Cold and Rainy Weather Arrives and Stays for a Few Days

There is a definite chill in the air this morning.  As a trough of low pressure moves in from the northwest, the cold will strengthen and bring with it plenty of moisture.  The blustery and strong winds should also be accompanied by periodic thunderstorms, some of which can be seen in the featured photo from this Friday morning.

One vorticity max will pass through today and another over Ukraine will rotate around the trough and arrive here on Sunday, passing through on Monday. Vorticity is a measure of the spin of the atmosphere and its approach will lead to a positional differential in vorticity.  When there is positive vorticity advection (increasing vorticity at a location in time), the differential creates rising air and instability, which will combine with strong moisture advection (movement into our area) to produce heavy rain on Sunday afternoon into Tuesday.

Snow should fall heavily on the Hermon and should be a reminder of the potential importance of the entire Hermon for those who like to ski as well as enjoy the views.   If you read here, you’ll see that many Arab persons do not like the Picot-Sykes agreement that created  Syria and other nations at the same time.  Considering that current events (the disintegration of Syria) suggest some necessary modifications to the now dated agreement (signed so many years ago), might we too consider that the Hermon represents both an opportunity for great skiing as well as a strategic defensive necessity?  And while we’re at, we might as well welcome nearby Druse living in towns over what used to be the border of Syria.  The Israeli Druze, afterall, have been loyal and highly contributing citizens of our country so far.  Let’s give their “cousins” this chance.

On Monday, I worked up the courage to attend the funeral of Netanel Pesach.  So many young men from the town of Elazar (in Gush Etzion) have fallen — Netanel was one of them.  I didn’t know him or his family, but all that sorrow from October 7th (2023) finally caught up with me.  I had to go and mourn, not just him, but for all those that have fallen or were murdered on and since that date.   But, I thought: “how does one person matter…?  Let me just go on with my day, as I have every day since then, sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse.”  But, with a little encouragement from a friend I drove over to the cemetery.

I wasn’t doing anything unusual, though, as thousands if not tens of thousands have attended too many funerals (and I still believe that one is too many).  So, really, what was the big deal?

But then I saw it or rather them.   Each of them was an individual who decided just like me to go and pay their respects and try to offer just a bit of condolence — just by being there.

There as a people.   And as a united people,  we should be blessed to continue to survive and thrive, as we strive each day to build and celebrate our lives in the land of our ancestors, now the modern State of Israel.

Am Yisrael Chai!