THE game, hanging decorations, visiting the big guy, cold coming

We had a lot of fun Friday getting ready for THE game!

Summer enjoyed some travels and got to see both sets of grandparents this weekend.  

I went up to Cleveland to spend the weekend with Dawn's family.  I got up with Summer both mornings and we had fun hanging out while the rest of the family slept in.  Like what I did with her hair?

I went for a run before the game and did a lucky seven miles and thankfully the Buckeyes were able to get a win against the team up north. 

I am in the middle of the Runner's World Run Streak.  And it's a good thing I have been staying active. 

Monday morning I tried breaking into the new studio... But... they were still locked.  We are doing run-throughs this week to work out any unforeseen kinks.  The new set is AMAZING and cutting-edge.

How about this sunset from Monday! No filter used!

I hung up the lights yesterday.  It went very smooth... almost too smooth.

Then I went for a run. 

Once Summer woke up, we went to see Santa! She was VERY shy. We only managed to get the smallest smile when she was sitting with Santa.

When we got home... ONE OF THE STRANDS WAS OUT!  DANG IT!!! I will have to climb back up there and try fixing it today.

Here's the #CrewSC forecast for tonight! Dry, partly cloudy, chilly, light winds, GREAT playoff weather for a win! #SaveTheCrew 

Temperatures today will be about eight degrees cooler than yesterday, but still remaining nearly ten degrees above normal. So... enjoy our mild temperatures before colder air arrives. Passing early clouds for your Wednesday then some midday sun followed by more clouds this evening and tonight. Temps will top out in the mid 50s today and tomorrow, however rain returns tomorrow. Increasing clouds Thursday with some scattered afternoon rain showers. Temps cool off more for Friday and the weekend, highs in the upper 40s, with a mix of sun and clouds.

A much colder push of air is looking more likely for the second half of next week. Have a good one!

Best,
Andrew Buck Michael

Starting a running streak & 2017-2018 winter outlook

This week has been fantastic for fall running.  A tad chilly, but I made it out to the Metro Park trails earlier this week while Dawn and Summer were out of town.

Columbus Crew SC had their playoff match at home on Tuesday and our crew was reppin' the black and gold on Tuesday.  Hopefully we can move forward with a tie/win when we play again next Wednesday in Toronto. 

My parents picked up Summer yesterday to head to Thanksgiving early.  Glad she gets to spend time with my sister before my sister heads to Florida for the Disney College Program. Summer is getting spoiled by my family. 

Got up early, before work, to kick off 40 Days Of Awesome for the Runner’s World Run Streak. I did it last year from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day and it definitely kept me motivated to stay active during an easy-to-make-excuses time of the year. I have to run at least 1 mile a day for the 40 days.

I saw the sunrise out of a window at work and had to run out to snap this amazing photo over Broadcast Lake.

Great traveling weather for today with mostly to partly cloudy skies, dry roads, and chilly temps. We warm into the mid 40s today then clearing skies tonight and dropping to 30 for any early Black Friday shopping. More sun tomorrow and warming into the lower 50s. A cold front will sweet through on Saturday bringing the chance of some early spotty rain showers then partly cloudy for the afternoon. Mix of sun and clouds on Sunday and colder then more sun and warming on Monday. Another cold front later Tuesday will bring more cold air for the second half of the week. The pattern rolls on...

Speaking of pattern... let's talk about how our winter pattern is looking.  If you look near the equator just off the coast of South America you can see that the Pacific is cooler than normal, in this Sea Surface Temperature Anomaly map.  That means La Nina, cooler Eastern Pacific waters. 

Another big factor in our winter pattern is the Northern Pacific.  That high pressure has been sitting there and staying put.  So what does all this mean...

So I cooked this up a while ago for my talk with Ohio Department of Transportation to help them plan for winter.  So we have La Nina in the Eastern Pacific and high pressure over the Northern Pacific. 

So this means that the polar jet stream will be going around the high and then dive south over Western Canada and come across the Northern Plains to us.  The La Nina pattern for the Ohio Valley is wetter than normal. Normally temps do not differ a whole lot from normal, but if the past few weeks are any indication then we may be colder than normal for the winter.  The cooler air will push in with a stronger polar jet and a snow pack over the Northern Plains.  So get ready for a winter with a lot of Alberta Clippers.  Those are fast moving systems from the northwest that typically bring medium-light snows over and over and over.  It is the southwestern systems that bring the BIG snows, but those may hold off until the tropical jet stream starts overtaking things at the end of winter.

So here is a map of snowfall average for Ohio.  I think it would be pretty safe to take these numbers and increasing that by about 20% or more.  Especially near Lake Erie.  Lake Erie is warmer than normal so lake effect will be in full force for the start of winter until it starts freezing over.  Last year that never happened.  Anyway, I think a wetter than normal winter is a pretty good bet.  As far as temps, I think near to slightly below normal, on average. 

Before I get back to the morning show, I want to share this with you... We are your "School Closing Headquarters" at ABC6 and FOX28, and I am stepping it up this year.  Since we are on our temporary set, and can't really do augmented reality with our current set, I focused on new challenges.  I wanted to write some computer code to take school closings and plot that to a map.  So the last few weeks I have been knees deep in computer code... something I have never dabbled in... and I finally have it finished.  So this map will plot delays and closings for the schools across Central Ohio.  I CAN'T WAIT for the first delays and closings with winter weather to finally start using this graphics.  So.... shhhh!!!  You got a sneak peak at it! Normally you have to wait for a list of schools at the bottom, but you can get a good idea if schools in your part of the area are delayed or closed by checking out this map! Back to the show! Have a good one!

Best,
Andrew Buck Michael


BY THE WAY!!!

The first inch of snow contest is still happening on my Facebook page! Click HERE for a link to the rules and to join in!

Back on the farm for the weekend, Thanksgiving forecast

We went back to the family farm for the weekend because Summer will be staying there the next couple days. Saturday was wet and windy and I went for a run.  First three miles against the wind then the second three miles with the 30mph winds at my back.  I was FLYING for the second half of the run.  The light rain stung my face during the run, but glad I got out and braved the elements while Summer was napping.

Sunday we went up to visit my Grandma Jean.  She kept feeding Summer popcorn until I had to be the bad guy and said no more.  

My brother was visiting too and my parents do not let pets inside, but he twisted their arm and said as long as the dog stays inside the crate while inside then they were fine with the dog.  We spent a lot of time outside with Lola.  Summer knew it was time for a nap so she tried laying down on the couch, but I made her head back to the bedroom after I took my bags out to the car.

I sat her down and told her she had to listen to grandma and grandpa.  She said "Dad, *mumbling for about 60 seconds*." Then I told her again she had to listen to grandma and grandpa.  She then hugged me for about 30 seconds and didn't want to let go.  It broke my heart, but I know she is going to have a blast. It's crazy how big she is getting and understanding everything, including non-verbal cues.

Bundle up for your Monday morning with temps dipping into the 20s, however lots of sun today will help warm us into the mid 40s. There will be a brisk breeze out of the southwest today making it feel cooler. Clear and chilly tonight followed by more sun to start Tuesday. We warm to 50 tomorrow then more clouds later in the day with some evening/overnight rain showers transitioning to some pockets of brief snow before dry, cold air races in.

Chilly for Wednesday and Thursday, however dry for any holiday traveling. Have a good one!

Best,
Andrew Buck Michael

Rain, then more rain, then snow on the way!

Gotta soak in the sunshine since it has been such a cloudy November for us in Ohio.  After lunch last week we all went down to the park for a quick break.

Summer and I worked on the garden beds as well the last few days.

We had to tighten up some of the beds that were starting to get loose because of the force of the soil.

Grab the rain gear for today. We will stay dry for the morning, however rain is likely to arrive for mid afternoon and stick around through the evening today. Evening commute will be wet and mild with afternoon highs today in the lower 50s.

Cool tomorrow with a mix of sun & clouds; more clouds north and more sun farther south. Early sun Friday then increasing clouds with rain possible late.

Wet Saturday with scattered rain showers. A surge of warm air early Saturday will push us into the mid 50s by midday then cool air rushes in for the afternoon and evening. Temps stay warm enough during the day that most of the precipitation will stay rain during the day, but flurries are possible later in the evening and overnight heading into Sunday. Cold with some lake effect snow possible Sunday, mainly to the north, with the potential for a dusting in spots, but not much more. Have a good one!

Best,
Andrew Buck Michael

Hanging with Summer, break from running, cold air coming!

Summer and I did some exploring last week. Dawn was getting together with a friend for dinner, so Summer and I explored Tuttle Mall and she was loving the decorations already up.

We went to a wedding Friday night and it was a very cute wedding with great themes from Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and Harry Potter. Fun times. 

I also geared up for a long weekend run.  My legs were still not full healed from the Columbus Marathon, so it was just a solo run on the trails.

I was hoping to get in 26 miles, but my legs were really killing me by 13 miles and I eventually pulled the plug just before 17 miles.  I figured it was smarter to just pull the plug and avoid getting injured.  HOWEVER, I did cross over the 1,000 mile mark for the year.  That was my new year's resolution, so I finally did it.  And the only reason I got there is from running smart. I battled a couple injuries the past year and properly resting is critical to getting back up there at full capacity.  Taking 2 weeks off with NO running at all.  

I did go out Sunday morning to watch some friends and family running the Hot Chocolate 15k.  Fun times in the rain.

Monday I talked at the ODOT Winter Prep meeting. Honored for them to ask me to give the winter outlook.  Lots of great questions as well.

Keep the jacket handy, but trade the umbrella for the sunglasses for the next few days! Finally getting some high pressure to bring sun for the rest of the week. Chilly mornings then cool afternoons for today and Thursday with more sun than clouds. More clouds Thursday night as a cold front sweeps through, but with little moisture to work with, not expecting much rain or snow with this, just colder temps. Cold blast of air Friday with temps staying in the 20s and 30s all day. Temps dip into the lower 20s by Saturday morning as clouds slowly start returning for Central Ohio. Partly cloudy, dry & cool Saturday, however rain likely Sunday. Have a good one!

Best,
Andrew Buck Michael