THE WEISS CHRONICLES

Medical Exams

Ann and I had our annual physical exams today.

No big news.

In my case there was a bonus of sorts. The blood test I had before the exam indicated that my Prostate Specific Antigen count had decreased (it was under 3.0) from the previous test and was only half of what it was the count before that (which was over 5.0).

My doctor was so pleased he announced that because of the low PSA I didn't need a digital rectal exam.

Also my creatinine level was good. This level has to be watched because I take Meloxican for arthritis and Meloxican, like all non sterioid anti inflamatory drugs has a potential to harm the kidneys.

posted by Martin Weiss # 8:26 PM

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Really, Really Cold

It got cold here starting yesterday after midnight.

This morning it was in the 20s almost everywhere in the region except some teens in some places.

The first image was taken by Erin Blasco and shared with the Capitalweathergang. It is a fountain in the garden behind the Smithsonian Arts and Industries building.

Dulles Airport had a minimum of 19F (breaking the all time record for the date).

BWI had a minimum of 22F which tied the all time record for the date. That record was set in 1911 when the recording station was in downtown Baltimore. BTW, in 1911 there was a famous cold outbreak called the Great Blue Norther of November 11, 1911.

The second image was taken after our third night of below freezing temperatures. It is of the ginkgo leaves having fallen in NW Washington. The Ginkgo leaves frequently fall all at once. The New Yorker did a article in 2014 on this phenomenon. It was called, "The night of the Ginkgo". The image was taken by Ian Livingston who posts lots of weather related images at the capitalweathergang.

The third image is of an frost blossom. It was taken by Roy Spencer (who runs one of the weather satellite analysis programs) in Alabama and he put it on his climate analysis web site. The cold froze a plant stalk and sap in the stalk expanded and caused fracture in the stalk. Water was drawn up the stalk via capillary pressure and extruded and froze as did water vapor around it. It is a rare phenomenon that is, I think, more common in the South US than elsewhere (I've never seen it in my area) in the world. An article on frost blossoms is here.

posted by Martin Weiss # 12:27 PM

Thursday, November 07, 2019

Warranty Actually Works

Unlike the story behind the cartoon, I had a positive warranty experience today.

My dashboard indicated that the air pressure in my left rear tire was low. Yes, my low 2015 Chevy Sonic actually has a subsystem to alert the driver about this (although it doesn't change the time between daylight and standard time by itself).

I took the car into Goodyear who had replaced that particular tire last year (after a bad puncture).

They had recorded the warranty and they fixed the tire at no cost to me, not even a service charge.

posted by Martin Weiss # 9:48 PM

Unusually Nice Sunrise

Over the years I've found sunrises to be less pretty than sunsets. Perhaps this is because I am rarely out at sunrise but more often out at sunset. I specifically remember several times on cruises when I woke up and got to a top deck to see the sunrise and it was disappointing.

The sunrise I remember best is the time in 1993 when I went up to the top of Mount Haleakalā in Hawaii. Even then the sunrise itself wasn't so great but it illuminated the various sand formations inside the central caldera of the Mountain (an extinct volcano) which made for great colors, even iridescence.

This morning was a very nice sunrise and I was up to see it. I didn't take a picture but others did.

The first image is of Tyson's Corner this morning. It was taken by Curt McCormick who then shared it with the CapitalWeatherGang.

The second image is of Silver Spring this morning. It was taken by Dan Lawrence who similarly shared it.

Click on the image to expand it.

posted by Martin Weiss # 9:40 PM