Look at that pinhole in the reflectivity knob! I was even better defined in the ensuing scan, after which the rotation became more diffuse and the storm began to weaken. Prior to this, a few dedicated and fortunate chasers videotaped a nice
Tornadoes in North Central Nebraska
August 12, 2011 by
Changes on the Way for Stormhorn.com!
A new look is coming to this blogsite in the near future. You may have already noticed one of its precursors in the movement of advertisements to the top of the sidebar. But more is on the way. My beautiful, geek-to-the-Nth-power lady friend, Lisa, is working on an update to my theme that will improve it both cosmetically and functionally.
This is just a heads-up. I don’t know precisely when Lis will have the new version of Stormhorn finished, and I’m not pushing her–this is her labor of love on my behalf, and she gets all the space she needs. But she has been beavering away in a spirit of excellence. I just got a look a little while ago at a new feature she has in mind for me, and I was extremely impressed. Good things are worth waiting for, but I don’t think the wait will be very long. So this is your heads-up: Look for a fresh wind to blow through Stormhorn.com sometime soon. I know you’re gonna like the results!
August 8, 2011 by
First Public Speaking Engagement
Yesterday morning I delivered a presentation on storm chasing for the residents of Covenant Village, a retirement community on the west side of Grand Rapids. The event was my baptism as a public speaker, and it went very well. The positive comments I received encouraged me that I did a good job for a greenhorn. But then, I had a compelling topic and plenty of material to make up for my lack of experience behind the podium.
I spent most of the previous day organizing my notes and photographs. By the time I was finished, sometime around midnight, I had a collection 37 images, including two radar screens. I also had seven pages of notes that covered
• who storm chasers are, what they do, and why they do it; and my own growth as a storm chaser;
• severe weather in Michigan, using this year’s May 29 straight-line wind event in Battle Creek as an example;
• basics of a tornadic supercell, tracking the June 5, 2010, Elmdale, Illinois, storm from initiation to tornadogenesis to impact on a small community;
• and finally, my most intense personal experience to date, that being May 22, 2010, in “The Field” near Roscoe, South Dakota.
Inviting my audience to interject with questions made for more organic, interesting communication. A number of people responded with some excellent questions, and I liked how those freed me from the tyranny of my notes. I really don’t like to getting my nose stuck in a pile of notes–they interrupt my flow. Hopefully I’ll get more speaking opportunities, and those will help me to internalize my material, at which point I’ll be able to jettison the notes entirely.
At the request of organizer Linda Kirpes, I concluded my talk with a rendition of “Stormy Weather” on my saxophone, followed by my theme song, “Amazing Grace.” Probably most speakers don’t cap their presentations in such fashion, but it suited me, and I’ll do it again if I get the chance. The storm and the horn of “Stormhorn” go together, after all.
August 6, 2011 by
Lightning at the South Haven Pier
For all that, the storms when they finally arrived were pretty garden variety, with one exception: the lightning was absolutely spectacular, a
It was too dark to see the shelf cloud very distinctly. I tried to capture it with my camcorder; I haven’t viewed the footage yet, so I don’t know how it turned out, but I soon realized that I’d be better off working with my still camera, which I got mounted right about the time that the gust front arrived. The rain was near-instantaneous, escalating within moments from errant droplets to a horizontal sheet, and I scurried back to my car while collapsing my tripod as fast as I could.
As the storm moved on, a good number of people returned to the beach with their cameras to capture the amazing sunset and the lightning display. Storm chasers aren’t the only ones with an eye for the drama that the sky provides!
I might add that the pics with raindrops all over the foreground were taken from my car during the height of the first storm. While I’d of course prefer nice, clear images, I don’t mind the drops. They lend a somewhat Impressionistic feel to the photos. At least, that’s what I tell myself.
August 3, 2011 by
Distant Storm: Impressions of the Michigan Summer Sky
July 31, 2011 by
“Round About” Jazz Etude for Bb and C Instruments
Since my instrument is the alto saxophone, it was natural for me to write the etude using the Eb transposition. But of course, the whole world doesn’t play Eb instruments. So I promised those of you who play tenor sax, trumpet, flute, and other Bb and concert pitch instruments that I would provide transposed charts for you.
If you enjoy these exercises, look here for more, along with insightful articles, transcribed solos, and tips on jazz improv.
CORRECTION: Now that this article has been posted for a while, naturally I’ve noticed a transcription error in the C and Bb charts. (The original Eb chart is fine.) Since you can easily make the correction mentally, I’m going to simply tell you what it is. In measures 3-4 and 19-20, the chord symbol should not contain a sharp sign. The correct chord in both locations is as follows: for the C chart, A7+4; for the Bb chart, B7+4.
July 29, 2011 by
A Jazz Etude Based on the Jamey Aebersold Tune “Round About”
Lacking access to a rhythm section with whom I can play whenever I want, I practice quite a bit with Jamey Aebersold CDs. One of my favorites for hashing out ideas and building technique is Aebersold’s volume 84, Dominant Seventh Workout. The 2-CD set provides a thorough exploration of dominant seventh harmony.
Volume 2, track 15, consists of a tune written by Jamey Aebersold titled “Round About.” I play the piece often, both because it’s a great opportunity to experiment with altered dominant chords and also because I simply like the tune. It’s moody, pretty, and fun to play.
The etude works fine as a stand-alone technique builder, but to really get the sound of it–and hence, to make better aural sense of it–I highly recommend that you play the exercise along with the Aebersold CD.
Note that, me being an alto player, I’ve written the etude for Eb instruments. If you play a Bb instrument such as tenor sax or trumpet, or a C instrument such as flute, you’ll have to transpose, at least for now. Stay tuned, though–I will be posting a Bb edition soon, and perhaps a concert pitch edition as well.
Eb players, have fun! And if you enjoy this exercise, check out my jazz page, where you’ll find many more articles, exercises, and solo transcriptions.
July 27, 2011 by
Sunset at Hall Lake
Yesterday we were in a slight risk area, but with a warm front laying along the Indiana border, the southern tier counties are where convection broke out in Southwest Michigan. One cell near Cassopolis showed sustained, deep rotation on the radar, and Kurt Hulst and I discussed going after it. Given the distance and marginal conditions, we decided to let it go.
Instead, I headed out the door later on with my saxophone and my fishing rod, as well as my camera and laptop just in case storms developed within easy range. Not that I expected any, and none materialzed to divert me from casting a line into the water for the first time in a couple of years.
It felt good to get back at fishing, and picturesque Hall Lake in Yankee Springs Recreational Area was the perfect place to do so. Forty-two acres in size and sporting a small island in its middle, Hall Lake attracts just a handful of fishermen, to whom it offers a tranquil option to the much larger, all-sports Gun Lake to its west. Tucked in a wooded valley, where it is bordered to the south by Gun Lake Road and cradled by the glacial hills of Barry County, it is a place where a man can go to withdraw from the madly rushing world, stand at the water’s edge casting topwater lures into the evening, and let his thoughts slow down to a casual stroll.
I’m no great fisherman. What I do with a rod and reel is more accurately described as dredging. But the fish were eager feeders yesterday, and it took only a few casts before I landed a nice little 12-inch bass–big enough to keep, but I released him. I viewed it as my Father smiling at me for getting back to a hobby that I’ve never mastered but always enjoyed.
It was a scene worth capturing with my camera, and I have done so. Click on the images to enlarge them. I like them, and I hope you will too.
July 24, 2011 by
Worst of the Michigan Heat Wave
This has got to be the crest of the heat wave that is assaulting the nation, at least as far as the western Great Lakes is concerned. Here at my apartment in Caledonia, Michigan, I just took a read with my Kestrel 4500 weather meter of 98 degrees F temperature and a dewpoint of 81. Eighty-one freaking degrees! And a heat index of 122 F.
I couldn’t believe my eyes. Then I thought, okay, I logged that data on my third-floor balcony, where I keep my well-watered collection of carnivorous plants. Sensitive as the Kestrel is, it may have picked up on the moisture from the planters.
So I scooted downstairs and took another read, and this one produced more modest results of 91/76/102. Not as bad as out on my balcony, but still just downright nasty.
A weak cold front is forecast to move through here sometime this afternoon and lower the dewpoints a few degrees. I hope it happens; I’m all for taking five or so degrees of dewpoint temperature and shipping them off somewhere where they’re needed. As things stand, I don’t even want to venture outside. But I’m afraid I’ve got to. Once this post is published, it’ll be time for me to hop into my oven-like Buick Century and head over to my mother’s house, there to perform my weekly ritual of vacuuming the carpet.
Whatever would we do without air conditioning on days like this? I don’t know how people manage who don’t have it.
July 21, 2011 by
