Thursday, September 29, 2016

Weather It Is (The Weather Settles)

Good Evening:

The weather is settling in.  Rain chances for early next week are no-longer. Instead, the days of the New Year (Rosh HaShanah) may end up on the warm -- if not hot side.  We're not speaking about extreme heat, but heat nevertheless.

Nevertheless, the long range forecast shows cooler weather at the end of next week and a chance of showers (25%).

Unfortunately, Yom Kippur looks to be on the warm side again before we cool off with a chance of rain at the start of Sukkoth.

Looking far ahead, the Climate Forecast Systems Model suggests that the next few months will be warmer than normal with normal rainfall.

So, for those hoping for a cold and snowy winter, this upcoming 10 days of Repentance (Teshivah) is a good time to suggest a change.

Shabbat Shalom/Shana Tova,

Barry Lynn

Sunday, September 25, 2016

Weather It Is (Cooling Breezes)

Good Evening:

There are wonderful cooling breezes this evening, as front moves in from west.

This means that our warm fall weather will be more like fall weather until about mid week.

Temperatures should then warm a bit as winds takes on a more easterly direction.

Looking ahead to the start of the new year: there is a 20% chance of rain.  However, there is an 80% chance that the weather will simply be warm and sunny.  Will the optimists please stand up, no matter which side you are on...!

My son asked me the other day why I tuck my shirt in.  I wanted to tell him that I didn't want to look like a slob, but held my tongue -- because I asked myself the following: when everyone looks like a slob is anyone really a slob?  My guess is yes, but who am I to say.

We've written in the past that that young ladies are wise, but wives are the wisest of all. So, here's my question: why is it that husbands will listen to their wives when they are told to take out the garbage, but when given really wise advice like they "don't do 'that'," they do it anyway.  In other words, why do they forget that men are perfect but only because expectations are really low, while wives really are wise.

Barry Lynn

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Weather It Is (Enjoy It (For Now))

Good Evening:

The weather is certainly pleasant.  It was even a shorts day some of us.

The warm weather is in response to warm southwesterly winds.  These winds will bring some dust tomorrow, but it will probably be confined to central/southern Israel.

A strong front will move through Wednesday night and bring a plunge to the coldest temperatures of the season.  Our 3 day forecast actually shows some rain showers over a good part of the country possibly Thursday night into Friday as low pressure develops in the eastern Mediterranean.

The unseasonably cool weather will last into late Shabbat, when temperatures will start to warm up again ahead of another low pressure area approaching from the west. However, the warm up won't be long-lived, and it won't be very warm.

Warmer weather may return in early October.

Barry Lynn

Friday, September 16, 2016

Weather It Is (A Week of Change)

Good Afternoon:

This last week we saw a bit of rain in the forecast for the northwest coast.

Today clouds dot the sky and the wind is a bit brisk.  There is some dust over southern areas, but it should remain there.

The cool weather will continue for a couple of more days, but the middle to end of next week will feel more like summer (but without the extreme heat of last fall).  Also. the winds will become brisk, meaning that there will be an elevated fire risk.

The heat will arrive on southerly winds ahead of a low pressure moving across southern Europe.  The same low pressure system will be responsible for a sharp cool off Shabbat or Sunday of the following week.

There will also be a chance of showers as the low moves by to our north. Since this low pressure area will be drawing warm air from Africa, it will probably come with a certain amount of dust.  So, air quality will be affected.

Shabbat Shalom,

Barry Lynn

Friday, September 9, 2016

Weather It Is (Just Nice, But)

Good Afternoon:

I am not sure if last week's blog was published correctly, so I just resent it.

Anyway, this week's blog is really about nothing... nothing but the weather.

We're in for a bit of a warm spell as low pressure to our easts expands to its west (or towards us).  However, by Monday a cool front will arrive and it will slowly cool us off until the end of the week.

We see a few ensemble members that are indicating relatively cool temperatures aloft, so there is a slight chance of a shower late next week.

We don't see any potential for warmer September temperatures until sometime the following week, but nothing to hot (or cold) is on the way.

Remember last year's dust and high heat?  This summer was remarkable for what it wasn't -- not too hot and not too dusty -- at least yet.

Of course, as you can see below, we live in a remarkable country where the Torah correctly describes the land as a land of "giants (Bamidbar, Shlach), and of course giants need giant food to eat.

(You can see this in the apples that grew on our tree.)

However, that strange white ball is not a ping-pong ball. It is a round egg we found in egg carton basket.

I am wondering if anyone has a rooster. We'd like to see if a round chicken will come from a round egg.

Shabbat Shalom,

Barry Lynn


Sunday, September 4, 2016

Weather It Is (Fluctuations)

Good Afternoon:

The weather is certainly nice, and it will continue to be nice until the end of the week.

The end of the week will bring back a bit of warmth (or heat, as some call it).

The warmer temperatures will last into next Sunday, but Monday through Wednesday of next week should see a cool down to more fall like temperatures (not much different than today).

Looking further ahead, we see a bit of a warm up, with a small chance of it being either quite warm or even quite cool.

We've entered the period of fall weather fluctuations, when the weatherman can't decide whether he should heed the call for winter or return us to summer.

Please feel free to write and make your opinion heard, as the New Year holidays fall in October, and a cool and rainy October would put a damper on any outdoor activities.

However, what we may worry about and what may be are not always the same. The Climate Forecast System Version 2 Model is predicting drier, but cooler than normal temperatures over the next few months.

We were blessed to celebrate our Bat/Bat Mitvas with my parents in attendance.  For the first time, my father gave me a blessing during the blessing of the Cohanim, with his grandson in our line of 3. It was very special.

Our children gave speeches about the significance of their names.  Here, I copy my speech, which I think bears repeating.

1)   Good Evening.
2)   I’d like to thank the Romano family for helping us to set up the Bar/Bat Mitva.
3)   You’ve probably seen the pictures of our children.
4)   While looking through these pictures, my wife remarked: “you were a handsome man, then.”
5)   Obviously, we’ve all changed a lot since these pictures were taken.
6)   Our kids have grown up.
7)   But the ways we’ve changed are not always seen. 
8)   I have to thank our children for helping me to become a better parent – they’re good kids.
9)   I have to thank my wife for doing the extra/special things to make this a party we’ll remember, for helping me raise children I am very proud of.
10)                   Of course, given what you all know about my messes in the house, I have to thank her for letting me live in the house.
11)                   In Yael and Efrat’s Bat-Mitzva parsha “Va’Etchanan”  we read: “The Lord will disperse you among the nations, and you will be left few in number among the nations where the Lord will lead you.  There you will serve other gods, the handiwork of man. Of wood and stone, which do not see, nor hear, nor cut nor smell.” (I used Eretz Yisrael in the Parashah, for my sources.)
12)                   The Chasidic master, R. Shalom, of Belz interprets a related Gemara as follows: “Jews who live outside the land do foreign work in purity.” That is, they work for the sake of others.  All the effort they put into building up the lands of exile is foreign to them, for whatever they build or produce there eventually falls in the hands of others.
13)                   In Yair’s parsha, “Re’ey,” we learn that “Dwelling in Eretz Israel is equal to all the Mitvot of the Torah.”  Eretz Israel is central to our religion, because this is the only place where a Jew can keep all of the Mitzvot.  Even giving charity is really a mitzvah related to the land of Israel.
14)                   In a simple sense living outside of Israel is a waste of our effort, and only in Israel can we live a “proper” and fulfilling Jewish life.
15)                   Yet, such a simple approach to life does not really do justice to all those have helped make the State of Israel the way it is.
16)                   For instance, there is a joke: “how do you make a small fortune in Israel? You start with a large fortune.”
17)                   What they don’t say is that it is often someone else’s fortune that becomes smaller when children or grand children move to Israel.   And, don’t forget all that those living in the Galut have done to help in the building of hospitals and our education system, etc.
18)                   We’re now in the fifth generation of children since the founding of the State.

19)                   While the State of Israel has much to admire, it will be up to you, my children, and all of our children, to be blessed to continue to build the State, and to make it truly an independent and self-sufficient state.


Weather It Is (Fluctuations)

Good Afternoon:

The weather is certainly nice, and it will continue to be nice until the end of the week.

The end of the week will bring back a bit of warmth (or heat, as some call it).

The warmer temperatures will last into next Sunday, but Monday through Wednesday of next week should see a cool down to more fall like temperatures (not much different than today).

Looking further ahead, we see a bit of a warm up, with a small chance of it being either quite warm or even quite cool.

We've entered the period of fall weather fluctuations, when the weatherman can't decide whether he should heed the call for winter or return us to summer.

Please feel free to write and make your opinion heard, as the New Year holidays fall in October, and a cool and rainy October would put a damper on any outdoor activities.

However, what we may worry about and what may be are not always the same. The Climate Forecast System Version 2 Model is predicting drier, but cooler than normal temperatures over the next few months.

We were blessed to celebrate our Bat/Bat Mitvas with my parents in attendance.  For the first time, my father gave me a blessing during the blessing of the Cohanim, with his grandson in our line of 3. It was very special.

Our children gave speeches about the significance of their names.  Here, I copy my speech, which I think bears repeating.

1)   Good Evening.
2)   I’d like to thank the Romano family for helping us to set up the Bar/Bat Mitva.
3)   You’ve probably seen the pictures of our children.
4)   While looking through these pictures, my wife remarked: “you were a handsome man, then.”
5)   Obviously, we’ve all changed a lot since these pictures were taken.
6)   Our kids have grown up.
7)   But the ways we’ve changed are not always seen. 
8)   I have to thank our children for helping me to become a better parent – they’re good kids.
9)   I have to thank my wife for doing the extra/special things to make this a party we’ll remember, for helping me raise children I am very proud of.
10)                   Of course, given what you all know about my messes in the house, I have to thank her for letting me live in the house.
11)                   In Yael and Efrat’s Bat-Mitzva parsha “Va’Etchanan”  we read: “The Lord will disperse you among the nations, and you will be left few in number among the nations where the Lord will lead you.  There you will serve other gods, the handiwork of man. Of wood and stone, which do not see, nor hear, nor cut nor smell.” (I used Eretz Yisrael in the Parashah, for my sources.)
12)                   The Chasidic master, R. Shalom, of Belz interprets a related Gemara as follows: “Jews who live outside the land do foreign work in purity.” That is, they work for the sake of others.  All the effort they put into building up the lands of exile is foreign to them, for whatever they build or produce there eventually falls in the hands of others.
13)                   In Yair’s parsha, “Re’ey,” we learn that “Dwelling in Eretz Israel is equal to all the Mitvot of the Torah.”  Eretz Israel is central to our religion, because this is the only place where a Jew can keep all of the Mitzvot.  Even giving charity is really a mitzvah related to the land of Israel.
14)                   In a simple sense living outside of Israel is a waste of our effort, and only in Israel can we live a “proper” and fulfilling Jewish life.
15)                   Yet, such a simple approach to life does not really do justice to all those have helped make the State of Israel the way it is.
16)                   For instance, there is a joke: “how do you make a small fortune in Israel? You start with a large fortune.”
17)                   What they don’t say is that it is often someone else’s fortune that becomes smaller when children or grand children move to Israel.   And, don’t forget all that those living in the Galut have done to help in the building of hospitals and our education system, etc.
18)                   We’re now in the fifth generation of children since the founding of the State.

19)                   While the State of Israel has much to admire, it will be up to you, my children, and all of our children, to be blessed to continue to build the State, and to make it truly an independent and self-sufficient state.


Friday, September 2, 2016

Weather Is Is (Is Anything Happening?)

Good 2nd Day of September.

It's been an uneventful summer in many ways.  I doubt that anyone would complain.

There were very few hot days and very few missile days. I am not sure if there is a correlation between the number of hot summer days and the number of missiles from Gaza, but together the lack of each makes for pleasant summer days.

The area of low pressure over the desert that often brings us many hot days has remained mostly far to our east, while relatively strong low pressure northeast of Cyprus has maintained a flow of cool, but humid air.

Right now, we don't see any real changes although the low-pressure couplet may shift a bit westward late next week, before shifting back to cooler weather mid the week after next.

So, not much to say, but that's okay.

Shabbat Shalom,

Barry Lynn