Get Adobe Flash player
Archives
Hi Everyone,
I hope this finds you doing well & that you are enjoying the sunny mid-spring days.
Our May ALERT meeting will feature the presentation of nominees for our upcoming elections. The election normally takes place the meeting after the presentation & the officers then assume their positions at the July meeting.
July is also when ALERT dues are due. Remember, if you want to respond to ALERT callouts or serve as an officer you MUST be current with your dues.
I hope to see you at the meeting!
Now if for some reason you cannot attend the meeting in person, you can still participate via telephone. The teleconference number is 1-877-951-0997 & and participant code is 741083.
That said, we really don’t want to miss your smiling face. So put the teeth in, comb that one remaining hair and head to the NWS Forecast Office May the 8th at 7PM.
<div id=”_mcePaste”>——————————————————————————————————
Current US Ham Population
As of May 1, 2012 the US Amateur Radio Population is:
Novice 16,468
Technician 367,292
Technician Plus 3
General 166,728
Advanced 59,498
Amateur Extra 130,927
Club 11,659
Total 752,575
The latest Ham Call signs are KK4IWN & AK4TX
Not Southern Enough?
Occasionally I hear people, usually from the Northern climes, poking fun at Southerners calling sweet potatoes “yams”, which is a totally different plant. Well, Alabama is about as “South” as you can get and I’ve never heard them called yams. They are called “sweet taters”, of course.
<div id="_mcePaste”>Why do I bring this up?
Since no one has sent any articles for the newsletter, I’m sharing another recipe. If you want to avoid being subjected to these gross recipes, just send an appropriate article.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Delicious Possum n Sweet Taters
INGREDIENTS:
Stovetop stuffing
Salt
Pepper
1 possum, obtained by two possible means.
Option 1 – fresh possum: Capture a possum, cage him and feed him corn meal from 3 to 7 days. This will “clean him out”, which is necessary since opossums will eat ANYTHING, even what a buzzard will choke on & it will affect the taste. When sending him to his “final reward” use a humane method.
Option2 – road kill possum: Obtain the freshest road kill you can find. Preferably one you dispatched yourself and if possible, know what he was munching on, for this will affect the taste.
If you must use random road kill, remember the three rules for road kill freshness:
1. If a buzzard won’t touch it, neither should you, as buzzards prefer fresh meat.
2. If it smells rotten, it is.
3. If there is insect activity, take your activity elsewhere.
DIRECTIONS:
Skin and remove the fat from your possum. Leave as little fat as possible, as the fat will cause it to stink like the devils derriere.
Place the possum in a casserole dish. Curl the tail for an ascetic touch.
If you leave the head on, place an apple in his mouth, as with a suckling pig.
Take the stuffing and stuff the cavity of the possum and then sew the cavity up.
Place sweet potatoes around the possum, leaving some room for more dressing.
Add a little water.
Season to taste.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Bake possum for 30 minutes.
Remove after 30 minutes and baste your possum.
Place the rest of the dressing around your possum.
Return to oven and cook until tender and juicy.
Tastes like greasy possum.
Enjoy!
To see this prepared by a professional, see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GA7Zk0wUG4
I really need some articles for the newsletter. Weather articles, ham radio articles, anything ALERT related will do
Send me something – large small…I don’t care.
We will ALL appreciate it.
Mark’s Almanac
May is the fifth month & third month of the Roman calendar. Since ancient times the first day of the month, “May Day” has been a time of celebration. In Rome it honored Flora, the goddess of flowers.
On May the fifth Mexican’s celebrate Cinco De Mayo, the celebration Mexico’s 1862 victory over Napoleon III’s forces at Puebla. This is not, as many assume, Mexico’s Independence Day, which is actually on September 16.
Rainfall decreases in May as the Bermuda High strengthens & begins rerouting storm systems northward.
The door opens to the Gulf of Mexico & Gulf moisture spreads northward over the continent.
The center of maximum tornadic activity also shifts northward over the Nation’s Heartland. May is the peak tornado month, with a 42% increase over April’s amount.
Eastern Pacific hurricane season begins May 15, and although the North Atlantic hurricane season has not arrived, occasionally a tropical system will form in the Gulf of Mexico. In 110 years there have been 14 named storms.
Turning our eyes towards the early evening sky we will find Venus in the constellation Taurus. Venus is high in the western sky at sunset and doesn’t set until between 11 and Midnight. Venus is at the highest and brightest it ever appears during it’s 8-year cycle of apparitions. So bright is Venus that you can spot it during daylight in a clear sky, if you know where to look. It is 40 degrees or about four fist-widths at arm’s length, east of the Sun.
Mars is fire orange in Leo, high in the south at dusk and lower in the southwest later in the evening. Mars is fading and shrinking as the Earth pulls away from him.
Saturn shines low in the southeast at twilight and is highest in the south at midnight.
Jupiter is disappearing into the sunset, while Uranus and Neptune are low in the dawn.
Mercury is barely above the horizon at dawn.
The Aquarids Meteor Shower, a minor shower, will peak May 5 & 6, competing with the full moon.
May’s Full Moon is “Flower Moon” in Native American folklore. This month the moon will be at it’s closest point to the Earth in 2012 and will be the largest full moon of the year.
New Moon will occur May 20, and the Moon will pass directly between the Earth and Sun, resulting in an Annular Solar Eclipse. The path of annularity will begin in southern China and move east through Japan, the northern Pacific Ocean, and into the western United States. A partial eclipse will be visible throughout parts of eastern Asia and most of North America.
……………………………………………………………………………………….
This month’s meeting will be on May 8 at 7PM at the National Weather Service
Forecast office at the Shelby County Airport.
I hope to see you there!
Mark / WD4NYL
Vice-President
ALERT
www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/
Hi Everyone, I hope this finds you doing well & that you are enjoying the sunny mid-spring days. Our May ALERT meeting will feature the presentation of nominees for our upcoming elections. The election normally takes place the meeting after the presentation & the officers then assume their positions at the July meeting. July is also when ALERT dues are due. Remember, if you want to respond to ALERT callouts or serve as an officer you MUST be current with your dues. I hope to see you at the meeting! Now if for some reason you cannot attend the meeting in person, you can still participate via telephone. The teleconference number is 1-877-951-0997 & and participant code is 741083. That said, we really don’t want to miss your smiling face. So put the teeth in, comb that one remaining hair and head to the NWS Forecast Office May the 8th at 7PM. —————————————————————————————————— Current US Ham Population As of May 1, 2012 the US Amateur Radio Population is: Novice 16,468Technician 367,292Technician Plus 3General 166,728Advanced 59,498Amateur Extra 130,927Club 11,659 Total 752,575 The latest Ham Call signs are KK4IWN & AK4TX Not Southern Enough? Occasionally I hear people, usually from the Northern climes, poking fun at Southerners calling sweet potatoes “yams”, which is a totally different plant. Well, Alabama is about as “South” as you can get and I’ve never heard them called yams. They are called “sweet taters”, of course. Why do I bring this up? Since no one has sent any articles for the newsletter, I’m sharing another recipe. If you want to avoid being subjected to these gross recipes, just send an appropriate article. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Delicious Possum n Sweet Taters INGREDIENTS: Stovetop stuffingSalt Pepper1 possum, obtained by two possible means. Option 1 – fresh possum: Capture a possum, cage him and feed him corn meal from 3 to 7 days. This will “clean him out”, which is necessary since opossums will eat ANYTHING, even what a buzzard will choke on & it will affect the taste. When sending him to his “final reward” use a humane method. Option2 – road kill possum: Obtain the freshest road kill you can find. Preferably one you dispatched yourself and if possible, know what he was munching on, for this will affect the taste. If you must use random road kill, remember the three rules for road kill freshness: 1. If a buzzard won’t touch it, neither should you, as buzzards prefer fresh meat. 2. If it smells rotten, it is. 3. If there is insect activity, take your activity elsewhere. DIRECTIONS: Skin and remove the fat from your possum. Leave as little fat as possible, as the fat will cause it to stink like the devils derriere.Place the possum in a casserole dish. Curl the tail for an ascetic touch.If you leave the head on, place an apple in his mouth, as with a suckling pig.Take the stuffing and stuff the cavity of the possum and then sew the cavity up.Place sweet potatoes around the possum, leaving some room for more dressing.Add a little water.Season to taste. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.Bake possum for 30 minutes.Remove after 30 minutes and baste your possum.Place the rest of the dressing around your possum.Return to oven and cook until tender and juicy. Tastes like greasy possum. Enjoy! To see this prepared by a professional, see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GA7Zk0wUG4 I really need some articles for the newsletter. Weather articles, ham radio articles, anything ALERT related will do Send me something – large small…I don’t care. We will ALL appreciate it. Mark’s Almanac May is the fifth month & third month of the Roman calendar. Since ancient times the first day of the month, “May Day” has been a time of celebration. In Rome it honored Flora, the goddess of flowers. On May the fifth Mexican’s celebrate Cinco De Mayo, the celebration Mexico’s 1862 victory over Napoleon III’s forces at Puebla. This is not, as many assume, Mexico’s Independence Day, which is actually on September 16. Rainfall decreases in May as the Bermuda High strengthens & begins rerouting storm systems northward. The door opens to the Gulf of Mexico & Gulf moisture spreads northward over the continent. The center of maximum tornadic activity also shifts northward over the Nation’s Heartland. May is the peak tornado month, with a 42% increase over April’s amount. Eastern Pacific hurricane season begins May 15, and although the North Atlantic hurricane season has not arrived, occasionally a tropical system will form in the Gulf of Mexico. In 110 years there have been 14 named storms. Turning our eyes towards the early evening sky we will find Venus in the constellation Taurus. Venus is high in the western sky at sunset and doesn’t set until between 11 and Midnight. Venus is at the highest and brightest it ever appears during it’s 8-year cycle of apparitions. So bright is Venus that you can spot it during daylight in a clear sky, if you know where to look. It is 40 degrees or about four fist-widths at arm’s length, east of the Sun. Mars is fire orange in Leo, high in the south at dusk and lower in the southwest later in the evening. Mars is fading and shrinking as the Earth pulls away from him. Saturn shines low in the southeast at twilight and is highest in the south at midnight. Jupiter is disappearing into the sunset, while Uranus and Neptune are low in the dawn. Mercury is barely above the horizon at dawn. The Aquarids Meteor Shower, a minor shower, will peak May 5 & 6, competing with the full moon. May’s Full Moon is “Flower Moon” in Native American folklore. This month the moon will be at it’s closest point to the Earth in 2012 and will be the largest full moon of the year. New Moon will occur May 20, and the Moon will pass directly between the Earth and Sun, resulting in an Annular Solar Eclipse. The path of annularity will begin in southern China and move east through Japan, the northern Pacific Ocean, and into the western United States. A partial eclipse will be visible throughout parts of eastern Asia and most of North America. ………………………………………………………………………………………. This month’s meeting will be on May 8 at 7PM at the National Weather ServiceForecast office at the Shelby County Airport. I hope to see you there! Mark / WD4NYLVice-PresidentALERT www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/
ALERT / National Weather Service Birmingham Coverage Area
  • ALERT covers the BMX county warning area. Presently, this includes: Autauga, Barbour, Bibb, Blount, Bullock, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee, Chilton, Clay, Cleburne, Coosa, Dallas, Elmore, Etowah, Fayette, Greene, Hale, Jefferson, Lamar, Lee, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Marion, Montgomery, Perry, Pickens, Pike, Randolph, Russell, Shelby, St Clair, Sumter, Talladega, Tallapoosa, Tuscaloosa, Walker, Winston