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Just another reason Madison is actually so cool....

Awesome Weather Blog - Winter in Review

Never thought I'd use the phrase "Awesome Weather Blog", but I guess that's what happens when you live in MN. This is the place to go. Now on to their look-back at this last winter...

Winter 2013-2014 Perspective

Sunday temperatures across parts of the Midwest were some of the warmest readings we've seen since late last year. The 2013-2014 winter was quite a bit colder than average from Canada to the eastern two-thirds of the nation, but NOAA sheds light on how our cold winter compared to the entire globe.

See more from NASA's Earth Observatory HERE:

"For many residents of North America, the winter of 2013-14 has felt like one of the coldest in many years. Waves of Arctic air brought extended periods of cold weather and above-average snowfall to the middle and eastern portions of the United States and Canada. Seven Midwestern states had one of their top-ten coldest winters, and the Great Lakes were chilled until they reached nearly 91 percent ice cover. Even portions of Mexico and Central America were cooler than normal.

But human memory is not a scientific measure, and long-term perspective tends to get lost in everyday conversation and news coverage. The winter of 2013-14 followed two winters that were significantly warmer than the norm, which likely made this season feel worse than it was. Researchers at the U.S. National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) reported that the average temperature of the contiguous U.S. for the winter was just 0.4° Celsius (31.3° Fahrenheit), about 1°F below average."

"The map below puts the North American winter in wider context. On a global scale, land temperatures for the December through February period were actually the tenth warmest in the modern record, according to NCDC, 0.87°C (1.57°F) above the 20th century average."

"Far eastern Asia, particularly China and eastern Russia, were significantly warmer than normal. In Europe, Austria and The Netherlands observed the second warmest winters in their records, and Switzerland its third warmest. With temperatures as much as 5°C above normal, spring crops and plants began sprouting several weeks early across much of Europe. And in the southern summer, the extended heat waves in Australia and Argentina stand out."

Graphic: Successful People vs. Unsuccessful People

Could this also be titled something like "Happy People vs. Unhappy People"?

http://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20140319142240-15077789-the-differences-between-successful-people-and-unsuccessful-people

THIRTY SECONDS TO MARS - Do Or Die

Stop & Stare - "Sunburst", Dale Chihuly, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, MN

You can't help but notice this sculpture/chandelier hanging from the foyer in the MIA entrance. I feel like I've seen similiar works in other museums around the country. I finally took the time to look a little closer and get some information on the artist.

 

This piece, like all his work, is really a sight to behold. It looks lighter than air, but as noted below, is made completely of glass and weighs more than a ton. Kind of crazy, no?

 

Out of doors at the MIA

The first day of Spring brought sun and above freezing temps. Strong start, time for some pics..,

Nothing Bundt Cakes, Omaha, NE

Could not have gotten free mini-bundt coupons to a better place. We sampled small bundt cakes of lemon, red velvet, and carrot. I think my fave was red velvet. I wished the carrot had some texture in it (carrot bits, nuts?) rather than just smooth batter. The lemon was solid. We all agreed we made a huge mistake by not trying something in the chocolate family, but not to worry, we'll be back.