Cold Weather in America: A Look at Domestic and Global Temps

In places such as Alabama, Tennessee and Georgia, today was actually Manitoba Moose weather. The Polar Vortex also struck the mid-Atlantic regions of the United States, including the Washington, DC-Baltimore-Philadelphia-New York corridor on I-95.
Here is a look at some temps in America and in traditional cold spots around the world; all temps are Fahrenheit, and most are what we call 'Bulwinkle Weather':

Bodo, Norway (near Arctic Circle): 36

Columbia, SC: 28

Greenville, SC: 26

Raleigh, NC: 25

Winston-Salem, NC: 23

Richmond, Va.: 22

Nashville, Tenn: 21

Roanoke, Va: 19

Lynchburg, Va: 19

Louisville, Ky: 18

Annapolis, Md.: 18

Huntington, WVa: 14

Philadelphia: 13

Columbus, Ohio: 9

Chicago: 6

Cleveland: 3

Pittsburgh, Pa: 3

Toronto, Canada: 3

Kars, Turkey: 0

Omsk, Russia (Siberia): -2

Duluth, Minn: -3

Fargo, ND: -4

Winnipeg, Canada: -11

http://www.wunderground.com

http://www.weather.com

http://www.visitnorthernmanitoba.ca/ (tourism site for northern Manitoba, you may want to go there in the spring!)

http://www.mooseworld.com

Friday Night Tweets: Hooray for Danica Patrick

We initially tried to get a picture of Danica Patrick, the women's race car driver who won the trials of the Daytona 500, in a bikini to get higher hits, but we figure that those image have stern copyrights. And, besides, we are popular in Dubai!

Here are tonight's tweets. It should be pointed out that tomorrow the University of North Carolina is facing ACC rival North Carolina State in a key men's basketball game. Those two schools met tonight in college gymnastics, and the UNC Tar Heels edged out the visiting Wolfpack:


1) Toledo Walleye @ToledoWalleye: "Kyle Rogers got his second consecutive goal!" (The Toledo Walleye won their home minor league hockey game over the Wheeling Nailers 5-2 tonight).

2) WRAL News in NC @wral (WRAL is the NBC-affiliate in Raleigh, NC): "UNC, NC State set for pivotal ACC contest."

3) Alabama Gymnastics @BamaGymnastics: "Alabama and Arkansas are tied @ the midway point of the meet after scoring matching 49.425s on vault and 49.175s on uneven bars."

4) Duke's Men's Lacrosse @Duke M-LAX: "And Penn scores after the 30-second warning goes on. Quakers lead #Duke 13-9, 3:00 to go." (Penn was hosting Duke)

5) Tar Heel Monthly @Tarheel Monthly: "Congrats to @uncwlax on big win tonight in Chapel Hill, topping No. 1 Northwestern 11-8."

6) The Onion @TheOnion: "In Sports: Danica Patrick Lauded for Breaking Down Barriers for Attractive Women." ("The Onion" is a faux news publication, Patrick is pictured on in our top image).

7) Anchorage Daily News @Adndotcom: (SPOILER ALERT: We love this one!) "Anchorage mother and son jailed in attempt 80 pounds of marijuana to Alaska."

8) University of Akron @uakron: "Retweet @ZipsMBB: Zeke Marshall hits two at the line, Akron leads 60-45 with 1:49 to go #ZipsGameDay." (Akron went on to beat North Dakota State 68-53; the game is part of Bracket Busters, which is a weekend when teams from secondary conferences in college basketball play each other. Marshall is in the middle image).

9) Kansas City @VisitKC: "The second full moon cycle will be here next week. Are you ready?"

http://www.visitkc.com

http://www.toledowalleye.com

http://www.theonion.com

http://www.uakron.edu

http://www.danicaracing.com

http://www.espnbracketbusters.com

Tweets of the Night

There are lots of sporting reports in tonight's tweets. Whether the athletes has donned skis, like Lindsey Vonn, laced up sneakers, like a Michigan State basketball player, or strutted across the balance beam in bare feet, like a Minnesota gymnast, there has been lots of action tonight.

Of course, there are political and news matters being discussed as well.

Let's check out the tweets:

1) Denver Post Sports @DenverSportsNews: Lindsey Vonn wins World Cup downhill for first win in five weeks.

2) Minnesota Gymnastics @GophersWomensGym: The #Gophers started on Bars, so they'll compete next on the Balance Beam. Still waiting for final two scores to be posted.

3) Katrina vandenHeuvel @KatrinaNation (managing editor of "The Nation"): "Different times, but still worth thinking about what a second-term Obama Can Learn from FDR."

4) Huffington Post @HuffingtonPost: "Suspected U.S. drone attack kills at least 8 in Yemen."

5) Heather Richardson @hlynnrichardson: "Thank you all so much for all the kind messages! So proud of teammate @BrrittanyBowe w/ her first podium." (Richardson, an American speed skater won gold at the sport's world championships in Calgary, Canada, she is originally from High Point, NC)

6) Spartan Basketball @MSU_Basketball: "Coach Tom Izzo calls a :30 timeour with 1:08 left in the second half and MSU leading Ohio St. 53-51." (Sparty, pictured, is the school's mascot)

7) Norfolk Admirals @AdsGameUpdates: "The puck has been dropped and the #pinkintherink game is underway!"

http://www.teamusa.org/Athletes/RI/Heather-Richardson.aspx

http://www.thenation.com/

http://www.norfolkadmirals.com/

DC Diary_ How I (Almost) Went to GWAR

Wednesday night, I almost went to see the speed metal band GWAR at the famed 9:30 Club on V Street in Washington, DC. It was something I considered as compensation for the fact that I would not be able to see the Russian-emigre punk band Gogol Bordello, a band I am actually familiar with and adore.

As for GWAR, I still don't know that much about them. On the Internet, they have been described as 'a Power Rangers cover band' and ' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on LSD' because of their over-the-top costumes which look like they came from the set of a "Hellraiser" sequel.

Their music is also quite distinctive as one can gahter by simply glancing at their song titles: "Bring Back the Bomb" (1994), "Sick of You" (2009) and "Meat Sandwich" (1998). Though they apparently have a conventional side, since they have covered Alice Cooper's vintage anthem "School's Out" (which I found on vinyl today!).

According to Wikipedia, GWAR has made songs which focus on both socially and politically taboo themes, and since they have made fun of both Al Gore and Sarah Palin, they seem to have no particular political agenda.

Amazingly enough, the band formed in the conservative city of Richmond, Va., which is about four hours east of my hometown of Roanoke, Va., in 1984. They are still going strong after 25 years of existence and their new release "Bloody Pit of Horror" is being sold on their web site for $9.99.

One person who was at the show last night at the 9:30 Club said: "'Expletive' bloody good show in DC last night....," which has to make the band feel good since a concert they were supposed to give over the weekend in Vermont was canceled due to heavy snow.

As for Gogol Bordello, they perform at Terminal 5 in New York. Like their DC shows, I would expect the show for the increasingly popular group is already a sell-out.

But, one can go half-way around the world and see them perform at The Barby Club in Tel Aviv, Israel, for two shows on Feb. 28 and March 1. Of course, an El Al Airlines official might think you are insane for flying to Tel Aviv just to see Gogol Bordello.

As for me, I opted not to go to GWAR, but instead, I saw the new Jim Carrey movie "I Love you Philip Morris," which has nothing to do with tobacco executives in Winston-Salem, NC, (the film is ironically now playing at the Apeture Cinema in Camel City as well), which was an ok flick. I was curious to see the film, which is also reportedly playing in Istanbul, Turkey, at the moment because it has been released in much of the world except here in America even though it's an American film. Surprisingly enough, according to NPR, it was a big hit in Estonia.

On the way back from the E-Street Cinema, I somehow managed to get lost on the way back to the place where we were staying. The reason for this was because I had written down the address for the 9:30 Club in my pocket along with the place where we were staying. I was talking obliviously to V Street when I realized something was wrong.

Thankfully, an Indian or Pakistani taxi driver found me and bailed me out. Amazingly enough, I had walked right by 'the correct address' without even realizing it. A Christmas tree-of all things- had thrown me off.

SIDEBAR: Like many of you, I am staying at home tonight on New Year's Eve, mainly due to fatigue though these blog entries I've been posting have caused me to neglect The Marx Brothers marathon on TCM tonight (I think I'll pick it up with "Duck Soup" at 12:30 a.m.). But, some folks are having fun tonight even in zip codes where one might not expect much to be going on.

Such was the case in the industrial city of Wheeling, W.Va., tonight where the hometown minor-league hockey team the Wheeling Nailers defeated the visiting Gwinnet Gladiators from the Atlanta suburb of Gwinnet, Ga., by a 4-1 margin. Of course, residents of that town who are Gogol Bordello fans will probably have to wait for the band to play in Pittsburgh, and then they will have to drive two hours to see them!

Things We Learned on Twitter Today- Bakersfield Condors are Not Extinct

Does going to a minor league hockey game at 10:30 a.m. sound like a really cool thing to you? (or at least, a great way to get away from work!). Well, that is what happened today in Bakersfield, Calif., as the home team Bakersfield Condors beat the visiting Victoria Salmon Kings (love that name!) from British Columbia (western Canada) by a 3-1 score.

The game, which is-get this- between two EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE teams (and we wonder why ninth graders are more hip with geography), was part of a Field Trip Day Game, and it did manage to lure 5,051 fans to the arena.

The Condors are the defending Pacific Division champions and this year, players from teams like the The Wheeling Nailers in Wheeling, WVa., will travel across the country to come play in the ECHL All-Star Game to be held early next year in Bakersfield.

We also learned that Defenseman Jason Lepine of the Condors leads the ECHL with assists from a defenseman with nine. And, the team's goalie Josh Tardjman (we have no idea if this is him pictured above) is serving a six-game suspension, but we have absolutely no idea why!

We also want to take this chance to bring in folks who would ordinarily never visit this blog and we thought there was no better way than to arbitrarily mention some of the trending topics on Twitter for today.

So, perhaps we can give yet more kudos to Prince William and Kate Middleton on their engagement. Congratulate Tony Parker on his split with some hot tv actress (we're just kidding).

Thinking of a good Christmas for your spolied brats, well how about a video game called Playing God, which will assuredly sell well at the Target stores in Tulsa, Oklahoma. And, lastly, everyone is talking about some movie called "Cowboys and Aliens." Yeah, we have no earthly idea what it's about either!

Kudos to the Cincy Cyclones!

The Cincinnati Cyclones (wow! We spelled Cincinnati right....!) won the Riley Cup* for the East Coast Hockey League championship with a 2-1 win over the visiting Idaho Steelheads from Boise. Alas, the Steelheads had to take the long Greyhound bus ride back home (we say that in jest---hopefully, they flew to Ohio on a private plane---hopefully!). But, their goalie Richard Bachman gave a stellar performance in the net throughout the minor league hockey season.

Honestly, I haven't watched an ECHL game since the now defunct Roanoke Express were playing in my hometown of Roanoke, Va., which was at least ten years ago, but thanks to Twitter, we have been following the sport fairly regularly.

We feature an image of the late Paul Newman's comedy "Slap Shot" (1977) not only because it was about minor league hockey, but also because the film is actually showing on the big screen at the recently reopened Varsity Theatre in Chapel Hll, NC!

According to the IMDB, Al Pacino expressed an early interest in playing Newman's role, and the Hanson Brothers who became cult figures after the film's release actually played minor league hockey for the now defunct Johnstown Jets. But, Johnstown, Pa. has a current team in the ECHL known as the Johnstown Chiefs (I hope we're right about that!) which was coincidentally the nickname of the fictitious team in the film.

Newman also said "Slap Shot" was among his favorite films, and he had a delightful time on the set.

*-Correction: It's the Kelly Cup!

Twitter Updates- Lucky the Wonder Dog Retires

We came across a few tidbits on Twitter today that I thought we'd share.

For starters, WRAL, a tv station in Raleigh, NC, is reporting that Lucky the Wonder Dog (pictured here) is retiring. The current/former Durham Bulls mascot, last year's minor championship baseball team, is nine years old. Perhaps, he will take in some shuffle-boarding in Sarasota, Fla.

'Course, fellow movie people know da Bulls were the focus of the hilarious 1988 film "Bull Durham" with Kevin Costner, Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon--(the mere mention of her name will probably lure a fervent, right-wing death penalty advocate to our blog, but oh well!).

We also want to congratulate the University of Minnesota gymnast Alexis Russell on her graduation as was announced through a tweet from the school's women's gymnastics team. Since college women's gymnasts, with a few exceptions, don't generally make a living at their sport, we imagine Alexis will go on to other ventures. Somehow, I don't think she will blog for a living (no, this is not my day job though some wonder about that--in fact, I've never made any money doing this!).

We also learned that the Trenton Devils (minor league hockey team in Trenton, NJ) is offering a "Buy one replica jersey, get one free deal." Alas, the team's season is over, but it looks like the Cincinnati Cyclones, who are up two games to none over the Idaho Steelheads, will hoist the Riley Cup soon.

And, Cincy residents who have no interest in minor league hockey can take their kids to the Cincinnati Zoo as they are offering discount tickets (two dollars off for adults, one dollar for kids) to visitors. So, perhaps your six-year-old boy can get his first whiff of elephant 'bok.' (I suppose it's ok to use the Turkish word for........well, never mind!).

Silly Picture to Fill Space- Minor League Hockey Fight

We initially thought this hockey fight, presumably from the minor league East Coast Hockey League (which surprisingly now has teams in Salt Lake City, Boise, Las Vegas and Anchorage!), involved a player from the Wheeling Nailers based in Wheeling, W.Va., but upon furhter review we are not so sure.

The fight actually seems to be involving a player from the Trenton Thunder, a team that is now called the Trenton Devils. We can concur that both teams are/were based in Trenton, NJ.

We do know that the ECHL's South Carolina Stingrays of Chareston, SC, are celebrating Saint Patrick's Day a bit early this year during their March 12th home game versus the Florida Everblades, which is also Military Night.

The Stingrays' goalie Shane Connelly, who like most hockey players did not actually grow up in the Palmetto State (he is from Pennsylvania) will be celebrating his 23rd birthday on March 16.

Other ECHL standouts include the scoring duo of Aaron Clarke and T.J. Fox for the Nailers and current Player of the Week Stefano Giallati of the Reading Royals (in Reading, Pa.).

Let the fights....oh, we mean let the games begin!

Silly Photo to Fill Space- Minor League Hockey Mascot

Anyone want to see a minor league hockey game at midnight?

Well, on Thursday, Feb. 18 at 11:59 p.m., the puck will drop in Charlotte, NC, as the home team Charlotte Checkers face the visiting Toledo Walleye.

The Checkers are also hosting an "Icing Autism Night" when they play the Trenton Devils on March 19. Procedes from that game will go to Autism Speaks (autismspeaks.org).

While researching this piece, it was interesting to learn that the league in which the Checkers belong the East Coast Hockey League now has teams like The Alaska Aces, The Idaho Steelheads, The Las Vegas Wranglers and the Utah Grizzlies. The ECHL even has a team in Victoria, British Columbia (Canada), called the Victoria Salmon Kings!

In fact, Mark Derlago of the Steelheads was named ECHL Player of the Week.

The ECHL used to include my hometown team The Roanoke Express (1993-2004) from Roanoke, Va., and their rival The Richmond Renegades from Richmond, Va. The Express failed to reach the league's playoffs in the team's later years and they had management turmoil which lead to their abrupt folding.

The Renegades started a new franchise with the same team name in the Southern Pro Hockey League in 2006, but that team folded as well in 2009.

The future is not much brighter for the Checkers as they face the chance of relocating or discontuning after this season.

The Checkers' web site (gocheckers.com) said that the contributions of newcomers Matt Stefanshion and Ryan Crane have helped the team beat their southern rivals, The South Carolins Stingray (based in Charleston, SC) and the Gwinett Gladiators from Gwinett, Ga.

The team also features players like Mike Taylor (forward), Trevor Glass (defense) and Ryan Munce (goalie).

There are some active NHL players from both the old Express team and the Checkers franchise.

Jason Jaffray (Vancouver Canucks) and Vernon Fiddler (Nashville Predators) both played in Roanoke.

Eric Boulton (Atlanta Thrashers) and goalie Chris Holt (Ottawa Senators) once skated for the Skaters.

Those of you who are hockey fans may also want to check out my extensive profile of Washington Capitals' star player Alex Ovechkin, who will be competing for Russia at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. One could not have imagined in 1984 that two Russian players (also Alex Semin) would be playing pro hockey in the capital of the United States! I guess the question is: "Do we credit Reagan?" or "Do we credit Gorbie?" Since this is not meant to be a political entry, I will simply let you decide!