Scarlet Pimpernel

Yeah, a bit inland. But I don't think it's so much a matter of needing it farther east so much as it is the antecedent air isn't the greatest. Though that would help I guess. Euro was offshore, but also a precip bomb.

Damn...we lost a couple of shortwaves from the last cycle. Chances are decreased. I'm out!!

Heh! Remind me to never ignore any invitation you might ever send out!!

So true, Bob. Related to that is that those who still look down their nose at you because they have x amount more and you don't, are far poorer people because of that attitude. I have a good friend from Atlanta...and I was once was saying something about how it was frustrating being in a somewhat cramped apartment, but we try to make it work. He said something that's stuck with me ever since...essentially that he knew many people who had large/fancy houses that had little in them (they made themselves "house poor", as he said) or they felt sterile or more like a museum. And of all the places he's been to for dinners or holidays, etc., ours felt the most like an actual *home* to him, the most welcoming. Not so much because of what we did have, but because of how we made it feel. Sorry to get overly philosophical there...LOL!

What happens after this panel? One before it (shown in another post above) had a sleet line through the DC area. Does the cold air wrap back in, or does that rain line just push farther northwest? I know, not that it should matter dissecting minutia for a day 8-10 deterministic model...but curious all the same!

Oh, I *wish* we could have done Pandora! Unfortunately, when we tried to grab that one in advance when you could set up your fast pass rides online, it was already full. And there was already a 2 hour line early in the morning for it, the day we were at Animal Kingdom. But damn it looked awesome...maybe catch it next time! Agree with you on the shows...not just the evening fireworks ones they do, but yeah, any of the others they do throughout the day on stage (and a nice break from walking, too!).

We went to Disney World in August 2018, and had a total blast! Long days and lots of walking, but what a time. The Seven Dwarfs ride that @MillvilleWx showed was neat. Here's some recommendations if I may, just off the top of my head (not everything there of course, but the ones I remember best): If you're a roller coaster person, I'd recommend doing the Expedition Everest in the Animal Kingdom park...and of course, Space Mountain in Magic Kingdom. Oh, and though it's not technically a coaster, check out the Twilight Zone "Tower of Terror" at Hollywood Studios (holy F***, what a vertical drop they put you through!!). I'll admit I had absolutely no desire to do the Aerosmith "Rock-n-Roller" coaster when I heard how it worked...apparently, you very quickly accelerate to 60MPH (?), then it flips you upside down and back again. Can't quite go for that myself, honestly (my brother did it years ago, jokingly said he *may* have peed his pants a little, haha!). And there's the Haunted Mansion ride that's pretty cool (Magic Kingdom). I know some people find it a bit dull or boring, but I actually liked Epcot Center. Check out the ride "Soarin". If you want to be driven insane, go on the "It's a Small World" ride in Magic Kingdom (hahaha, just kidding, sort of...it's kinda cute, but a bit much too! And you'll *never* get that song out of your head for days, LOL!). Get as many "fast passes" as you can, I think they give you 3 for each day you're there by default if you get one of those packages. And use them wisely, on the ones you know are popular and might be in line for a long time without one. You should be able to sign up in advance online before things fill up, they give you a window of time to do that sometime before the dates you'll be there. Oh, and be sure to absolutely see the nighttime shows in each park that you go to, they're amazing!

Oh no...you did not just say that! Just...well, I won't even go there! I fear we may have an appearance by @ravensrule in our future soon! (ETA: Comments like that are like summoning the Reaper, but for a completely different reason!!!)

That looks tasty!! I still have a couple of Christmas Ales from Great Lakes Brewing Company, that I brought back from Ohio around New Year's.

It's really unfair to say such things about Pablo Picasso!

Agree. If we can get a few week period in Feb-Mar, sort of like 2015, then who cares if Dec and Jan were awful? Now, I'm in no way implying that I expect a 2015-like repeat, but if we score something reasonably good and memorable, I won't much care to dwell on the first part of the season being a failure.

LOL!! Wait, is that actually getting into the medium to darker blue colors?

Don't forget the little-known but never aired episode where Scotty was having issues filtering out higher frequency signals over in engineering..."The Trouble with Treble!" (Ducking for cover after that one...)

That one was funny! I think even Spock had to give in somewhat to the overbearing furry cuteness!

@psuhoffman, not to overanalyze a 10 day deterministic GFS run, but concerning the rain we get from that bombing storm the first couple days of February...could part of that be due to the shortwave/low just north of the Lakes, messing up the thermals for us? I do see that the high and 50/50 move out more rapidly than we'd like too, which I think was mentioned as well. Regardless, that is quite a nice setup which I'm sure will change.

Love the "old" original Star Trek, and the Next Generation as well (have seen all of both series at one time or another). While I liked many of the Next Gen episodes, what really sticks with me for some reason is the one where Picard's mind is "taken over" by a space probe, which has him re-live an entire lifetime as someone from an old civilization that had long gone extinct. As if to keep the memory of their history alive (I liked the touch at the end where the flute he played while re-living the memory is then given to him as a gift). I believe that Netflix should have "Galaxy Quest" available, certainly on DVD (but I don't think it's available on their streaming service). We rented that out from them within the past year or so. Agree on Tim Allen, I liked the first Santa Clause movie.

You should check it out! Pretty funny movie, and a good spoof of the old "Star Trek" series (hopefully you've seen that, haha!!).

Yup, indeed...very talented actor. He could play anything from serious to quasi-comic...and still get off those snarky one-liners no matter what the role.

Yeah, that does seem to be where we're headed in terms of a parade of storms. I would think where you're at, one of these at least might have a good shot to give you a decent paste job even if temperatures are somewhat marginal. Closer in to the metro DC area, we'd need a lot more help I'm sure.

Sure is! If you dig deeply enough into the dirt underneath the early blooming daffodils and forsythia, you might actually find winter down there somewhere!

Agree! Funny movie and gotta love Alan Rickman's performance too...

Didn't realize Beethoven had those connections...interesting! His music has always been my favorite...very powerful, always depicting a struggle (with eventual triumph) via music. For the longest time, I never had been able to see any of his symphonies performed live, though I have recordings of his entire complement of symphonies with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra (and the 9th, Cleveland Orchestra under Christoph Von Dohnanyi...the interpretations of the 9th are different between those musical directors, but both are excellent for different reasons!). Then while still in Atlanta back in the late '90s, I was able to see the 9th performed live...TWICE! One time was a guest conductor. The other was a "farewell tour" by the Atlanta Symphony's then-musical director Yoel Levi (who was well liked and popular). Levi did the entire Beethoven "cycle", all the piano concertos and symphonies. I mustered what I could financially (as a grad student at the time) and was able to see him do the 5th symphony, 9th symphony, and the 5th piano concerto ("Emperor"). Well worth scraping the cash for the "nose bleed" seats to see Yoel Levi conduct Beethoven! Not to mention, Robert Shaw's influence on the chorale part of the 9th was amazing (he was formerly chorale director in both Cleveland and Atlanta years before)!!

Well, heck...there's even an implied death band (of rain) over MoCo it appears! Fitting, for this winter.

(Putting my response here in Banter) Yes, it is an amazing memorial, I agree whole-heartedly! I've walked through there several times mostly on the way to softball games either on a weekend morning or weekday evening. But never got around to really taking time to look at the memorial more thoroughly (which I damn well should do, I know!). The times I've cut through there on my way to the fields on Ohio Drive, I always walked past that impressive carving...it looks as if he's literally walking out of the stone (maybe the intended effect?). And yeah, the early evening/morning light always inspired my photographic side, but alas, I never had my damned DLSR with me to do it right (only carrying my softball equipment bag at those times)! So, I'll be making it my goal this spring at some point to go out there in the morning to get a few shots, since the sun at that time hits the carving just right! Oh, and yup, I certainly noticed your MLK icon every year at this time (also of course, I do like your regular Beethoven one!!). High five back to you!!

Agree, I like that photo too, @stormtracker (have see you use that every year around MLK day). Sorry to be too off-topic, but it reminds me that I have been meaning to go out to the MLK memorial either early enough in the morning or in the evening, to get a photo of the granite carving of him. I've walked by there on a few occasions early evening, and think a side profile shot of that carving with the light at that time of day would be amazing if I can capture it right!