunions.  The luncheons on Friday and Saturday will feature Kenny Gamble and Angel Ortiz.

We all have family ties, and this weekend it a great way to keep them tight.

Use the links outlined above to find out more.   Maybe I'll see you there!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The National Weather Service has issued a SNOW ADVISORY for Philadelphia and points south and east. 

There's a WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY in effect for Lancaster County and points north and west of there.

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This could be the swan song of Winter.

Outside the air is frigid, and snow is on the way this morning.

But the start of Spring is just two weeks away, and the Flower Show is in town, so there are lots of reasons to be hopeful.

Since the first flakes are expected to fall during the morning rush, we are once again asking for your help during Good Day Philadelphia.

If you see snowflakes this morning, let us know where you are and what is happening at your location.

This might be the kids' last chance for a snow day this season.   We'll see what happens and look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks in advance!

Our family is, once again, following American Idol avidly this season.   We love the losers we see during the first few weeks, and there's no shortage of cheering and criticism as the contestants become fewer and fewer.

As far as I know, my nine-year-old knows nothing about the controversy surrounding Antonella Barba and her naughty internet photos.    I'm glad the subject was not addressed during the program.  

Since Antonella was clearly the worst singer on Wednesday night, yet was voted on to the next round, it got me to thinking about fame vs. talent, and all the recent media nuttiness surrounding Britney Spears and Anna Nicole Smith.

Spears, Smith, and yes, Barba:   quite good-looking yet marginally talented.   Yet they are attention-grabbers.   And the more naughty they are, the more we talk about them.

One day, I'll be having a conversation about this as I continue to urge the kid to be as concerned about being beautiful on the inside as she is outwardly.

Weeks like this will make it even tougher.

 

It's an icy mess out there in many places.   Others are getting heavy rain.

We want to know what's going on with you.....let me know what kind of weather you have at your house...and maybe I'll mention it on the show!

Thanks...

Sue

Before I head off to the grocery store for bread, milk, and toilet paper, a few thoughts..... -------------------------------------------------------
----- Click here to check out our Winter Weather Tracker so you can forecast along with me

Want to be a Bus Stop Buddy? Send us a picture and become a Bus Stop Buddy. We’ll be featuring some of the pictures from time to time in our weather segments. Click here to go to Buddy’s page and send us a picture -------------------------------------------------------
------ Another taste of winter weather, and once again, it might only be a taste. A low pressure system which has made a mess of morning rush hour in Alabama, Georgia, and the Carolinas is headed to the northeast, and eventually, out to sea. It’s a tough storm to forecast, because the track of the storm, and the amount of moisture we get, are yet to be determined with complete accuracy. In other words, the models are not in agreement on these factors, even this close to the storm. Rob Guarino’s blog has a lot more of those juicy details. The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory, beginning at midnight tonight and lasting through 9 a.m. Friday. Count on lots of cloud cover today, and a chance of some light snow showers or flurries here and there during the afternoon. The bulk of the storm, if it comes up this far, will be at its worst tonight. Looks like we start off with snowfall, between 5 and 8 p.m. Then, as temperatures drop overnight, sleet and freezing rain mix in and this wintry mix stays with us through the morning rush hour. This is looking more and more like a non-event for the Lehigh Valley and the Poconos. It’s also shaping up to be more of a rain event at the Shore. Then, we brace ourselves for what could be the most frigid air of the season so far....arriving by the end of the weekend. This latest event comes on a pivotal date in the world of meteorology. This is the date that rests half-way between Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox, and it is at this time that America's oldest and most experienced weather prognosticator groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, forecasts the weather for the next six weeks. Will he see his shadow, calling for six more weeks of winter, or will he call for an early spring? With this forecast, do we really need the groundhog????????

Once again, we need your input!!

Let us know what conditions are like at your house:

How much snow....if any is falling right now...slippery road and/or sidewalk conditions...do we need time to scrape our windshields?

You get the idea.

We'll be passing along your observations all morning long.

Thanks in advance,
Sue

Thursday morning weather watch:

Thanks to blog technology, you can help us out with the weather.

We'd love for you to let us know if there's any precipitation at your house this morning, or if you encounter slippery roads.

As you've probably heard, the real blast of cold air with snow showers is set for later today. But we have received some reports of snow showers that are sticking.

Just comment below with your observations, and we'll pass your information along.

Thanks in advance!
Sue

First of all, thanks to all of you who came out to the Constitution Center for the Martin Luther King Day. It was nice to see so many families spending the day together having fun and learning about the reason for the holiday.

The three of us (my husband, my daughter and me) read the story of the 1963 March on Washington and Dr. King's "I Have A Dream" speech. No matter how many times I hear those words, they never fail to inspire.

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Now, to the silly stuff:

From a BBC article, "100 Things We Didn't Know Last Year:"

-Nicole Kidman is afraid of butterflies.

-Baboons can tell the difference between English and French.

-One in 10 Europeans are allegedly conceived in an Ikea bed.

-It's possible for a human to blow up balloons via the ear.

-The Queen of England has never bee on a computer, she told Bill Gates as she awarded him an honorary knighthood.

-In the United States, it's possible to subpoena a dog.

-"Restaurant" is the most mis-spelled word in search engines.

-Lance Armstrong's heart is almost a third larger than the average man's.

-You're ten times more likely to be bitten by a human than a rat.

-The children's book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, has sold one copy every minute since its 1969 publication.

-Jimi Hendrix pretended to be gay to be discharged from the US Army.

-One in six children think broccoli is a baby tree.

-One in eighteen people has a third nipple.

-Bill Gates does not have an iPod.

-Musical instrument shops must pay an annual royalty to cover shoppers who perform a recognizable "riff" before they buy, thereby making a "public performance."

If you're looking for something to do with your family on the Monday holiday, how about stopping by the Constitution Center?

I'll be there with my family at 2:00 pm. We'll be reading stories about the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

It would also be a good opportunity to check out the amazing experience that is our Constitution Center. You'll never take your American citizenship for granted again.

I have to blog about this thing that happened to me the other night because I think it's good information.

I came into the kitchen area from the basement, and smelled something strange. I knew I had bathed, so I went about investigating, since I thought it might be gas. I checked the burners on the stove, etc. and all was ok.

Since I knew I wouldn't sleep with the fear of my house blowing up, I called PECO's 24 hour number: 1-800-841-4141.

I was amazed at how quickly the technician got there. And I'm happy to report that there was no gas leak at my house.
And no, it wasn't a poor attempt at cooking on my part.

I appreciate the peace of mind I got from PECO's quick response. And I thought you should know in case the same thing ever happens to you.