It’s cold, and roads may be icy. Check closings and road conditions before you head out. If you need to go somewhere, be careful. (Houston Chronicle)

Record demand for electricity expected in Texas. Texas’ grid operator said that it expects electricity usage to reach an all-time high between 7 and 8 a.m. today, as Texans wake up, turn on their heat, and face a cold front that’s turning out to be colder than expected. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas predicts that power consumption will peak at more than 75.6 gigawatts. (Bloomberg)

Texas officials say the grid is ready. Last February, Texas’ grid crashed when demand was around 69 gigawatts – which is, to state the obvious, a lot less than the 75.6 gig expected for this morning. Last year’s shortage was largely caused by problems moving natural gas to power plants. But now “the gas is flowing,” as Texas Railroad Commissioner Christi Craddick said at a press conference yesterday. Officials also say that this year, we have plenty of natural gas in reserve. (Texas Tribune)

And remember, it won’t be as cold as last year. During Winter Storm Uri, Houston hit 13° F. This year the National Weather Service expects tonight’s low to be somewhere in the 20s and 30s. (National Weather Service)

But I’m kinda worried anyway. 

1. The Texas Railroad Commission claims that 98 percent of natural-gas facilities are now winterized. But a Houston Chronicle review found that only about 40 percent have actually tested their stuff, and fewer than 10 percent were sure that they’d filed the paperwork they need to be able to work during rolling blackouts. (Houston Chronicle) 

2. Plus, early this year, a little freeze showed that our grid wasn’t ready for a big one. (City Cast Houston’s Jan. 6 show, with Bloomberg reporter Sergio Chapa)

• Space City Weather, my favorite weather wonks.

• The National Weather Service’s Houston page.

• Texas road conditions, tracked by the state department of transportation.

• ERCOT, keeper of the Texas electric grid. Scroll down to see a real-time graphic that shows how the grid is handling electric demand.

• Texas power outages, as tracked by PowerOutage.US.

• A Bloomberg reporter who’ll be tweeting about how natural gas production, pipelines and such weather the freeze.

What exactly is a crawfish? How do you cook them? How do you eat them? Today, producers Dina Kesbeh, Ferrill Gibbs and I discuss Houston’s favorite crustacean.

Azaleas, in the Rhododendron genus, aren’t native this far south, but they’re Houston icons anyway. Patti Bonnin, of the Houston Arboretum, writes that Ima Hogg began planting azaleas in the 1930s. She thought they’d give her mansion, Bayou Bend, a Southern air. 

Azaleas used to bloom reliably in early March – that’s when the River Oaks Garden Club holds its oh-so-Southern Azalea Trail — but during this year’s warm winter, many azalea bushes popped prematurely. Pity those early bloomers today, as the arctic blast howls outside.

Our podcasts this week:

• TODAY: Crawfish 101
• THU: River Oaks Theatre, saved again!
• WED: Exxon's "god pod" is moving to Houston. What does that mean?
• TUE: How to navigate those tricky Texas primaries
• MON: Tales from the 610 Loop