WELCOMING HER MAJESTY

I held up the above greeting sign when my sister CH arrived in St. Louis (Thursday, May 5th). CH chose the first name Victoria when she became U.S. Citizen. Qaptain Qwerty chose a name from a character in the Peanuts and I selected "TOTA" - just kidding!

Somehow the security guard at the parking lot recognized me because he said, "You are back. Who are you picking up this time?" I complimented him for his excellent memory that he remembered I was at the airport to pick up QQ in early April.

I did not take any photos inside the airport because of security measure. Looking at the plywood covering all the windows, you could see the extensive damage the tornadoes did.

This entrance probably was shown on television when the tornadoes touched down sending high wind thru the doors, smashing benches as if they were toys and knocking down tiles on the ceilings.

I thought the airport was back to normal, as much as could be. Hats off to those in charge of getting the repair done so quickly while moving forward in getting the operation back on track.

IT WAS A DARK AND STORMY FRIDAY

Happy Easter to all the readers and faithful followers. I am pleased to report that my area was not impacted by the severe weather. We live about 30 miles from the airport. I am sure Qaptain Qwerty was glad that it did not happen two weeks ago when he was here.
Actually, we were at church for Good Friday 7:30 p.m. Mass. At the start of Mass, Father Tim explained the emergency plan that was in place. At 8:05, the siren went off after the Second Reading. We all got up and quickly walked toward the cafeteria and the gym in the lower area of the church. After about 30 minutes, Mass was resumed when it was safe. Father Tim only said a few words even though he had prepared a "moving" homily!
Old Cathedral on Walnut Street - downtown St. Louis at the Gateway Arch.
Wishing you and your family a Blessed and Joyful Easter.

WINNERS AND LOSERS-2011 OSCARS

I am not against the Academy Awards. I did not watch the ceremony because I did not find the show interesting. When I see the headlines, "83rd Annual Academy Awards Winners", I wonder whether those who did not receive the awards considered themselves to be "Losers"!

These photos were taken in July 2010 when we spent a few hours driving around Los Angeles. Later, we cruised along the Pacific Coastal Highway (California State Route 1). My husband was in high heaven since it was on his bucket list to cruise along this famous highway in his cool car!

Just a few photos during our "drive-by shooting" because parking was at a premium and we had a long drive back to St. Louis.

I am sure those attended the Academy Awards would not be staying at this Hollywood Premier Motel. Maybe 20-30 years ago, some of them might have stayed there when they were struggling actors.

Sunday, February 27th - At around 11:15 p.m. we heard the siren went off. Tornado warning was issued for our area. From the basement, we could hear the heavy rain and strong wind. At around 11:45 p.m., the rain stopped and the wind subsided. We went back to bed when the warning was lifted.

IN SEARCH OF THE RAINBOW (AFTER THE STORM)

These photos were taken last Saturday, January 1st after the tornado/the last winter storm of 2010, came through our neck of the woods, on Friday, December 31st.

I only took photos of the damage seen at the golf course. I did not take photos of the homes with the blue tarps covering the roofs because I respected the privacy of the homeowners who already suffered enough from the damage to their dwellings.

A tornado warning was issued on Thursday evening (December 30th). On Friday morning, the last day of 2010, after breakfast, I started to set up in the basement (the laptop and wireless internet sure come in handy), books and a few essential items while listening to the emergency scanner as our area was under tornado watch. We played ping-pong (the table is portable and sits on top of the pool table). We were safe in our own little world with food and water fully stocked in the storage room. Just like a man, while the siren was blowing loudly, my husband would go upstairs to watch the wind and rain pounding on the kitchen windows. He said he would let me know when he spotted the tornado. I said he might not have enough time to come down the basement.

What a way to end the year! There were reports confirmed that a series of tornadoes elsewhere in Missouri, in the form of powerful wind gust and fast moving storm killed 3 people and caused serious damage, flatting homes and left thousands without power. We saw houses with hole in the roof and windows blew out.

We saw on the news that a tornado also struck Sunset Hills, tearing through an area roughly equivalent to a city block along Lindbergh Boulevard. The tornado leveled homes and at least one business, toppled trucks, and tip utility poles. According to the National Weather Service, the Sunset Hills tornado intensity to be greater than EF3 on the Fujita damage scale, which means the tornado produced "severe damage" and winds around 160 mph.
The NWS also reported that “the maximum damage” for the tornado at the golf course was rated at EF1, with a path length of 1.4 miles (that is half way to our house - scary!) and a maximum width damage of 175 yards.
The EF scale, used to assign a tornado rating based on estimated wind speeds and related to damage, includes ratings from EF0 to EF5. A tornado rated EF1 features winds measured at up to 110 mph.

At around 1:30 p.m., the rain and wind finally stopped and the tornado warning was called off for our area. There were reports of damage in the towns near where we are and we are thankful that we were safe and still had electricity.