It began Friday and hasn’t stopped since. I think it’s been nearly 2 years since we’ve had 3-4 days of almost non-stop rain in the metroplex. One thing’s for sure…this kind of rain has finally made my husband I do something about our leaky fireplace in the master bedroom!
Take a look at this map provided on the homepage of the Ft. Worth National Weather Service Forecast Office. It’s impressive. You can see the pink bulls-eye in SW Dallas and Northern Ellis counties where the doppler radar estimates show that between 8-10 inches of rain has fallen. Wow!
7 Day Rainfall Totals
Before this weekend, North Texas was actually sitting pretty in terms of rainfall. We weren’t abnormally dry or wet. Now many of our rivers, creeks and streams are at or above capacity, especially the Trinity River south of Dallas. Fortunately the upper level storm system responsible for washing out our weekend plans is slowly beginning to move away and the rain will become more scattered beginning Tuesday…with Thurs/Friday being the drier days this week.
But there may be another system arriving later this coming weekend and early next week bringing more changes including a cold front that could really bring us a taste of fall.
It’s doubtful we will see any more 100 degree heat now that we are so saturated and the long-range models show no pattern to suggest otherwise. So we can be grateful for that and the fact that we aren’t drought-stricken, like so much of South Texas.
So keep the umbrellas handy…we aren’t quite done yet.
Speaking of umbrellas…does anyone have wild mushrooms growing in their yard the size of a child’s umbrella? I think my kids could fit under a few that are growing in my backyard!
I’m enjoying my new role as chief meteorologist (Heywood calls me Admiral) on the Ranch Radio. That’s 95.9FM on the dial in the DFW Metroplex. The wonderful thing about it is I can be chief from home in my PJ’s and slippers! Well, not really. 
It’s called Kristine’s Corner…
Listen Friday's at 7:45am
Every Friday morning around 7:45am …I call in and talk about the weekend weather and whatever else comes to mind. It’s great fun! The weather part is easy, but the corner part I’m still working on. Maybe a little weather trivia….to keep things interesting.
I hope you’ll tune in, and if you don’t live in the DFW area you can always go their website www.95.9theranch.com
Climate change is a very hot topic and a controversial one. I don’t know of many other issues other than abortion and taxes that stir up such emotion and angst in people.
I have spent hours researching the data myself and have even put together an educational program geared to help my audience understand both sides of the debate…is the Earth warming on it’s own , or is man-kind responsible?
I’ve never been one to “stir the pot” on this issue, but now that I’m no longer in an industry where I have to be careful about sharing my opinion…I can share my opinion.
While the data proves that the earth has been warming, it’s supposed to warm after an ice age! The increase in global temperatures this past century have waned since the mid 90′s. But keep in mind the timeline of the Earth and all the variables that contribute to climate change.
I just don’t believe man-kind is totally responsible. There are forces and variables out there I don’t think human science will ever exist long enough to flush out and understand. Our existence has been so brief..just a speck on the earth’s timeline. What do we really know?
I do know that the public has been totally misled and brain-washed into believing carbon dioxide is the devil we are creating…melting the ice caps and killing polar bears. We are also being brain-washed into an arrogance that we are capable of fixing what we are breaking.
In the last 30 years your exposure to the subject has come from those of power who manipulate what you do and don’t know about the true science of climate change. It’s complicated..and instead of calling it was it is…climate change… you hear global warming. And global warming has become a religion where you are being made to feel guilty if you aren’t worried about your carbon footprint, or spending more of your hard-earned money on “green” products. And this is just the beginning…be very worried about Cap-and-Trade and the governments attempts to “stop the warming”.
I do wish that more of the public at large would dig deeper on their own and search out the truth rather than believe what they see, hear, and read from mainstream media sources.
One fact: Carbon dioxide is a TRACE greenhouse gas. The real greenhouse gas is water vapor, an ever-changing gas in our atmosphere. Think about it. Modern meteorologists have a hard enough time getting the 5-7 day right using computer models that try to predict what tropospheric water vapor is going to do. Trying to figure out what this big player will do out 50-100 years? Impossible! It’s the same with carbon dioxide. Even though isotopes and carbon dating are helpful to study the past. Can we really use our super computers to estimate levels out decades or centuries? We can try, but do we make decisions on that data that impact millions of people now?
I want for the public to wake up to global warming, like they’ve awakened with the health care debate. I would be happy to be just one of many out there educating…one who doesn’t have a political or professional agenda, but just wants share the facts and search out the truth.
There are many fantastic websites out there to gather information, too many for me to share..but I did want to share this great article from Sky and Telescope which prompted me to write this blog. It talks about the solar cycles and how scientists are beginning to piece together the relationship between the cycles, the stratosphere and our oceans. Please read below and I’d love to hear your comments.
Isn’t this photo amazing?
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- Courtesy of NASA-APOD (Astonomy Picture of the Day)
These are Morning Glory Clouds….taken Aug 24th, 2009.
This photo was taken by Mick Petroff from his airplane over the Gulf of Carpenteria in Austrailia where these rare clouds occur every spring. Remember, it is spring in the southern hemisphere!
We aren’t quite clear on how they form, but a general explanation is: when moist, cool air flowing off the ocean or large body of water encounters an inversion layer (an atmospheric layer where air temperature atypically increases with height).. long, horizontal, circulating tubes of air are created condensing into these roll clouds. These horizontally rotating currents of air create severe turbulence and can be very dangerous to aircraft. Here in North Texas, we also see similar roll clouds proceeding the downburts from severe thunderstorms, and certain cold fronts.
If you love to learn about unique atmospheric or astronomical phenomena, I encourage you to visit http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html for your Astronomy Picture of the Day. This site is very educational and fun. My son, who is really into space, and I look at it everyday.
On Thursday October 8th, I am partnering with Simple Science Solutions for a unique Earth Science Training workshop. This full-day workshop will show elementary science teachers easy, creative and inexpensive ways to teach their students important TAKS aligned activities related to Earth Science.
Some of the topics include: Constructive Forces…Destructive Forces…Earth’s Resources…Sun-Moon_Earth interaction and new to TEKS…Weather!
That’s where I come in. I am so excited to be working with Courtney Williams and Gloria Chatelain, both very experienced science educators, to put together an afternoon session where I will share my knowledge and expertise as a veteran meteorologist to relate the atmosphere to what their students need to learn to satisfy TAKS requirements.
I will provide easy activities teachers can take back to the classroom. I will also show participants in the workshop how to use my latest children’s book “Katie and the Magic Umbrella: A Stormy Adventure” as a teaching tool. It’s truly a must-have for any school library.
Where: Brookside Convention Center
1244 Brookside Drive
Hurst, TX 76053
When: Thursday, Oct 8th
9am-3pm
Who: Elementary teachers, Science Coordinators, and Administrators
Space is limited…so don’t miss out and register today!
Please contact erin@kcokids.com directly or log on to www.simplesciencesolutions.com for more information.
Click below to download the registration form…hope to see you there!
Kristine
After nearly 2 years of writing, marketing and promoting a children’s book, I’ve started a new chapter in my business plan….reaching out to the retail world. Instead of relying on just my national distributor, who primarily sells my book the book trade. It has become clear that I need to do more to get Katie and my brand out there. The Katie and the Magic Umbrella brand is not just books anymore!
My passion for kids and educating them about weather continues with a growing line of toys, educational products and apparel I’ve created around the theme of my books. There’s a new magic umbrella, a coloring and activity book, an educational DVD, and even cool new weather-themed graphic t-shirts for girls and boys all coming very soon.
Book #2 in the Katie series “Katie and the Magic Umbrella: On Snowflake Trail will be out (Late Nov) with at least 2 more weather adventure books in the works. Snowflake Trail is being illustrated right now..it’s all about winter storms!
With a tough economy. bookstores aren’t stocking as many books, let alone toys and merchandise related to children’s books, unless you are Eric Carle or Disney. So it’s become clear that I need to find a way to reach kids outside the bookstore, so I’m reaching out to specialty stores as well as educational and gift retailers.
I just opened a small space in the Kids World Studio on the 8th floor of the World Trade Center-Dallas. This where buyers can come and see my wares! Here are a few the latest photos of my “little” showroom. Just did some painting last week and once all of my new products come in, I’ll be adding samples to the showroom for display.
In fact, I just filled my first order last week placed by a woman who owns a boutique children’s store in Prairieville, LA. Very exciting!
This is a huge step for me and yet another “Leap of Faith as I jump feet first into the world of merchandising!
So if you or someone you know is interested in retailing my products in their store, please have them contact me directly kristine@kcokids.com for more information, or they can simply stop by my showroom on the 8th floor in the Kids World Studio.
The title is a play on words, but for you Aggies out there, you know what I’m talking about.
I’m so excited to be profiled in a new Aggie blog for professionals called Hullabalog. The interview was done last September when I was still with CBS 11 and just beginning to promote my first children’s book “Katie and the Magic Umbrella: A Stormy Adventure“.
A few weeks later I shared my story and spoke about my new venture with the Ft. Worth/Tarrant County A&M Club at their monthly luncheon. What a great time and I hope to do it again soon!
I want to thank John Churchill for the interest and the wonderful job he did writing and putting together this article. Here are the basics, but be sure to check out and subscribe to the entire blog at:
http://hullabalog.wordpress.com
Meet Kristine Kahanek ’89 – Meteorologist and Children’s Book Author
July 27, 2009 in Uncategorized | Tags: children’s books, Ft. Worth, Kahanek,meteorology, Texas A&M | 1 comment
Hullabalog is pleased to profile Kristine Kahanek ’89. Kristine, the former chief meteorologist for KTVT-TV, a CBS affiliate in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, has embarked on a new career as the author of children’s books. ♦
Why did you decide to attend Texas A&M?
Not only was it the place where my dad went to college, in the ‘50s, but I really wanted to have two options open: Veterinary Medicine and Meteorology. It could have been animals or weather, either way. But meteorology always fascinated me as a kid. At the time, A&M was the only university in Texas with a B.S. in Meteorology. It was a very difficult major, loaded with high-end engineering, aerospace, chemistry, thermodynamics. Frankly, it was a lot more than I thought it would be. But I loved it! I loved the traditions at A&M, the campus, everything … I made every football game I could. I lived both on and off campus, so I was really exposed to the whole student experience there.
What made you choose weather as a career?
My father was a pilot in the Air Force. Plus, we also lived on a farm, so weather really impacted both his career and our way of life – raising horses, growing alfalfa, working outside.
After graduating with my meteorology degree, I went to the National Weather Service, where I stayed for 10 months. I had always wanted to be a meteorologist on TV, so when I had the chance to go to the ABC affiliate in Waco, KXXV, I jumped at it. I moved from there to the ABC station in Austin, where I worked morning newscasts for years. That brought me to Dallas, where I worked for a couple of stations, and then began my career as a children’s author!
After working in the weather business for so many years, what inspired you to write a children’s book?
As a meteorologist, I spoke at a lot of schools, met a lot of parents and even received calls from parents whose kids were petrified of storms. That’s when I started to realize that many parents don’t know enough about weather to educate their children about what’s happening when it storms outside. One day, I was brainstorming with a friend over lunch who said, “You need to write a children’s book.” So, I created a character, Katie, who is a guardian angel. She wears a winged watch that alerts her when the children she watches over need her. Katie dispels children’s fears as she takes them on a journey into a thunderstorm. The children learn about rain, lightning and thunder, as well as hail and tornadoes. By understanding the science behind the thunderstorm, the children’s fears are replaced with the knowledge of what a thunderstorm is and what to do when one happens.
The book, Katie and the Magic Umbrella: A Stormy Adventure, hit stores last September. It’s been a great experience, and I’ve already been tinkering with ideas for my next one. I hope to do three or four weather-related books that will not only give parents a tool, but teachers, as well. The books will provide educational information, a weather glossary, Q&A, etc. Children can read the book, and then answer questions about thunder, lightning, storms and other weather-related topics.
We are already about 2 months into the 2009 hurricane season and we still haven’t had our first tropical storm in the Atlantic or Caribbean.
Ocean temperatures are plenty warm, but the atmosphere just can’t seem to get going. Here’s this morning’s update from the National Hurricane Center.
Current tropical activity-from the NHC
Even though there are a few tropical waves worth keeping an eye on…based on the discussion I read this morning, forecasters don’t expect any of them to develop over the next 36-48 hours.
Just an aside…the name of our first storm will be Ana.
With 35 million people living along US coastlines, a quiet season is a good season. But the “official” long-term forecast still calls for for more than a dozen named storms… and the season is still young.
We all have people that come in and out of our personal and professional lives. But there are always a few that stand out and really leave an impression.
In the fall of 2007, after doing a search for a local designer who could help me create a prototype for my Katie doll, I happened to call Sandi Wheeler.
Long story short…She agreed to work with me to create Katie only having a rough illustration to go by. Sandi was a dream to work with and it wasn’t long before I had a fabulous sample doll for the manufacturer to go by. Less than a year later, my first shipment of Katie dolls arrived and they are now in stores and in the arms of hundreds of children.
First Katie Prototype-designed by Sandi Wheeler
Sandi helped make one of my little dreams come true, only I wish I would have taken the time to let her know how much I truly appreciated her and her talent.
You see…on July 8, 2009 Sandi Wheeler passed away.
I don’t know the details of her death. I didn’t know her family well, but I can only imagine how devastated they are. I did have the opportunity to meet her husband, Ben, one afternoon while we met at her home to discuss the design. He was very warm and welcoming and I so appreciate him tolerating the hours she spent working on my “little” project.
I am so grateful to Jean Fox, a friend of Sandi’s and fellow artist who was kind enough to email me and let me know about her passing. Jean got to know Sandi through a the North Central Texas Mixed Media group. Thank you Jean.
It’s still hard to believe she is gone, and so suddenly. I wish I could have had the chance to see her one more time. But I one thing I do know is that she is in the BEST of hands.
God bless you Sandi, we’ll miss you. And while you are up there … give my father a big hug and my little Katie too. Please tell them I love them.
Kristine
This week my family and I have been enjoying a wonderful week in northern Michigan where we own a lake house on Long Lake about 10 miles SW of Traverse City.
There is a great little children’s bookstore on Front Street in downtown Traverse City that has invited me to do a book signing Friday evening from 6pm-8pm. It’s called Up North Kids. The store is relatively new to this popular street lined with fabulous shops and restaurants. I took a quick pic of the store front yesterday while in town doing some other promotion for the event.
This friday is the first ”Friday Night Live” event. It’s like a block party on steroids. All the shops and vendors along Front Street stay open late, the street is closed to traffic and families are free to roam around listening to music, shopping and eating their way through some of the best food this area has to offer.
Katie and Book in the Front of the Store
Up North Kids-Traverse City, Michigan
Should be lots of fun and I’m really looking forward to reading “Katie and the Magic Umbrella” to the folks “Up North”!
I’ll also be doing a quick live interview with Charlie D of WCCW-FM 107.5FM at 8:15am Friday morning to promote the signing and talk about kids and weather. To take a listen you can log on to www.wccwi.com
