Christmas Eve
Merry Christmas!!!
The forecast discussion is forthcoming, but first here's my Christmas message...
For Unto Us a Child Was Born...
Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year! 2009 has been a rough year economically, and in many other ways for many people, but no matter what your situation, there is one constant that has always been since it all began 2009 years ago! Christmas is a time when we celebrate being with our family and friends. It is a time to decorate our homes and offices with lights and trees, etc, and listen to the great music and watch movies associated with Christmas. The hustle and bustle of the Christmas season comes to an end on Christmas Eve, as all the shopping is done as we scrounge around town looking for the perfect gift for our loved ones. It is a time to pray, and attend church with our families, and reflect and be thankful for all of the blessings given us by God. The presents are nice, and the giving and receiving is nice, but we don't dare forget the real meaning of the season! For you see, 2009 years ago, we received the greatest Gift of all!
God loved us so much, the He gave us the gift of a Savior! His son, Jesus Christ...He gave us His one and only Son, so that whosoever believes in Him, will not perish, but will have eternal life! Jesus gave His life for us, to save us from eternal damnation! I can't think of a greater gift than knowing that Someone could love me that much, to die for me and take all of my transgressions away.
As we celebrate another Christmas, let us all remember that it isn't what we celebrate on this day, but Who. The Birth of Christ should be celebrated and lived inside and everyone of us not only on Christmas, but on every day. I feel that in all the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season, that this, the most Significant reason, for the day is forgotten! This Christmas miracle that God made, is the single most significant story of all, and Christmas is the most significant day of the whole year! What/who would we be without God and without his Son, Jesus Christ? Do you know this Jesus I speak of? It seems that a minority is trying to control the majority these days...it's Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas! No, it's Merry Christmas, it's always has been, is now, and always will be! Yes, this is a free country, but no one can tell us believers that we can't say Merry Christmas anymore, or keep God first in our lives and in everything we do! They don't have to believe it, they have that right, but don't tell the Christians of this world that we can't express our faith and belief. To me, Happy Holidays means all the holidays...Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, Hanukkah, etc. Merry Christmas! Keep Christ in Christmas!
I hope everyone truly does enjoy whatever you get for Christmas this year, and every year, but never forget the real reason for the season, and the fact that 2009 years ago on that first Christmas on a cold winter night in a small town in Israel, you received the greatest Gift you'll ever need. As you gather with your family and friends this Christmas, don't forget to pray, and also remember those less fortunate than yourself. Also, lest not forget the brave men and women of the U.S. military, who fight for our freedoms everyday! Y'all truly are our other real heroes!
In closing, I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I have so much to be thankful for, and I hope you do as well. May God's never-ending blessings be with all of you this Christmas, and forever. Happy Birthday to you, my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! I hope 2010 brings everyone all the best, and that God continues to be at the forefront of your life. Thank you all for viewing the blog this year, and helping me getting it off the ground and running! Look for bigger and better things on this blog in 2010! I will have more forecasts posted before the end of the year, after a few days off for Christmas! Merry Christmas and God bless!
SW Louisiana Forecast Discussion...Severe weather threat materialized in the worst way this morning! Several tornadoes were reported across the Eastern portion of the forecast area mainly over Acadiana from Vermilion and Acadia Parish northward towards St. Landry and Evangeline Parish. The worst of the damage was in Acadia Parish were multiple tornadoes occurred, and one fatality occurred in Scott in Lafayette Parish when a tree was toppled by the strong winds, and fell on a home. A 44 year old man was killed. A complete damage assessment will be conducted by the NWS in Lake Charles, and more information will be available in the coming days. For the immediate Lake Charles area, we came out of this relatively unscathed, with no damage reported in Calcasieu Parish, and no Severe Thunderstorm or Tornado Warning as the squall line moved through shortly after sunrise. Gusty winds and heavy rains were the main weather story here, and we were lucky! Our thoughts & prayers go out to our neighbors in Acadiana! Rough weather also occurred in East Texas with a strong tornado near Lufkin, TX last night and another near Longview between Shreveport and Dallas.
Quite a contrast in weather today with strong CAA in place, and temperatures falling this evening. This storm system is quite dynamic, and this is perfectly illustrated just off to our NW with near blizzard conditions in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and a massive blizzard across Oklahoma. All of this snow is on the backside of the departing cold front. This is the Upper Level Low on the backside of the main trough, and associated cold front. The ULL will not bring any snow to our area, once again dashing our hopes for a White Christmas, however, a low stratus deck will be present this evening as CAA strengthens as the ULL makes its closest approach to the forecast area. Some snow flurries may occur across North Louisiana from Shreveport to Monroe, but no accumulations are expected. I guess if we can't have snow, at least we'll have the cold, to make it feel like Christmas. If you remember last year, we had temperatures near 80 on Christmas...not in 2009! Temperatures have been pretty steady this afternoon since falling into the mid to upper 50s behind the front this morning, but a more rapid downward spiral will begin after sunset as CAA intensifies in response to the passage of the ULL. Winds will remain quite strong as well with a large pressure differential across the area. The winds will gust well over 30 mph at times this evening, before subsiding in the overnight hours as high pressure from Canada builds in. Skies will clear overnight as well as the ULL pulls NE into the Ozarks. No mention of precipitation is highlighted in the forecast on this Christmas Eve. The strong North winds and cold temperatures will make Santa feel right at home as he comes to SW Louisiana overnight. Kids, don't forget the milk and cookies!!! Bundle up when heading out to church!!!
Christmas Day will be a beautiful day with lots of sunshine and the cold weather in place. Highs will struggle to reach 50 across the forecast area as CAA continues. The winds will continue to subside during the day as the high pressure moves closer to SW Louisiana. Temperatures around freezing are expected across the forecast area as we open presents in the morning. Upper 20s to near 30 seems logical from Toledo Bend to Marksville, and temperatures around 30-32 seems like a good target for the I-10 corridor with temperatures in the 33-35 range for coastal areas. Highs on Christmas Day will be in the mid 40s north to lower 50s at the coast. Clear and cold weather continues for Christmas Night with another night of temperatures dropping to similar readings to tonight...upper 20s to lower 30s. An area wide light freeze is expected with winds near calm. The clear skies will last into Saturday, but this is when some changes occur. The persistent, active El Nino pattern of December 2009 gets revved up again. Models depict another Gulf low developing as the Subtropical Jet Stream gets active once again. The cold air at the surface will be overridden by a layer of warm air associated with Gulf cyclogenesis. The end result here will be an increase in clouds on Saturday, and a chance of a light nuisance rain by Saturday evening through Saturday night. Rainfall amounts should be light, but it will be a cold rain. Temperatures will likely not get out of the 40s on Saturday, and fall into the 30s once again Saturday night. However, enough air mass modification is expected to keep temperatures above freezing, therefore, only a cold rain is expected. This is subject to change especially if air mass modification doesn't occur. Rainfall amounts should generally by a 1/4" or less. Rain should mainly be more widespread along and South of I-10, but a chance of showers will certainly exist for Northern portions as well.
This Gulf low is expected to be a fast mover, and dry weather returns for Sunday. There should be plenty of sunshine on Sunday, but it will remain chilly as a NW flow aloft prevails. Highs will be below seasonable levels again in the upper 40s to lower 50s. The clear and cold trend will continue into Monday with another round of freezing temperatures in the offing for Sunday night and Monday morning, perhaps a few degrees colder than it will be tonight in the mid to upper 20s. I will forecast near 30 for now, but it certainly seems plausible that it could be colder than that with the position of the polar vortex. Dry and cold continues into Tuesday as a large dome of Canadian high pressure continues to dominate the forecast along the Gulf coast, but as fate would have it, Gulf cyclogenesis is progged to occur once again on Tuesday. This low appears to be a bit stronger than the one that will move through the Northern Gulf waters on Saturday. Rain will be likely for the entire area from Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday. Rainfall amounts could exceed an inch with this system, and there is still some speculation as to the eventual track of the low. This one could be much closer to the immediate coast, resulting in heavier rains across the area, but I will fine tune this after Christmas. The consensus is though for another El Nino type system at mid-week. Temperatures for this time frame should modify, but will not by any means be warm as the period of below normal temperatures continue. Lows will moderate into the upper 30s to lower 40s, and highs will be only make it to the mid 40s on Wednesday with the rain. The cold weather continues to close out 2009 on Thursday, New Year's Eve. A fresh area of high pressure builds in to close out a wet year on a dry night, as the mid-week low spins away from the area. Lows will be in the 30s once again, and highs only make it into the mid to upper 40s. 2010 begins on Friday, and New Year's Day 2010 is looking dry and cold at the moment with another bout of freezing temperatures possible on New Year's Morning. The remainder of New Year's weekend, beyond this forecast period, looks cold and unsettled with another Gulf low possible, as well as the potential for a Northern stream system that could stir up some more cold rain over the latter part of the holiday weekend. In closing, rumor has it that the strong winds are speeding up Santa's arrival!
Track Santa here
Preliminary Numbers & Zone Forecast:
LCH 30/48 29/47 37/51 0 0 0 30 40 0
LFT 31/48 28/48 36/50 0 0 0 30 40 0
BPT 30/49 31/49 37/52 0 0 0 30 40 0
AEX 28/45 26/46 34/48 0 0 0 20 30 0
POE 28/46 27/46 34/49 0 0 0 20 30 0
ARA 32/49 30/48 38/52 0 0 0 30 40 0
Tonight...Decreasing Clouds, Cold, and Windy. Becoming Clear after Midnight. Low 30. WNW wind 20-25 mph and gusty, gradually diminishing overnight. Wind chill readings 20-25 by sunrise.
Christmas Day...Sunny and Cold. High 48. NNW wind 10-15 mph.
Christmas Night...Clear and Cold. Low 29. Light North wind.
Saturday...Sunny in the morning, becoming Mostly Cloudy in the afternoon with a 30% chance of light rain developing late. Continued Cold. High 47. NE wind 10-15 mph.
Saturday Night...Mostly Cloudy and Not as Cold with a 40% chance of light rain. Rain ending after midnight. Low 37. NE wind 10 mph.
Sunday...Becoming Mostly Sunny and Continued Cool. High 51. North wind 10 mph.
Drew's 7 Day Outlook
Friday
12-25-09
Christmas Day
Low: 30
High: 48
Rain: 0%
Wind: NNW 10-15
W.C.: 20-30
Saturday
12-26-09
Low: 29
High: 47
Rain: 30% PM
Wind: NE 10-15
W.C.: 25-40
Sunday
12-27-09
Low: 37
High: 51
Rain: 0%
Wind: N 10
Monday
12-28-09
Low: 30
High: 48
Rain: 0%
Wind: N 10
W.C.: 20-30
Tuesday
12-29-09
Low: 28
High: 46
Rain: 30%
Wind: NE 10-15
W.C.: 30s
Wednesday
12-30-09
Low: 38
High: 44
Rain: 60%
Wind: NNE 10-15
W.C.: 25-30
Thursday
12-31-09
New Year's Eve
Low: 31
High: 46
Rain: 0%
Wind: NNW 10-15
W.C.: 20-25
...Marine Forecast...
*Gale Warning in effect until 6a.m. Christmas Day.*
*Small Craft Advisory in effect from 6a.m. until noon Christmas Day.*
Friday...Northwest winds 15 to 25 knots becoming north 10 to 15 knots in the afternoon. Seas 2 to 4 feet subsiding to 1 to 2 feet in the afternoon.
Friday Night...North winds 5 to 10 knots becoming northeast after midnight. Seas 1 foot.
Saturday...East winds around 10 knots. Seas 1 foot. A chance of rain.
Saturday Night...Northeast winds 10 to 15 knots becoming north 15 to 20 knots after midnight. Seas 2 to 3 feet. A chance of rain.
Sunday...North winds 15 to 20 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet.
Merry Christmas and God bless!
-DM-
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