ABC 33/40 E-Forecast

ABC 33/40 E-FORECAST
Morning Edition For Saturday December 20, 2008
===================================================================
ZOËS KITCHEN - EAT SMART. EAT FRESH.
FINALLY! A GIFT IN GOOD TASTE!

Zoës Kitchen is making your Holiday gift giving easier than ever.
Purchase your Zoës Holiday Gift Cup today for only $24.95
Gift Cup includes: reusable cup, Zoës Spice of Life & $20 gift card

Sign up for Z-MAIL at www.zoeskitchen.com to receive coupons
and news via email. Just type in your email and keep an eye on
your inbox! Your email will be kept private! Our Guarantee!

Patton Creek 205-989-4020 Homewood 205-870-1100
Summit 205-967-5800 Crestline 205-871-0060
Downtown 205-252-5200 Tuscaloosa 205-344-4450
===================================================================

...Storms Tonight; Colder Tomorrow...

Author David Laskin knows Seattle weather, and he should since he
calls the Queen City home. He authored the pre-eminent book on the
weather of the Pacific Northwest. It is called "Rains all the
Time." It has started to feel a little like Seattle for the past few
days here in Central Alabama. Oh, no. I am not complaining. The
gray skies and rain have been quite enjoyable. Looking at a drought
map that shows no drought is a good thing. Being nearly three inches
above normal for the month, with more to go. Gotta love it.

SPRINGLIKE: The atmosphere will have a bit of a springlike feel to
it today. Skies will be cloudy, but it will be warm, with highs
around 70 degrees. A breezy southwest wind will blow at 10-18 mph.
The persistent frontal boundary that has been in the neighborhood for
the better part of the week creating the grunge look to our weather
will be retreating northward, playing the role of warm front. Showers
will break out and move north with the front. Meanwhile, a strong
upper trough is about to put an end to this current run of weather and
it has a nasty surprise in store. You will understand what we mean by
Sunday morning. A surface low will develop to our northwest and slide
along the boundary and a band of showers and storms will move through
the state tonight. Look for about one half inch of rain. Strong
winds are a possibility and there could be a couple of warnings, but
significant severe weather is not expected.

COLD WAVE WARNING: I just love saying that. It probably isn't a
historic cold wave, but tomorrow will be miserable. And Monday will
be as miserable or more. That band of showers and storms will be the
advance guard for a powerful cold front that will follow on the heels
of the strong convection. The front should arrive in Northwest
Alabama after 9 p.m. and sweep quickly through the state. After a
high of 70, and a mid evening temperature in the middle 60s, the
mercury will plunge overnight into the upper 30s by early Sunday
morning. The rain should end by mid-morning. It will be downright
windy, with northwest winds at 15-30 mph. Readings will try to make a
brief rally into the lower 40s as sunshine breaks back out by early
afternoon. But when the skies clear and the sun goes down,
temperatures will plummet into the upper teens. A hard freeze is
likely Sunday night into Monday morning.

HOLDAY WEEK: Monday will be dry and cold. In fact, temperatures may
not make it above freezing over North Alabama. The weather will be in
transition by Monday night. Readings Tuesday morning will start out
in the upper 20s. Winds will pick up out of the south on Tuesday and
it will be windy through Wednesday. Showers will break out Tuesday
night, but the main shower and thunderstorm activity will wait until
late Christmas Eve. We will have to watch out for the potential of
severe weather with another strongly forced system Wednesday night.
Hopefully Santa won't have to divert. That couldn't happen could it?
No real airmass change behind this system, and Christmas Day looks
like it will be mild, with highs in the 60s along with clearing skies.

ON THIS DATE IN 2002: A short-lived but powerful tornado ripped
through the small town of Newton, Mississippi during the early
afternoon, hitting a Wal-Mart store. The tornado injured 60 people.
A tanker truck was blown off Interstate 20, causing a diesel spill
that closed the highway. A tornado watch and severe thunderstorm
warning was in effect for Newton when the tornado struck. The call to
action message in the warning stated that tornadoes can form quickly
from severe thunderstorms.

Bill Murray
bill.murray@theweathercompany.com

ABC 33/40 7 Day Planner: http://cfc.abc3340.com/abc3340/7day.cfm
ABC 33/40 Weather Blog: http://www.alabamawx.com

=========================================================
UAB-Memphis Basketball
UAB Group Tickets Are Now On Sale!!!

Make plans now to see one of the most anticipated college basketball
games of the year. On February 26, the UAB Blazers take on the
Memphis Tigers, last year's runner-up in the NCAA Tournament.

Those who serve as group leaders of purchases of 25 tickets or more to
any of UAB's home games will also receive two upper level tickets
(a $30 value) to a game of your choice (other than Memphis). Between
now and December 17th, you will also automatically be entered to win
the grand prize, a Road Trip for Two to the Conference USA basketball
tournament in March. This package includes travel, lodging, and tickets
for the winner.

Call (205) 996-5219 for more information. Go Blazers!
=========================================================

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

TODAY
Mostly cloudy. Widely scattered daytime showers. Rain and a few
storms Saturday night.
Afternoon High 71
WIND: SW 10-18

SUNDAY
Breezy and sharply colder. Rain ending during the morning. Some
afternoon clearing. Temperatures falling into the 30s.
Morning Low 37 Afternoon High 42
WIND: NW 15-30

MONDAY
A hard freeze to start the day. Sunny and cold during the balance of
the day.
Morning Low 19 Afternoon High 39
WIND: N 6-12

TUESDAY
Increasing clouds and becoming breezy. A chance of a shower late.
Morning Low 27 Afternoon High 57
WIND: S 8-16

WEDNESDAY
Windy with showers and storms becoming likely, especially during the
overnight.
Morning Low 49 Afternoon High 67
WIND: S/SW 10-20

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

Tonight on ABC 33/40

6:00pm ABC3340 News
6:30pm Wheel of Fortune
7:00pm I Want a Dog for Christmas
Charlie Brown
8:00pm The Cat and the Hat
10:00pm ABC 33/40 News
10:35pm Law and Order, SVU

*********************************************************
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 28,700 subscribers each day, creating over 200,000
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