Earl, Fiona, and Labor Day weekend
Atlantic in an uproar, but the Shore should survive.
It may be quite windy around here Saturday, but it won't have a lot to do with Earl, still a strong Category 3 hurricane with top winds about 125 m.p.h.
The weekend winds will blow across the region from the northwest in the wake of a strong front that looks to have a hand in nudging Earl farther offshore.
A few of the computer models, including the European, see Earl tracking close to the North Carolina coast, but the official National Hurricane Center forecast keeps the center offshore.
Right now, as it moves farther north it appears that a weakening Earl will pass perhaps 200 miles or more off the coast as it speeds toward New England.
For the Delaware and Jersey coasts, that would mean rip currents and an agitated ocean into the weekend, but nothing more than drive-by rain and tropical-storm gusts at the closest approach on Friday.
Friday could be a dramatic day of crashing waves at the Avalon seawall, however the sea should begin at least calming down later Saturday.
Both Saturday and Sunday should be gorgeous days, the kind that give one inexplanable bursts of energy, if you don't mind it being on the cool side. It's hard to believe on a day like this, but the weekend could a sweater situation.
As for Fiona, it trails Earl by several hundred miles and several degrees of intensity. Although its future course and even its lifespan are uncertain, it is not expected to grow into a full-blown hurricane.
Naturally, the Eastern weather chat board is popping with hurricane talk. Check it out for comments and analysis from both the informed and those with rooting interests.