Plenty of young people read this blog, including those who are majoring in meteorology and planning on getting into the broadcast business. With graduation time upon us, and seniors on the street looking for that first job, I thought I would post a list of phrases I DON’T want to hear from a television meteorologist on a resume tape…

*”Sunny SKIES”. Look out the window and count the number of skies above. There is only one! I have no idea where the plural thing comes from, but the SKY is sunny (not skies!!. This is an old, canned TV weather term.

*”High pressure is in firm control of our weather”. Another old, lame TV weather term. Yes, high atmospheric pressure usually means sinking air, and that subsidence leads to dry and fair weather. When people ask me about the weather in the checkout line of the supermarket or the ball park, I have never used that line. On the air we are simply communicating the weather on a one on one basis; we need to talk to the audience that way.

*”The temperature outside is 84 degrees”. Anytime you are doing the weather on television, you are ALWAYS taking about the weather outside, and you don’t have to say that. I don’t think I have ever talked about temperatures inside our studio other than times the air conditioning system is down!

The bottom line is that on a television weathercast you have to simply communicate with your audience like you talk with a person you know. Forget all of the old, canned TV terms; you are simply there to tell a good weather story. Don’t try to be a “TV weather person”, just be yourself!

The Thursday afternoon map discussion video is on the server:

http://www.jamesspann.com/

Don't forget all of our video and audio products are available on iTunes... just search ABC 33/40 on the podcast section and you will find them.

THE BIG WARM-UP: Temperatures are generally warmer than forecast this afternoon, so our warm-up is ahead of schedule. I expected upper 70s, but most spots are in the low 80s. It will be fun to watch our new SKYCAM network data from Cheaha State Park this summer; that is Alabama's highest point at 2,407 feet. Right now they are showing 73 degrees with winds gusting to 40 mph. See the image and data from Cheaha here:

http://www.abc3340.com/static/skycams/skycamscheaha.html

I think we will be amazed at the temperature difference up there on hot summer days. Makes me want to rent a cabin!

SLIGHT SEVERE WEATHER RISK? SPC maintains a slight risk of severe storms across the northern third of Alabama tomorrow afternoon and evening. Moisture is pretty limited (dewpoints should remain under 60), and a capping inversion might prevent any storms from forming. For now we will continue to mention the chance of isolated storms late tomorrow, but most places should be dry. Any storms that do form could produce some hail and gusty winds. Temperatures should easily reach the mid 80s tomorrow.

THE WEEKEND: Summer-like warmth is the story for Saturday and Sunday highs in the upper 80s; some spots might touch 90 over West Alabama. Any afternoon showers will be very scarce.

Warm and dry weather will continue into the first part of next week as the main westerly winds aloft over North America continue to shift to the north.

NEXT RAIN? The GFS shows a fairly strong upper wave passing north of Alabama late next week, which might get a cold front this far south. So, showers look like a good get at the end of next week, around Friday May 26.

LONG RANGE: The GFS advertises a weaker version of the eastern U.S. trough rebuilding around May 28-30, which might bring a quick shot of cooler air into the state. But, heights rise and summer-like weather should return as we begin June, with warm days and a few scattered afternoon showers or storms around here.

Be sure and scroll down and read the e-mail to J.B... very touching. Glad to have Mr. Elliott back in the saddle today; and glad his wife Judy is home and doing much better! The next map discussion video will be posted by 7:00 a.m. tomorrow!

Please note: I have permission from Barbara Tanner to post her letter below to our blog and/or our E-Forecast. Since space is limited on the E-Forecast, I will use exerpts there. I am not posting this because Barbara gave me so much credit, although I appreciate that and it makes me feel good. Instead, I am posting it to once again urge all pet owners to enjoy every day they have with their pets and let them know that you love them. They will return the love ten-fold. As I have said before, I am a strong person emotionally but this is another one that brought tears to my eyes as I read it. Thanks to Barbara and here is her letter word-for-word:
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Dear Mr. Elliott,

Two weeks after I had major surgery in early Feb., our beloved Peke-a-Poo passed away from liver failure/cancer. Marty had been a much beloved member of our family for 8-1/2 years, and we had adopted him from the B'ham Humane Society when he was 1-1/2 to 2 years old.

We were totally devastated. Since we don't have any children, Marty was our whole life.

My husband and I grieved and grieved, and cried and cried... We didn't think we'd be ready to adopt another "child" for possibly 6 months to a year because our hearts were so broken.

Marty was SOOOO smart (poodles are as smart as a 3-year-old child, we've read), SOOOO affectionate, and our schedules revolved around him.

After feeling utterly lost for 2 months every time we returned to an empty home, I read one of your ABC33/40 weather emails where you described holding Little Miss Molly's face in your hands when she woke up in the morning and having her snuggle/cuddle with you on the sofa...

I immediately phoned my husband and said, "I'm ready for another dog RIGHT NOW! I want to experience that again like Mr. Elliott and Miss Molly!"

We began looking on petfinders.com to see what "rescue dogs" were available in this area. We never DREAMED that we'd find another poodle mix. And we never thought we'd be so in love with another dog as we were with Marty.

I did a search for poodles in Alabama, and there were only FIVE in the whole state! And my husband couldn't abide the thought of having a "tea-cup"-size dog like Miss Molly. (He has an aversion to dogs that "yip" instead of "bark," and he doesn't like tiny dogs whose nails click on the vinyl floor. Weird, huh

We had phoned about a couple of poodle mix dogs -- one in Anniston, one in Chilton County, and one at the Animal Control Center in B'ham, and every single one would get adopted before we could get there.

So we gave up on trying to find a poodle. We made plans to see a Beagle and a Terrier mix on a Sunday. But my husband insisted that we find some dogs to see on that Sat., the day before.

Lo and behold, on that Friday, I found a poodle mix in Cleveland at the Blount County Humane Society. I realized that I would never be happy with any other dog except another poodle.

We went to see her on Sat., and we just fell in love with that little 15-pound poodle mix! We immediately adopted her and named her Maggie. And she has brought nothing but smiles and joy into our life for the past couple of weeks!

You probably never know how many lives your stories touch, so I wanted to be sure that you heard our "happy ending" story. I wanted you to know that you formed a new family of 3, and we've "saved" each other!

The Tuesday following our adoption, I got an email from the lady at the shelter where we adopted Maggie. She asked how Maggie was doing and how her check-up at the vet had gone. Then she said that she was so thankful that we had adopted Maggie because "her time was up at the shelter" and she "would have been put to sleep the week after we adopted."

Chalk up another "good deed" performed by Miss Molly and Mr. Elliott!

Sincerely,
Barbara Tanner
Center Point

The Thursday morning map discussion video is on the server:

http://www.jamesspann.com/

I am really a little sad... mourning the end of the long May cool snap. The weather around here is looking really warm and humid this weekend and through all of next week. As discussed here in recent days, our next good cool snap will probably come in October.

TODAY: The chance of showers this afternoon seems to be pretty small here, but I would not be surprised if a few show up over the northeast part of the state, over Jackson, Madison, and Marshall counties. The warming trend begins; we go into the upper 70s today. Some places might reach uo for the first time since May 4.

TOMORROW: Interesting to note SPC has the northern third of Alabama in a slight risk for severe storms, while our forecast reflects just a few isolated afternooon showers or storms. With the increased daytime heat (we will be in the 80s), and cold air aloft still around (although not as cold as recent days)... there is some school of thought a few strorng storms could fire up Friday afternoon over North Alabama. Dynamics are really marginal, and I think any storms will be pretty widely spaced.

THE WEEKEND: The weather looks very warm and mostly dry for Saturday and Sunday. Understand this is getting into the time of year when it is hard to say there is NO chance of rain, but any showers should be few and far between both afternoons. Temperatures will easily reach the mid 80s, and parts of West Alabama might even see upper 80s. Get your air conditioner ready.

NEXT WEEK: A warm ridge will cover Alabama, so the first half of the week will be generally dry and warm. The southern edge of the westerlies will dip down toward North Alabama over the latter half of the week, so scattered showers and storms might show up by Thursday and Friday (May 25-26).

The afternoon map discussion video will be posted by 3:30 this afternoon..... stay tuned!