HOUSTON - The next Texas winter storm is almost here, and it's going to be ugly. Houston will avoid the worst of it. Wednesday will be cloudy, breezy and cold, so bundle up. Highs will be in the mid-40s. Thursday gets interesting. Ice and snow begin for north-central and North Texas.

Southeast Texas' outlook for next week's winter storm continues to worsen, with a growing likelihood of a deep freeze and substantial wintry precipitation, snow and sleet in the Houston area. Space City Weather's Eric Berger published an atypical afternoon report on Friday warning of an "increasingly likely" and drastic mix of hard freeze and snowy conditions expected in Southeast Texas early next week.