To All Cuffers in the South

[wuapinmon]

[Uncle Ted]

Those were just ice crystals from Larry Scott's jet as it flew overhead.

Are the turkey buzzards circling already?

[Moliere]

Why are these drops of water falling from the sky?

After exactly 40 days of 100+ degree weather maybe we will now have 40 days of this. Oh wait, it stopped.

Those were just ice crystals from Larry Scott's jet as it flew overhead.

[Uncle Ted]

Why are these drops of water falling from the sky?

After exactly 40 days of 100+ degree weather maybe we will now have 40 days of this. Oh wait, it stopped.

[il Padrino Ute]

48 degrees this morning. Feels good.

Al Gore said that it's bullshit that it's not getting warmer. Or was it 35 degrees yesterday?

[landpoke]

48 degrees this morning. Feels good.

[Parrot Head]

This is supposedly a Houston playground, melting in the heat:

That's crazy. I talked to a guy at work today. He's in Dallas and he said the clock in his car melted last week from the heat.

[Babs]

It sucks to be back in Texas with the heat and drought. As I type this, Mrs. PBW is emailing me Colorado real estate listings and talking about telecommuniting for her job...an option I don't have

Yes, my husband telecommutes from Montana for three months a year. Their highs are lower than the daily lows here.

[Surfah]

This is supposedly a Houston playground, melting in the heat:

[Paperback Writer]

Houston has been horribly hot and humid. This is the worst summer I've had down here. Usually we take off a couple weeks in August and go on vacation but we did that earlier in the year. My A/C has been running almost nonstop for the past two weeks and our house is typically 84 degrees around 6pm.

Just returned to DFW after a week in the moutains of SW Colorado. In a natural springs hot tub with a listed temperature of 110, I walked into the tub and sat down with the water over my shoulders. Some teens who were just dipping their toes expressed amazement that someone could just walk into water that hot and sit down and not "feel the heat". I explained that I was visiting from Texas and it gets that hot during the day.

It sucks to be back in Texas with the heat and drought. As I type this, Mrs. PBW is emailing me Colorado real estate listings and talking about telecommuniting for her job...an option I don't have

[Pheidippides]

Houston has been horribly hot and humid. This is the worst summer I've had down here. Usually we take off a couple weeks in August and go on vacation but we did that earlier in the year. My A/C has been running almost nonstop for the past two weeks and our house is typically 84 degrees around 6pm.

The last two weeks have been brutal. Running has not been much fun.

[Moliere]

Why is it that everyone except Texas is getting rain?

Houston has been horribly hot and humid. This is the worst summer I've had down here. Usually we take off a couple weeks in August and go on vacation but we did that earlier in the year. My A/C has been running almost nonstop for the past two weeks and our house is typically 84 degrees around 6pm.

[Uncle Ted]

Why is it that everyone except Texas is getting rain?

[wuapinmon]

To my Texan brothers and sister, lo siento mucho. I've been there in NOLA, and I can only offer you the hope of October.

[Moliere]

The news said you guys were still 100 at nine p.m. That's crazy.

Word is we're headed for roving blackouts again soon.

Per ERCOT on Monday....

To: Houston-area employees

Power Watch – Conservation Needed

Consumers asked to conserve electricity 3-7 p.m. today and this week

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, Inc. (ERCOT), system operator for the state’s bulk transmission grid, is asking consumers and businesses to reduce their electricity use during peak electricity hours from 3 to 7 p.m. today and the rest of the week.

“The ERCOT region is continuing to experience record high temperatures throughout the state which is causing high electricity usage,” said Kent Saathoff, vice president of system planning and operations. “At this time, we expect to be tight over the peak hours today between 4-5 p.m., which means that significant generation outages could make us short of operating reserves,” Saathoff said.

If the daily operating reserves drop below the target thresholds, the grid operators will initiate emergency procedures, a series of progressive steps that authorize additional capacity from other grids and from dropping interruptible loads - large industrial customers under contract to be dropped in emergency situations.

“We would appreciate consumers and businesses reducing their electricity use from 3-7 p.m. as much as they are able,” Saathoff said.

Conservation Tips

Consumers can help by shutting off unnecessary lights and electrical appliances between 3 and 7 p.m., and delaying laundry and other activities requiring electricity-consuming appliances until later in the evening. Other conservation tips from the Public Utility Commission’s “Powerful Advice” include:

· Turn off all unnecessary lights, appliances, and electronic equipment.
· When at home, close blinds and drapes that get direct sun, set air conditioning thermostats to 78 degrees or higher, and use fans to cool the air.
· When away from home, set air conditioning thermostats to 85 degrees and turn all fans off before you leave. Block the sun by closing blinds or drapes on windows that will get direct sun.
· Do not use your dishwasher, laundry equipment, hair dryers, coffee makers, or other home appliances during the peak hours of 3 to 7 p.m.
· Avoid opening refrigerators or freezers more than necessary.
· Use microwaves for cooking instead of an electric range or oven.
· Set your pool pump to run in the early morning or evening instead of the afternoon.

Businesses should minimize the use of electric lighting and electricity-consuming equipment as much as possible. Large consumers of electricity should consider shutting down or reducing non-essential production processes.

Emergency Procedures Background

The emergency procedures are a progressive series of steps that allow ERCOT to bring on power from other grids if available, beginning with a Power Watch (Energy Emergency Alert Level 1).

If the situation does not improve, ERCOT escalates to a Power Warning (Energy Emergency Alert Level 2), allowing operators to drop large commercial/industrial load resources under contract to be interrupted during an emergency.

If the capacity shortage is not relieved by the contract demand response, ERCOT escalates to a Power Emergency (Energy Emergency Alert Level 3) and will instruct utilities to reduce demand on the grid by conducting temporary outages at the local distribution level. These controlled temporary interruptions of electrical service - or rotating outages - typically last 15-45 minutes before being rotated to a different neighborhood.

Consumers should contact the utility company/ transmission provider listed on their electric bill for information about power outages at their homes or business, or about rotating outage procedures for their area.

ERCOT Region

The ERCOT Region includes Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio, Austin, Corpus Christi, Abilene and the Rio Grande Valley. It does not include the El Paso area, the Texas Panhandle, Northeast Texas (Longview, Marshall and Texarkana), and Southeast Texas (Beaumont, Port Arthur, and the Woodlands).

And they are called "rotating outages" not "roving blackouts"....