>> Is that a branch of Rock Creek or is Q St. just happy to see us? It’s wet out there and many D.C. streets and sidewalks are swelling over. Parts of our area are still under siege from a storm front that turned deadly in N.C . A flash flood and tornado watch for D.C. should expire at 6 p.m., but don’t expect to find completely dry conditions on the commute home. Elsewhere, Stafford, Prince William and Frederick counties all fell under honest-to-goodness tornado warnings today. This means a funnel cloud was spotted visually or on radar. We’ve even heard rumors that one may have touched down in College Park, but haven’t been able to verify them so far. Watch for downed trees and debris in those areas.

>> NBC4’s Sports Czar George Michael is stepping down as sports anchor after a record two decades. He’ll continue to host “Full Court Press” and “Redskins Report” after his last daily broadcast in March 2007. Michael said he wasn’t the victim of recent budget cuts taking place at NBC, but instead was offered “an extremely, extremely beyond-my-wildest-dreams offer.” [Washington Post]

>> You heard it here first: There’s something menacing Prince George’s County residents. Big cats the size of panthers or cougars are being spotted in Clinton-area backyards and are blamed for thinning the local deer population. Meeeeeeow! [NBC4]

>> In breaking news that would make Woodward and Bernstein proud, the Post discovers that Northern Virginia differs in important ways from it’s southern counterpart. In related news, West Virginia is, like, a whole other state. [Metroblogging DC]

>> Baltimore is combating panhandling by asking residents to put change they might give to the homeless on the corner into retrofitted parking meters. The meters’ rake will go to charities aimed at keeping people off the street. So folks are more likely to respond to the call of a rusty meter than a “disabled vet”? We suggest donating to Saturday’s Help the Homeless Walkathon. [WUSA9]

Photo by Flickr user andertho.