Saturday I watched two episodes of Seconds From Disaster in an effort to tidy the TiVo. One episode documented a tornado that chewed up the Midwest in ’74.
Usually I’m ready for tornadoes. After this episode I am on the block and poised for the firing gun. Bring it! I know what to do, what to look for, where to run.
(I was surprised to find I was wrong about one thing. I’ve always heard you crack the windows so the indoor/outdoor difference in air pressure doesn’t explode your house. Come to find out no, that just puts you right next to the window, aka soon to be shattered flying glass.)
So, as I say, armed with that information I am soooooo ready for a tornado. Today I woke up to a National Weather Service Thunderstorm Warning.
When the thunder started in the afternoon, I bounced over to our department’s fifth-floor windows. There was a lid of clouds, perfectly still except for one patch that was headed north, right next to another patch headed south. “Rotation!” I squeed to no one in particular.
I took a few steps to Kelley’s cube. “Rotation!” I told her.
“Huh?” she answered. Anne’s head popped over the cube wall.
“Rotation?” Anne asked with excitement.
Then we all flew to the window, but the rotation was gone. Instead there were just sheets of rain. That tornado sensed I was ready for it, damnit. I wanna tornado! Just an F1 or F2, nothing that would even flip a trailer, just something that will test my tornado skills.
9 responses to “Tornadoes”
I bet you would love our current lava emergency. It’s taken out an intersection down the way and may end up devouring a few houses, too.
My Dad loves a good thunderstorm — he puts a chair in the garage and watches them. Frequently they look like they’re going to be good, but ultimately end up being disappointing. There was a tornado in my hometown the day I was born. and we had a pathetic little earthquake which resulted in a kerfuffle that would have made anyone think people in Ottawa have REALLY boring lives.
We were watching the clouds on our floor, too. They were pretty freaky, like they were coming directly for us.It’s been disappointing how quickly our storms keep fizzling out this year. Dave Murray is probably getting despondent.
I lived through the 1965 Palm Sunday tornado outbreak and I think you are nuts.
Absolutely, Zayrina. Nuts! I was in Aitutaki in February after a Category 5 cyclone, which is what we call them down here, and well, it just made me tired to see all that work that needed doing, rebuilding and tidying up. I think you should look for your thrills in something a little less destructive. Next time you leave the S—–‘s house, don’t even say one goodbye. Just go. Would that do it for you?
Actually, a cyclone is a hurricane, not a tornado, but you know what I mean.
Anyway: http://travelskite.blogspot.com/2010/03/waste-not-want-not.html
Hattie – Ooooo, no. Fire! Fire scary.Allison – Oh, I love a 5.0 earthquake, that’s like an F1-2 tornado.Caroline – nah! It’s raining and thundering right now. This morning Mac joined me in the shower he was so scared.Zayrina – Well, I know, and I knew if I wrote this there’d be someone who lost someone in a tornado, or lost a house, or saw one up close. Remember though, I didn’t ask for an F5. Don’t want to see that.Big Dot – I left without the goodbyes one time. They thought I was sick. And hurricanes are not tornadoes at alllll. With hurricanes you get several days notice. Tornadoes, you get the noise and seconds later You’re under a desk.
Apparently Mother Nature heard my complaints and said, “You want WHAT? You got it! Bwahahahaha!” I was lucky enough to be very near an exit when they closed both 70 and 40 due to flooding tonight. We won’t have to water the garden again this week.
Caroline – what? Oh, because of torrential rains? Pah.