v39.9: IGOR! Yes Master?

Howdy folks,

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It is starting to look like we're in for another hurricane here in the Atlantic provinces of Canada.  Hurricane Igor, which is currently a category 4 hurricane, is projected to make its way up the Atlantic and could possibly hit us here in Nova Scotia.  It is obviously still too early to tell where it will end up, but there is a slight chance it could make it this far north like Hurricane Earl did.

I find it interesting how they come up with these names for Hurricanes.  I'm sure most of us know already that hurricane names are picked out ahead of time and they alternate between male and female names each year.  If a particular hurricane causes extensive damage (Hurricane Katrina for example), they retire the name and it is never used again.  If you're interested in seeing the list of hurricane names for the next 5 years, check out this site.

Some of you may have remembered me talking about my 5 year work anniversary gift I ordered a few weeks back.  Well it finally arrived today.  Unfortunately, I was a little disappointed to have to pay a brokerage fee when the item arrived at my door step.  Perhaps disappointed isn't a strong enough word.  I was pissed off!  I've spent 5 years at this company and I've put in a lot of time and effort into my job and never have I asked for any kind of reward or recognition for my efforts.  I realize getting a gift for n years of dedication and service is something above and beyond for a company to do for an employee, but if they are giving gifts, please for the love of God make them gifts so the employee doesn't get the shaft when it shows up on their door.  Of course I could sit here and bitch about it all night long, but I really don't have the energy to waste on dwelling on it.  I put forth the question to my boss as to whether there will be a reimbursement for my "loss" and he pretty much told me I was SOL, but he would escalate and maybe I'll get it back.

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So I'm betting you're all wondering what I ordered?  Well, this bad boy is the Kitchen-Aid 7qt Stainless Steal slow cooker!  It retails for around $199 at Sears and has food temperature alerts, programmable digital timer and a host of other features I've been anxiously looking forward to using.  I enjoy making stew in the slow cooker for the family, but with the family growing and the slow cooker getting smaller (or seemingly so), it was time to upgrade and when this rig showed up on my 5 year rewards, I didn't even think twice about ordering it.  Now I can cook stew for the entire family and have left overs for another day.  I plan on putting this thing to use on Saturday and have some stew cooked and ready for family members for when they come over to our place Saturday night for some drinks and games.

Speaking of which, my sisters and their significant others will be coming by Saturday and I'm looking forward to a great evening of family, friends and fellowship as we partake of some beverages of the alcoholic variety and have some freshly cooked stew and snacks while hunched over the kitchen table playing poker.  Yeah, Saturday night is going to be a good time I think. :)

Well folks, it is getting late and I have a few things I need to get done tonight before heading to bed.  Tomorrow I am working from home because of a Dr's appointment my wife has so hopefully I'll have some time during the day tomorrow to write.  I really need to get back on the wagon with writing or I'm going to be in bad shape when NaNoWriMo starts up again in November; another thing I'm looking forward to.

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Take care my friends and remember to always check under the toilet seat before you sit down.  I heard a story one time of a lady who failed to check under the toilet seat and was bitten by a spider and died.  True story, it was on the Internet :)

Cheers,

Al

v39.6: Back to School!

Howdy folks,

-slurp-

If you're a parent with children still in school, you're probably just as happy as I am that they are going back.  I'll never understand why they make the kids go back before Labour Day.  What is the sense of going back to school for a day or two only to have a long weekend?  I'm sure there are reasons behind it, but like most things, don't make a lot of sense to most of us.

I haven't had a lot of time to actually sit back and write these days.  Summer has busy for us and we've been doing quite a bit as a family.  The past couple weekends found us in the South Shore visiting family which was nice.  We don't get a lot of chances to go out of town to visit family so it was a treat to be able to do it two weekends in a row.  I'm sure my mother was thrilled to have us there.

We're being hit by some freakish heat wave here in Halifax.  Yesterday it was 32C, today was 33C and tomorrow they're calling for a booming 34C (89.6F - 93.2F for my American friends to the south).  Of course we're going to pay for it this weekend when Hurricane Earl blows through here on Saturday.  Currently a Category 4 Hurricane just off the East coast of Florida, Earl is projected to pass right through Nova Scotia and is predicted to be at least a Category 1 when it hits early Saturday morning.  A lot of people around here are reminded of Hurricane Juan which hit Nova Scotia without mercy in 2003.  The rumor is, the weather just before Juan hit was just like it is now, very hot and very humid.  Today, with the humidex, the temperature was around 43C (109.4F) and it is expected to be higher tomorrow.  I wasn't living here when Juan blew through, but from what I've heard, I'm very glad.

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So what does this all mean for us?  Probably nothing.  I don't suspect we'll get hit with anymore more than a bit of wind and rain.  These things tend to get a lot slower as they approach the Northern Atlantic and run out of steam.

As I mentioned in my last musing, I'm anxiously awaiting my bonus which should be arriving on the 3rd of September.  I've been thinking a lot about it actually.  I'm also really looking forward to spending Friday night with some family here at our place in celebration, it's not every day the company I work for gives away free money; as you may have noticed if you're read through the last 5 years of musings.

I've also been thinking about what to do about the extra income.  I really don't have much in the way of bills right now given that I only pay for electricity and cable/phone/internet which together is less than $200/month.  I'm mostly caught up on everything so I plan on ensuring everything is topped off completely.  I've also put a lot of thought into buying a laptop.  I'm not looking to spend a lot of money on one but I'm also not looking to "cheap" out and just get one for the sake of having one.  There are a few things I absolutely must have in a laptop but I'm not willing to spend most of the bonus on one so unless there is a good sale (and there are) I won't bother wasting the money.  I've been wanting a laptop for awhile now.  There is something to be said about portable computing and being able to take it with you wherever you go.

These past couple weekends I brought the work laptop with me to my Mother's house.  It is a slow piece of crap (IBM Thinkpad T42) which is running a corporate image of Windows XP that is painful to use.  It makes a great web browser and surfs the web well (when it connects) but a lot of the "features" of the laptop are either disabled or not working properly (thanks to the afore mentioned corporate image) which only makes it more annoying.  I can't even "discover" wireless networks, I have to manually type in the SSID and keys to connect; it's a strange device for certain.

Anyway, I've decided to shop around and find the perfect laptop for me in the price range I'm looking to spend.  If I can't find one, I won't buy one but with the deals going on right now for Back to School, I'm sure I'll find what I'm looking for.  The sad part is I found the perfect laptop for the perfect price already, but the sale ends on the 2nd and I don't get my bonus until the 3rd.  Oh well.

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Well folks, it is time to say farewell for now.  The heat is starting to drain my soul into an eternal abyss of fiery hell from which there is no escape.  It's also very hot outside.  Until next time, remember, just because ice is cold, doesn't mean it's safe to put in places that are hot.  You know what I'm talking about Juggs :)

Cheers,

Al

v29.8: Calm Before the Storm

Morning folks,

-slurp-

No, you're not seeing things.  My last musing was titled "After The Storm" and this one is the Calm Before the Storm.  It is hurricane season and as such it has been predicted that we will get more hurricanes this year than we have in the past.  Already this is the second disruption that has come our way and while Hurricane Danny hasn't fully formed yet, there is a chance this could turn into a category 1 hurricane and hit us head on.

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I'm not too worried though.  At most, I think we'll get some wind and a bunch of rain but I don't think it will cause much damage just like Hurricane Bill which blew through this area last weekend.  As a result of the storm, I do plan on cutting my weekend trip to the South Shore short as I really don't like driving on the highway (especially that highway) during stormy weather.  I also need to ensure I'm home at a decent hour Sunday because I have a lot of things that I need to figure out and do before the work week starts again.

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So what exactly is a hurricane?  I have wondered about this and always wondered what the difference between a category 1 and a category 2 hurricane was.  Well today the wondering is over because today I'm going to tell all!

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So in pure Musings over Coffee fashion, I must define the thing I'm talking about.  In this case, a hurricane is nothing more than a tropical cyclone.

A tropical cyclone is a storm system characterized by a large low-pressure center and numerous thunderstorms that produce strong winds and heavy rain. Tropical cyclones feed on heat released when moist air rises, resulting in condensation of water vapor contained in the moist air.

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I watched a documentary on television a few weeks ago about our earth.  They talked briefly about hurricanes and described them as nature's air conditioners.  It is no secret that the planet is getting warmer.  Global warming is starting to become more evident as the years go on.  You see this in our winters and how much warmer they seem.  You see this during hurricane season with more violent hurricanes and more frequent disturbances.  This is nature's way of telling us to stop.

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Of course I drive a car, I burn fossil fuels and I don't always separate my garbage.  I have no write to tell people how they should change their lifestyle and save the planet when I myself have issues with it.  The most I can ask for is you teach your children (or grandchildren) about conservation and saving the planet.  I know it sounds horrible but my generation was brought up with leaded gas, oil burning furnaces, huge v8 gas hog vehicles and wide open landfills where we threw away EVERYTHING.

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So back to the tropical cyclone.  What is the difference between all the categories?  Who is responsible for categorizing a hurricane?  How the hell do they get that soft flowing caramel inside the Caramilk bar?

Fortunately I have the answers to the first two questions and I'm still working on the third.

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Hurricane categorization uses the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale system.  This system takes into consideration sustained wind speed, pressure and categorizes tropical cyclones from 1 to 5.  It also defines what kinds of damage you can expect.  Below was taken from the National Hurricane Center website:

Category 1

Sustained winds 74-95 mph (64-82 kt or 119-153 km/hr). Damaging winds are expected. Some damage to building structures could occur, primarily to unanchored mobile homes (mainly pre-1994 construction). Some damage is likely to poorly constructed signs. Loose outdoor items will become projectiles, causing additional damage. Persons struck by windborne debris risk injury and possible death. Numerous large branches of healthy trees will snap. Some trees will be uprooted, especially where the ground is saturated. Many areas will experience power outages with some downed power poles.

Category 2

Sustained winds 96-110 mph (83-95 kt or 154-177 km/hr). Very strong winds will produce widespread damage. Some roofing material, door, and window damage of buildings will occur. Considerable damage to mobile homes (mainly pre-1994 construction) and poorly constructed signs is likely. A number of glass windows in high rise buildings will be dislodged and become airborne. Loose outdoor items will become projectiles, causing additional damage. Persons struck by windborne debris risk injury and possible death.. Numerous large branches will break. Many trees will be uprooted or snapped. Extensive damage to power lines and poles will likely result in widespread power outages that could last a few to several days.

Category 3

Sustained winds 111-130 mph (96-113 kt or 178-209 km/hr). Dangerous winds will cause extensive damage. Some structural damage to houses and buildings will occur with a minor amount of wall failures. Mobile homes (mainly pre-1994 construction) and poorly constructed signs are destroyed. Many windows in high rise buildings will be dislodged and become airborne. Persons struck by windborne debris risk injury and possible death. Many trees will be snapped or uprooted and block numerous roads. Near total power loss is expected with outages that could last from several days to weeks.

Category 4

Sustained winds 131-155 mph (114-135 kt or 210-249 km/hr). Extremely dangerous winds causing devastating damage are expected. Some wall failures with some complete roof structure failures on houses will occur. All signs are blown down. Complete destruction of mobile homes (primarily pre-1994 construction). Extensive damage to doors and windows is likely. Numerous windows in high rise buildings will be dislodged and become airborne. Windborne debris will cause extensive damage and persons struck by the wind-blown debris will be injured or killed. Most trees will be snapped or uprooted. Fallen trees could cut off residential areas for days to weeks. Electricity will be unavailable for weeks after the hurricane passes.

Category 5

Sustained winds greater than 155 mph (135 kt or 249 km/hr). Catastrophic damage is expected. Complete roof failure on many residences and industrial buildings will occur. Some complete building failures with small buildings blown over or away are likely. All signs blown down. Complete destruction of mobile homes (built in any year). Severe and extensive window and door damage will occur. Nearly all windows in high rise buildings will be dislodged and become airborne. Severe injury or death is likely for persons struck by wind-blown debris. Nearly all trees will be snapped or uprooted and power poles downed. Fallen trees and power poles will isolate residential areas. Power outages will last for weeks to possibly months.

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There you have it, some nasty stuff there.  As I already mentioned, Hurricane Bill hit is last weekend and was only a Category 1.  Thankfully it was far enough off the coast that it didn't cause much damage but Hurricane Danny is threatening to hit is head on and while it is only a Tropical Storm right now, there are projected models that show it reaching Category 1 before it hits.  That could be interesting.

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Well folks, time for me to make like a tree and leave.  It is Friday and that makes me happy.  Remember to make sure you clean between your toes when you shower, there is a lot of bacteria there that is often overlooked and can lead to warts and other foot related issues.

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Cheers,

Al

v29.7: After The Storm

Good morning folks,

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As I expected, Hurricane Bill came and went and if you didn't know it was coming, you would have missed it.  The storm flew into town generating as much wind as a single butterfly.  Of course, if you believe in the "Chaos Theory" you wouldn't take the wind of a butterfly for granted.

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v29.5: There She Blows!

Good morning folks,

-slurp-

Friday has found us once again.  This time it comes just before a hurricane that is scheduled to hit us sometime this coming Sunday.  I won't say I'm not worried about it as there is potential for some family traveling on Sunday and driving in a Category 4 Hurricane is never advisable.

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