December 2012 Climate Data

Notes:

• Temperature data from the airport (GFK) and precipitation data from the University.
• ##^R denotes record maximum
• ##_R denotes record minimum

Day	High	Low	Dep.	Precip.	Snow	Depth
1	36	25	+14	0.00"	0.0"	1"
2	42	25	+17	0.00"	0.0"	Trace
3	44	17	+15	0.10"	0.0"	0"
4	20	11	0	0.00"	0.0"	0"
5	35	14	+10	Trace	0.0"	0"
6	39	18	+14	0.00"	0.0"	0"
7	19	6	-1	Trace	Trace	0"
8	21	8	+1	0.05"	1.7"	Trace
9	8	-11	-15	Trace	0.1"	2"
10	15	-13	-12	Trace	Trace	2"
11	9	-2	-9	Trace	Trace	2"
12	18	5	0	Trace	Trace	2"
13	19	4	0	Trace	0.1"	2"
14	28	9	+7	Trace	Trace	2"
15	23	9	+5	Trace	Trace	2"
16	23	17	+9	Trace	Trace	2"
17	19	16	+7	0.01"	0.2"	2"
18	26	18	+12	0.05"	1.0"	2"
19	27	16	+12	Trace	Trace	3"
20	16	0	-2	Trace	0.1"	3"
21	9	4	-3	Trace	0.1"	3"
22	14	2	-1	Trace	Trace	3"
23	3	-4	-9	0.01"	0.1"	3"
24	-1	-11	-15	0.00"	0.0"	3"
25	0	-11	-14	0.00"	0.0"	3"
26	9	-1	-4	0.02"	0.2"	3"
27	15	8	-4	0.01"	0.1"	3"
28	15	0	0	0.02"	0.2"	3"
29	12	-8	-6	Trace	0.2"	3"
30	24	0	+4	Trace	0.1"	3"
31	3	-11	-12	0.00"	0.0"	4"
Dec 2012	19.0	5.2	+0.6	0.27"	4.2"	Avg: 2.0"

Average High: 19.0°F [Departure from Normal: -1.3°F]
Average Low: 5.2°F [Departure from Normal: +2.6°F]
Mean Temperature: 12.1°F [Departure From Normal: +0.6°F]
Total Precipitation: 0.27" [Departure from Normal: -0.38"; 41% of normal]
Total Snowfall: 4.2" [Departure from Normal: -6.7"; 39% of normal]
Seasonal Snowfall: 14.2" [Departure from Normal: -28.6"; 33% of normal]

1981-2010 Climate Normals

2012-13 NCAA Basketball Rankings - Vol. III

Here are my updated Top 50 rankings, through games played on 12/31/2012:

Rank	Last	Team	Record	RPI	Conference
1	1	Duke	(12-0, 0-0)	1	ACC
2	2	Michigan	(13-0, 0-0)	2	B1G
3	3	Arizona	(12-0, 0-0)	6	PAC-12
4	13	Kansas	(11-1, 0-0)	3	Big 12
5	7	Louisville	(12-1, 0-0)	9	Big East
6	11	Minnesota	(13-1, 1-0)	8	B1G
7	5	Ohio St.	(10-2, 0-0)	45	B1G
8	14	Butler	(10-2, 0-0)	5	Atlantic 10
9	15	Indiana	(13-1, 1-0)	15	B1G
10	6	Illinois	(13-1, 0-0)	12	B1G
11	12	Gonzaga	(13-1, 0-0)	7	West Coast
12	8	Syracuse	(12-1, 0-0)	19	Big East
13	19	San Diego St.	(11-2, 0-0)	41	Mountain West
14	4	Florida	(9-2, 0-0)	11	SEC
15	17	Missouri	(10-2, 0-0)	31	SEC
16	16	Georgetown	(10-1, 0-0)	32	Big East
17	18	Wyoming	(12-0, 0-0)	27	Mountain West
18	23	Creighton	(12-1, 1-0)	17	Missouri Valley
19	10	Cincinnati	(13-1, 1-0)	24	Big East
20	22	Michigan St.	(11-3, 0-1)	26	B1G
21	21	Pitt	(12-2, 0-1)	70	Big East
22	27	Wichita St.	(12-1, 1-0)	18	Missouri Valley
23	26	Oklahoma St.	(10-2, 0-0)	21	Big 12
24	9	New Mexico	(13-2, 0-0)	10	Mountain West
25	25	Notre Dame	(12-1, 0-0)	66	Big East
26	30	NC State	(11-2, 0-0)	13	ACC
27	28	VCU	(10-3, 0-0)	30	Atlantic 10
28	43	UCLA	(10-3, 0-0)	43	PAC-12
29	47	Kansas St.	(11-2, 0-0)	71	Big 12
30	31	Baylor	(8-4, 0-0)	34	Big 12
31	32	Kentucky	(8-4, 0-0)	57	SEC
32	33	Maryland	(11-1, 0-0)	65	ACC
33	34	Connecticut	(10-2, 0-0)	22	Big East
34	N/A	Saint Louis	(10-3, 0-0)	49	Atlantic 10
35	36	Tennessee	(8-3, 0-0)	47	SEC
36	39	Iowa	(11-3, 0-1)	80	B1G
37	N/A	Texas	(8-5, 0-0)	119	Big 12
38	29	North Carolina	(10-3, 0-0)	25	ACC
39	24	UNLV	(11-2, 0-0)	14	Mountain West
40	40	Colorado	(10-2, 0-0)	4	PAC-12
41	20	Oregon	(11-2, 0-0)	52	PAC-12
42	42	Boise St.	(10-2, 0-0)	39	Mountain West
43	N/A	Colorado St.	(11-2, 0-0)	23	Mountain West
44	N/A	Indiana St.	(8-4, 1-0)	35	Missouri Valley
45	N/A	Stanford	(9-4, 0-0)	64	PAC-12
46	35	Miami	(8-3, 0-0)	16	ACC
47	N/A	Mississippi	(10-2, 0-0)	46	SEC
48	38	Northwestern	(9-4, 0-0)	118	B1G
49	N/A	BYU	(10-4, 0-0)	29	West Coast
50	N/A	Memphis	(9-3, 0-0)	92	Conference-USA

Dropped from Rankings: #37 Bucknell, #41 Murray State, #44 Virginia, #45 Marquette, #46 Eastern Kentucky, #48 Bradley, #49 Temple, #50 George Mason

2012-13 Basketball Rankings - Vol. II

These are my Top 50 rankings, through games played on December 18th:

Rank	Last	Team	Record	RPI	Conference
1	1	Duke	(9-0, 0-0)	1	ACC
2	4	Michigan	(11-0, 0-0)	3	B1G
3	5	Arizona	(9-0, 0-0)	8	PAC-12
4	3	Florida	(7-1, 0-0)	6	SEC
5	6	Ohio St.	(9-1, 0-0)	36	B1G
6	11	Illinois	(12-0, 0-0)	5	B1G
7	7	Louisville	(9-1, 0-0)	13	Big East
8	8	Syracuse	(10-0, 0-0)	11	Big East
9	9	New Mexico	(11-0, 0-0)	9	Mountain West
10	13	Cincinnati	(10-0, 0-0)	32	Big East
11	14	Minnesota	(11-1, 0-0)	15	B1G
12	10	Gonzaga	(10-1, 0-0)	16	West Coast
13	16	Kansas	(9-1, 0-0)	7	Big 12
14	39	Butler	(8-2, 0-0)	4	Atlantic 10
15	2	Indiana	(9-1, 0-0)	19	B1G
16	15	Georgetown	(9-1, 0-0)	30	Big East
17	17	Missouri	(9-1, 0-0)	75	SEC
18	19	Wyoming	(11-0, 0-0)	40	Mountain West
19	18	San Diego St.	(9-1, 0-0)	82	Mountain West
20	20	Oregon	(9-1, 0-0)	33	PAC-12
21	22	Pitt	(10-1, 0-0)	50	Big East
22	23	Michigan St.	(10-2, 0-0)	39	B1G
23	29	Creighton	(10-1, 0-0)	22	Missouri Valley
24	24	UNLV	(9-1, 0-0)	18	Mountain West
25	30	Notre Dame	(10-1, 0-0)	61	Big East
26	25	Oklahoma St.	(8-1, 0-0)	29	Big 12
27	12	Wichita St.	(9-1, 0-0)	20	Missouri Valley
28	34	VCU	(8-3, 0-0)	24	Atlantic 10
29	26	North Carolina	(8-2, 0-0)	47	ACC
30	31	NC State	(8-2, 0-0)	10	ACC
31	32	Baylor	(7-3, 0-0)	63	Big 12
32	33	Kentucky	(7-3, 0-0)	59	SEC
33	35	Maryland	(9-1, 0-0)	55	ACC
34	36	Connecticut	(8-2, 0-0)	23	Big East
35	N/A	Miami	(7-1, 0-0)	12	ACC
36	N/A	Tennessee	(6-3, 0-0)	73	SEC
37	42	Bucknell	(10-1, 0-0)	28	Patriot
38	40	Northwestern	(8-3, 0-0)	72	B1G
39	N/A	Iowa	(9-2, 0-0)	58	B1G
40	38	Colorado	(8-2, 0-0)	2	PAC-12
41	N/A	Murray State	(8-1, 0-0)	17	Ohio Valley
42	27	Boise St.	(7-2, 0-0)	31	Mountain West
43	N/A	UCLA	(8-3, 0-0)	100	PAC-12
44	N/A	Virginia	(8-2, 0-0)	130	ACC
45	N/A	Marquette	(7-2, 0-0)	91	Big East
46	49	Eastern Kentucky	(9-1, 0-0)	87	Ohio Valley
47	44	Kansas St.	(8-2, 0-0)	143	Big 12
48	N/A	Bradley	(7-2, 0-0)	119	Missouri Valley
49	48	Temple	(8-1, 0-0)	49	Atlantic 10
50	43	George Mason	(6-4, 0-0)	81	Colonial

Dropped Out: #21 Virginia Tech, #28 Alabama, #37 IL-Chicago, #41 Xavier, #45 Colorado St., #46 Charlotte, #47 Arizona St., #50 Mississippi

Christmas Vacation - From Cold to Cohd

For those of you that aren't laughing at the title of this blog post, it's self-deprecation because I typically do not pronounce the 'l' in cold. I guess it's my Eastern Shore of Maryland dialect. I find dialects interesting, and the results of this University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee survey are interesting to me. Anyway, back to the point of this post.

When reading the local 'Zone Forecast Product' from NWS-Wakefield, I am really amused by the temperature forecast for my entire stay back home (where it's currently 62°F by the way):

DORCHESTER-  
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...CAMBRIDGE  110 PM EST TUE DEC 18 2012  
   
THIS AFTERNOON  
PARTLY SUNNY. HIGHS IN THE LOWER 60S. WEST WINDS  
AROUND 15 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 30 MPH.    
TONIGHT...PARTLY CLOUDY IN THE EVENING  
THEN BECOMING MOSTLY  
CLEAR. LOWS IN THE UPPER 30S. WEST WINDS 10 TO 15 MPH. GUSTS UP TO  
30 MPH IN THE EVENING.    
WEDNESDAY  
MOSTLY SUNNY. HIGHS IN THE LOWER 50S. WEST WINDS 10 TO  
15 MPH.    
WEDNESDAY NIGHT  
MOSTLY CLEAR. LOWS IN THE MID 30S. NORTHWEST  
WINDS 5 TO 10 MPH...BECOMING NORTHEAST AFTER MIDNIGHT.    
THURSDAY  
PARTLY SUNNY. HIGHS IN THE MID 50S. SOUTHEAST WINDS  
10 TO 15 MPH.    
THURSDAY NIGHT...CLOUDY. SHOWERS LIKELY  
MAINLY IN THE EVENING.  
LOWS IN THE LOWER 40S. CHANCE OF RAIN 60 PERCENT.    
FRIDAY AND FRIDAY NIGHT  
PARTLY CLOUDY AND BREEZY. HIGHS IN THE  
UPPER 40S. LOWS IN THE LOWER 30S.    
SATURDAY  
MOSTLY SUNNY AND BREEZY. HIGHS IN THE UPPER 40S.    
SATURDAY NIGHT  
CLEAR. LOWS AROUND 30.    
SUNDAY THROUGH MONDAY  
MOSTLY CLEAR. HIGHS IN THE UPPER 40S. LOWS  
AROUND 30. 

First let's compare the past 7 days here in Grand Forks:

12/11--> High: 9, Low: -2
12/12--> High: 18, Low: 5
12/13--> High: 19, Low:4
12/14--> High: 28, Low: 9 (HEAT WAVE!!!)
12/15--> High: 23, Low: 9
12/16--> High: 23, Low 17
12/17--> High: 19, Low: 16

So that LOW temperature around 30 at the end of my stay back home will be warmer than any HIGH I have experienced over the past week! In fact, it has been 12 days since it has reached 30°F here (39°F on 12/6). If you take coldest high temperature in that forecast (highs in the upper 40s), that will still be the warmest weather I have experienced in the past 27 days (46°F on 11/21). Then for a real good laugh, see that Thursday forecast, with highs in the mid 50s? Well it's been 62 days since I have felt that kind of warmth (55°F on 10/17)!

I think I should pack a pair of shorts and head to the beach on Thursday!

Good Riddance van Persie

About a year ago, my second full season as an Arsenal fan, I bought a Robin van Persie jersey. He was far and away the best player on the team and led the Premier League in goals scored, with an incredible 30 goals scored in 38 league games played. Then the Dutchman from Rotterdam "zijn ziel verkocht" and committed the traitorous move of signing with rival Manchester United. My best Arsenal friend was so fed up he offered it up as kindling at a co-worker's campfire. In short order, the flames that engulfed that RVP jersey were "hoog van de toren blazen"!

On the other hand, I could not do that. Not that I didn't want too, but it just felt like burning money. Some time later, I was delighted to hear that Arsenal announced Jack Wilshere would be the new #10. I knew what I wanted to do, but have just now completed the task. Enjoy a visual diary of 'Operation: Arsenal Kit Transformation':

The Lube - Fargo

I recently visited the new Quaker Steak & Lube in Fargo. I am familiar with The Lube as I went there a few times when I lived in western Pennsylvania, with my last visit in December 2008. In my opinion, The Lube has the best wings I have ever had. I became a fan of the restaurant because the hometown of a good friend of mine is in Sharon, PA - home of the original Quaker Steak & Lube which opened in 1974. It was originally a "cook your own steak" restaurant with an automotive theme - with the idea of preserving the culture of old gas stations and high-powered muscle cars following the 1973 oil crisis. Along the way, they started selling chicken wings and have since developed over 20 different wing sauces/dusts to their menu - winning many awards along the way. Probably the most popular, and my favorite as well, is the 'Louisiana Lickers' sauce. If memory serves me correct, I have also had the Original BBQ, Arizona Ranch, Cajun, Buckeye BBQ, and Supercharged (formerly Suicide).  On my first visit to the Fargo location, I ordered Louisiana Lickers and Buckeye BBQ and an order of fries.

What a fantastic meal! Everything tasted as good as I remembered from four years ago. As is typical, the restaurant was all decked out with its usual decor. In the room I dined in was a Tony Stewart Home Depot NASCAR - upside down! Other rooms featured a brand new Harley Davidson and a 1974 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray. There were also plenty of televisions everywhere so you wouldn't miss any of whatever game is on. With it being newly opened, the wait staff was still new as well - but I found our waitress to be extremely friendly, timely, and eager to make sure everything about my dining experience went well. My only minor complaint is that I went on a night I was expecting all-you-can-eat boneless wings for $12 or $13, but they are not doing that promotion until January. Otherwise everything was nearly perfect for my meal. As a side note, my girlfriend ordered a mixed drink called the "Crusin’ Coco Berry Colada" which came with an actual rose in the drink! Quite a decorative touch and it was fortunate for me that rose came with the drink, as it played a very important role later in the evening.

Overall, even without my prior bias, I would highly recommend anyone in the Red River Valley who likes wings, burgers and fries, or steak to visit 'The Lube'. There is truth in advertising when they say 'Best Wings USA'.

Overall Meal Rating: 9.5/10

 One more thought - any restaurant that a.) has a roll of paper towels on the table instead of napkins, and/or b.) gives you a wet nap after your meal (as was the case the The Lube's 'wet wag') - is a damn fine restaurant.