Forty-two people have received medical treatment after their cruise ship rolled sharply in heavy seas caused by the storm sweeping New Zealand. The storm has lashed New Zealand and is currently drenching the South Island.

The Pacific Sun.

Our recent floods:

On Auckland's North Shore, residents faced another day without hot water yesterday. A number of pilot lines - which separately channel power to hot water - had been extensively damaged by the storm, and it could be a while before residents in the affected areas - including Narrowneck, Devonport to Hauraki Corner, and parts of Puhoi and Coatesville - could enjoy a hot shower. It is thought that about 7000 homes in the Far North, Northland and the Coromandel would still be without power today (Tuesday).

It was my utmost desire to actually go camping and not experience one drop of rain on my tent..Well this weekend my wish was granted..and the forecast I read last week was correct ..Hooray!!

As I type I hear that it is now lashing it down with rain in Weston-super-mare so at least it should aid the dampening of the fire that is raging on the pier there.
The forecast says that the rain is now heading northwards..Ah well it was good while it lasted.

I am experiencing a very strange feeling. I dont know why or what it is but I have felt it since Friday its like I am waiting for something to happen, something I know will happen I dont know cant explain it but it is a good feeling nevertheless.
The weather here has been hot hot hot again today.
DH and I have been giving d-i-l some ideas for her new book, its going to be really good even though I say so myself!
She is just finishing one at the moment but has the basics for another one and also an animated film one too. She is very good at it.
Our son has a bad cold but it didnt stop him going for a swim in the lake this weekend! I told him he needs more vit C

Woke up to find a really heavy haar. ugh

Put on washing living in hopes of drying it, and it rained. Stuffed said washing into the dryer.

I forgot to set the washing machine for the second load and when the sun arrived, I found I couldn't hang the second wash out to dry as the stuff was not wet!

Wandered off down the road to get a paper wearing shorts, sleeveless top and wearing flip-flops (rare occurrence here) then stopped off at an hotel for morning coffee and to read the Sunday paper.

It had cooled off when we walked home, but was still pleasant.

Got more washing out on the line while the skies clouded over and it spat with rain.

Just about to amble down the road, it' still overcast but I'll be darned if I'm going to change my outfit. I want good mild weather and I'm having it, so there!

The last 12 hours the North Island of New Zealand has been buffeted by winds of up to 150k and heavy rain. There have been more than 50,000 homes without power as tress blew down and crashed through power lines. The speed on the harbour bridge was lowered to 60k and people were told to stay at home and not venture out unless necessary. We are fortunate that there has been now loss of life although there is damage to property. The storm has passed its peek and it is more settled but forecasters are predicting a possible repeat next Wednesday.

WHAT TO DO IN AN EMERGENCY.

Take care!

In Wellington, a storm swell caused waves to crash on to the State Highway. The waves threw driftwood and debris on to the road and police advised motorists to defer travel in the area.

I cheated with my weather diary. I took this picture on Sunday on my way home from shopping. The weather on Monday was pretty much the same as Sunday, sunny with plenty of clouds blowing around.

Yesterday was pretty much like today, very, very overcast - a very grey day. Today though was really warm which was nice and is still currently 23 degrees.

Twister Shreds Milking Shed.

THE RESULT.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/news/22072008news.shtml

Hope it passes quickly and causes little damage.

Weather in The Midlands is warm but overcast. Hope it stays that way for a while.

This afternoon I snoozed outside in the garden for forty minutes, on a sun lounger I had forgotten we owned. That shows how long it is since anything like a lounge in the garden had taken place.

I woke up with the tea time chill and went indoors to retrieve a long- sleeved cardigan to wrap round my short-sleeved top. I sat and read on the now upright lounging seat, for all of ten minutes, when my pages were splashed with large rain drops. I snapped my book shut and I rushed to take my almost dry washing off the clothes line. The lounger was folded away to be hidden for another undisclosed period of time.

Undisclosed time? It cannot be anything else, as it is still very wet outside tonight and there's no knowing when we might have the odd warm period that I can take advantage of to lounge about outside, that's if I remember I have a lounger on which to lounge about.

Not been too bad a day today. Cold, with a stiff breeze, around 14 degrees. The sun managed to shine for most of the day, however sitting in your sun lounger would have proved a bit chilly.

So what do British people do on a rare sunny Sunday. They go to the local out of town retail park what else? I only went because I absolutely had to, it's my Sisters birthday next week so I needed to get her a present. This is only a small selection of the shops on there. By 11.45pm when I took this photo it was buzzing, there are loads of other car parks as well as this one and they were mainly full.

What I'm most impressed with is I've just done this using a computer running on Ubuntu which is a Linux operating system. I've uploaded my photo, used The GIMP to edit and shrink it's size and most surprisingly actually found it to upload to here. Woo hoo.

My picture diary for the week commencing Saturday 19 July 2008.

Today was a pretty grim day, much like the previous week. It rained all morning, then cleared up in the afternoon. Only the rain cleared though, the clouds - well they've been around for most of July.

This is City Stadium in Manchester. Now the home of Manchester City Football Club it was built originally to host the Commonwealth Games in 2002. The building is only 6 years old and yet it looks so shabby, it certainly hasn't weathered well and the Manchester City sign on the front is hardly visible.

What's that thing against the backdrop of the black leaden sky I hear you ask? A large palm tree? No - that is a sculpture - apparently. Placed there about the same time as City Stadium was built. It's red rusty now and looks so...erm...elegant.

I dare hardly believe what I have just read!

The BBC weather forecast for Warwick for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday states that there will be NO rain, there will be lots of sun with temperatures reaching 24 degrees.
This time last year when Warwick folk festival was about to commence people didn't arrive as many trains in the south of England were cancelled due to the recent floodings.
The festival was almost cancelled too as there were fears that the ground was too soddened to erect the main concert marquee and that the campsite waould be waterlogged. Fortunately, despite all the present rainfall there should not be that repeat problem this year..YAY!!
I don't know what the weather will be like for next weekend when all the events will be taking place but the law of averages says that it should be reasonable at least...doesn't it?

Dull but dry today here. Could do with a little elctrical storm activity for tonite's ghost hunt!!

Dull but dry today here. Could do with a little elctrical storm activity for tonite's ghost hunt!!

Just checked the forecast for tomorrow.

Looks like it might not be ideal weather to be dropping things out of planes, but it looks like my trip of a lifetime should go ahead as planned...

Yesterday - dull, gloomy, morbid, and as dead as a dodo! Today looks and feels no better - MERCY!

I was waiting for a sunny day in England to post here

Surprise, today didn't rain and the sun was out all day!!

I haven't posted here in a while because basically all we've had is rain. It's seeped in through the kitchen window, the bedroom window, the outbuildings.... it's ripped up the tarmac out in the road, and it's soaked me more times than I care to remember.

But today.... ah, today was so different. I go to the window every morning to look out at the mountains and see what sort of weather might be coming our way. Today was a lovely pearly morning, the sort that softens all the cold grey edges and gives a glorious shine to them.... the mountains were soft and golden, the trees shimmered rather than bent before the storm.

And we had sunshine all most of the day. It was wonderful. I actually managed to dry clothes on the line. I sat in my little arbour with Mr Penry and we spun our dreams together.

The old roses (most of mine date back species-wise to the 18th century and before) smelled of musk and frankincense, the lavender was sublime if a little leggy from all the rain, and the pinks were heavy with the scent of cloves.

One day of sunshine after all that rain and wind.... wonderful!:D

A very heavy fog here this morning. Like to share same?

This weekend my daughter and I were supposed to go down south to camp and visit my family in The New Forest in Hampshire and the City of Portsmouth. Unfortunately I have been ill as have my husband and dughter. DD and I are still coughing up gunk and feeling ropey so I thought it wise to have a rest this weekend.

Th weather forcast was lousy too and so imagine my joy this morning to wake up to warm sunshine. I have even got washing on the line. I am going to go out and sit in it (the sunshine, not my washing) and read a book for a while I think.

I hope everyone else has a sunny day, whatever the weather.

You're kidding me! This cannot be July. The heating has hardly been off in the evenings and early mornings. We are warned temperatures will go down to single figures and maybe, if we are not frowned upon, Sunday might be nice.

Nice! what does that mean, nicer than what? Today; crap. Yesterday; crap. So far, season - crap!

So far, I have avoided wearing gloves most days, bar one. I have worn a hat and used a coat with a hood. This is high Summer... You've got to be kidding!

I am sure this must be the wettest July for many a year. Not a day had gone by without the wet stuff. Next weekend I got to a storytelling fest where last year we were ankle deep in mud a' la Glastonbury, and had to be towed on to the site by a tractor. As in the title: the only reliable thing about the weather here is that it is unreliable.

I am hoping there will be little wind and light showers at most as my gazebos took a hammering with 70 mile an hour winds last weekend plus torrential rain.

Now I may sound a bit miserable but actually I enjoy most adverse weather at least for short periods. Also i worked nights for years and so appreciate the sun when it shines and rainbows when they pop up like the one I saw tonight on the way home. It bought a big smile to my face.

keep well all

A warm welcome to our new members. We are eagerly looking forward to your comments and posts.

It's Going To Rain (Link)
So, why is it that when there's torrential rain in the South, it's all over the news. We have torrential rain on a regular basis. Not much mention is ever made of it though, after all that's what it does in Manchester isn't it? It rains.

Anyway have the rain on us for a change cos here it's cloudy, dry, oh and the sun keeps popping it's little head through every now and again

Here is our weather forecast for the next few days in Hamilton, New Zealand.

Quite accurate for Wednesday but our low outside temperature at 8am today(Thursday)was only 0.5 Celsius.There was a -4C frost down country at our Airport.

JULY 2008 in the Northern Hemisphere.

Unreliable weather, unreliable temperatures, unreliable skies. Skies you could read, or could you? I'm not even sure about that anymore.

Wardrobe; what to wear, what to layer, what to leave for another season, though it just might suit the day.

Food; winter food, old-fashioned warm foods, fat foods, comfort foods; better to eat less than no food.

Good fortune is still with us in Hamilton. Only a -3C frost this morning with a clear, calm, sunny day to follow. I won't brag with a photo this time.

The weather forecast was correct...would you believe.

Coming soon ...more pics of folk with umbrellas over on my blog"