Cloudy East, Sunny West

If you needed proof that western Washington can be sunnier than eastern Washington in the winter...today is a good example. Look at the latest satellite picture. The east side is covered in low clouds, which are pushing into the Cascade passes (sorry, lots of clouds at the ski resorts in the pass). West of the crest, there is sun in many locations...with the south Sound still in fog and low clouds and the remainder of yesterday clouds/rain over NW Washington (see radar). But both of these locations should improve during the day with sun reaching most of western Washington. The real weather is to the south over Oregon and particularly California...where heavy rain and strong winds are hitting.
The rest of the week....more of the same for us. The upper pattern is absolutely amazing...with a very deep low center over the eastern Pacific...this is quite unusual.