ABC 33/40 E-Forecast

ABC 33/40 E-FORECAST
Afternoon Edition For Thursday July 13, 2006

==================================================================
Alabama One Call .... where safe digging starts.

Before beginning any type of excavation work, no matter how large or how
small, be sure to DIG SAFELY and have the underground utilities marked prior
to beginning your work.

Simply call Alabama One Call at 252-4444, 48 hours prior to the start of
your excavation and the member utility companies will send out someone to
mark their facilities free of charge.

Remember - Dig Safely
* Call Before You Dig
* Wait the Required Amount of Time
* Respect the Marks
* Dig with Care

Visit http://www.al1call.com for more information.
==================================================================

DOWNRIGHT UNCOMFORTABLE: It is no fun to crawl out of bed at 5:00
a.m., turn on the coffee pot and discover that it is 81 degrees
outside. That happened this morning. We have a pall of hot humid air
over the area and it is determined to be a pest for the next several
days. Even worse, our chance of getting a thunderstorm in any one spot
is very small. The grass in my yard is absolutely on its knees begging
for rain. By Sunday, there will be a slightly better chance of getting
a shower or storm and maybe even a better chance on Monday.

Meanwhile the thermometer, which we do not want to look at, will be
soaring well into the 90s for the next couple of days. Some places in
West Alabama will be closer to 98. The heat index will easily reach
105 in some areas.

HEAT AND DRY WEATHER ARE COUSINS: They get along very well together.
It is almost unheard of to have a long summer dry spell in Alabama
without well above normal temperatures. We list a few rainfall
standings so far in 2006:

8.82 inches below normal in Montgomery
11.68 inches below normal in Huntsville
21.65 inches short of normal in Mobile
4.07 inches above normal in Birmingham

THE 1980 SITUATION: We were going through a killer heat wave over a
wide area at this time in 1980. Memphis had an all-time high of 108.
It was 106 in Birmingham where the temperature exceeded 100 for 7
days. In Dallas, that summer produced highs 100 or greater on 69 days.

TROPICAL WEATHER: I have already heard some rumblings that maybe the
forecast of another active hurricane season is a bust. Way, way to
early to say that. A 52-year study by the National Hurricane Center
showed that the average date of the first named storm is on July 11
and the first hurricane on August 14. The average first major
hurricane, Category 3 or stronger, is on September 4. The peak of the
season in the Atlantic Basin is from mid-August to late October. Long
term records show that the one single day that is most likely to have
a tropical storm or hurricane in action is on September 10. The
tropics are relatively quiet today.

THE WORLD OF WEATHER: Do not know if it would help your feelings to
know that the temperature is hanging out about 105 below zero today in
Vostok, Antarctica. They are in mid-winter. The northernmost weather
station in North America is Alert at the northern tip of Canada. They
were reporting 34 with light rain and snow and they are in the middle
of summer…the NE continues to have way too much rain...there was 4.18
inches yesterday in Syracuse and 3.20 in Rochester...nearly 2 inches
in the Big Apple...at least it is not too hot. The high/low at Saranac
Lake, New York yesterday was 72/63...in Phoenix, the high will be
113-115 for the next 2 days with lows of 91.

MY TINY CORNER OF THE WORLD: I have played ball so much with Little
Miss Molly that I feel like I could pitch for the Birmingham Barons or
New York Yankees. Molly has a great batting average. She can outrun
balls that I throw across the living area. What really drives her
crazy is when I throw about 8 balls up to the ceiling at one time and
they fall all around her like golf-ball size hail. It literally drives
her crazy. She goes round and round and dashes in all directions
trying to decide which ball to retrieve first...interesting how the
habits of little dogs evolve. Now, when Molly first gets up, she
reaches out with her front paws and pulls herself on her belly all the
way across the living area while smiling and wagging her tail. Life
goes on.

J.B. Ellioitt
jbelliott@centurytel.net

ABC 33/40 7 Day Planner: http://abc3340.com/weather/7day.hrb
ABC 33/40 Weather Blog: http://www.jamesspann.com/bmachine/wxtalk.php

*******************************************************

TONIGHT
A few isolated showers or storms into the evening. Fair overnight.
Morning Low 76
WIND: Light

FRIDAY
Hot and humid. Only a few spots will have a shower or thunderstorm.
Heat index over 100.
Morning Low 76 Afternoon High 96
WIND: SW 5-10

SATURDAY
Partly sunny, hot and hazy. Widely scattered afternoon storms.
Morning Low 76 Afternoon High 95
WIND: SW 6-12

SUNDAY
Partly sunny. A slight increase in showers and thunderstorms.
Morning Low 74 Afternoon High 94
WIND: SW 5-10

MONDAY
Morning sunshine. Scattered, mostly afternoon, thunderstorms.
Morning Low 74 Afternoon High 92
WIND: SW 5-10

============================================================
2006 AVP HOOVER OPEN PRESENTED BY VAULT
PRO BEACH VOLLEYBALL
JULY 13-16 at The Hoover Met
For Tickets, call (800) 240-2300
or visit http://www.avphoover.com

Pro Beach Volleyball is coming to Alabama! The Hoover Met is being
converted to a beach for Birmingham's biggest beach party. Come see Olympic
Gold Medalists Misty May and Kerri Walsh along with the greatest volleyball
player of all time, Karch Kiraly. Get your flip flops and tank tops
ready and make your plans to come to the Hoover Met July 13-16.

Be sure to order your tickets today. Single session tickets and all
tournament books are available at 800-243-2300 or by logging on to
http://www.avphoover.com. Tickets are also available at Bruno's, Food
World, and Food Max locations. For discounted group tickets (10 or more)
call, 205-262-2832. Go to http://www.avphoover.com for all of the latest
info.

The 2006 AVP Hoover Open presented by Vault - Pro Beach Volleyball!
============================================================
*********************************************************

Tonight on ABC 33/40:

6:00pm ABC 33/40 News
6:30pm Wheel of Fortune
7:00pm Master Of Champions
8:00pm Grey's Anatomy
9:00pm Primetime
10:00pm ABC 33/40 News
10:30pm Nightline

*********************************************************
If you are interested in advertising on this E-Forecast, please contact us
at 205-985-9725 or bill.hardekopf@theweathercompany.com. Ads reach over
18,200 subscribers each day, creating over 125,000 impressions each week.
Just $95 per week!
To subscribe or unsubscribe from the ABC 33/40 E-Forecast, go here:
http://www.jamesspann.com/eforecast.html