I've moved some items off the front page in order to cut down on the load time, since most people want to see the Web cam first. The news headlines have been moved to the news headline page.

I'm also working a new menu system that will let you pick wherever you want to go on Pinecam from the front page and working to get the blog (Web log) a little more automated to the front page. I want to be able to easily update the front page at least once a day.

If you are wondering about the snowflakes, they will only show up when there is snow in the forecast.

Thanks for stoppping by Pinecam.com.
posted by Pinecamguy at 10:43 AM

I saw this on an Australian newspaper Web site and thought it was funny:

"Not only is President George Bush scoring high in popularity ratings, his vocabulary has improved, too.

The Princeton Review - a listed US company that prepares students for school and university exams - analysed the words used by Bush in Tuesday's State of the Union speech.

Analysts found Bush was now speaking at the level of a year 10 student - a considerable improvement from the 6th-grade level language of several speeches he made last year. At this rate, said Princeton's chief executive, John Katzman, Bush 'will almost certainly graduate within the next three to seven years'."

Sydney Morning Herald article
posted by Pinecamguy at 4:09 PM

You may not have realized it, but an important deadline is looming for Jefferson County: the juvenile sex offender limit in homes. Friday is the date that Jeffco Commissioners set as a self-imposed deadline two years ago back when they thought it would be a slam dunk to stick a group home out in our neighborhood.

What a difference two years makes. Ron Holliday is gone and the commissioners are in turmoil. They still haven't come up with a location of a group home for sex offenders. Denver Post story: Jeffco, youth home at odds

On another note, I was watching the Olympic flame pickup truck yesterday (the one with the big fire cauldron in the bed or the pickup) and I was wondering how he gets gas. Seems like it would not be too smart to pull into a gas station with that flame going... Pull out the gas hose and Whoomp!
posted by Pinecamguy at 8:32 AM

The earlier forecast was a little off: it's not going to be as cold as predicted over the next few days.

The weather service has moderated its forecast to show about 4 inches of snow total for our area with lows Thursday night/Friday morning only between 2 below and 8 above. That's much better than the 12 below predicted Tuesday. And, the snow predicted for next Monday is gone, too.

Still, it's going to be cold over the next few days, but that's to be expected for the middle of winter in Colorado. We need the snowfall and ski areas are rejoicing. As long as some drunk truck driver doesn't dump a load on I-70 again this weekend and jam up the ski traffic, everything should be fine.
posted by Pinecamguy at 5:33 AM

Bitter Cold Expected: The next few nights will be the coldest of our winter, so far. Temperatures will be a few degrees below zero tonight, but hang on...

Wednesday night's low is forecast to be as low as 12 below zero. We should stay in the deep freeze through Friday. We brought our rabbits in, even though they have a heated hutch outside. That way, they don't have to deal with frozen water (it's hard to teach a rabbit to lick ice).

The weekend should be dry, and warmer, but snow returns on Monday. For the latest local weather statistics, check out our Pine Junction Almanac.

On a completely different subject - check out this Web site: stupid 911 calls. It's hilarious.
posted by Pinecamguy at 8:32 AM

Get ready for another blast of winter weather. Snow is forecast for our area Tuesday, with below-zero temps Tuesday night and frigid temps Wednesday and Thursday.

Lows Tuesday night could be around 2 below, with highs Wednesday only getting into the low teens. Lows Wednesday night will be even colder: 6 below zero.

Thursday should only get into the lower 20s, with sunny skies. It won't totally warm up until Sunday, with highs back in the 40s.
posted by Pinecamguy at 5:33 PM

Breaking News from TheDenverChannel: Three people were found shot to death in a Littleton bowling alley overnight. Police don't have a suspect yet. This happened after 11 p.m. Sunday, so you may not see this in the morning paper. Click on the link for more info.

In our area, we can expect a return to winter by nightfall, with freezing rain turning to snow. Snow is forecast through Wednesday. Check out Pinecam.com weather for the latest info. As always, you can click on the "Latest Doppler" link on the front page to see where the snow is (just under the weather widget on the front page).
posted by Pinecamguy at 6:14 AM

Okay, you wake up and notice it's really windy outside, but the National Weather Service hasn't issued a High Wind Advisory and you wonder what's going on. Here's a Pinecam tip: Go the PINECAM WEATHER LINKS and click on Colorado Forecast Discussion. This will take you to the Colorado Forecast Discussion. It's where forecasts discuss (in shorthand) their look at Colorado weather and what they expect will happen, before it's put into a forecast.

For those of you not from here, these a Chinook Winds, sometimes called "snow eaters." The winds blow through the mountains, and down on the plains, melting snow in their path. Here's a link to an explanation of Chinook Winds.
posted by Pinecamguy at 8:32 AM