STORMY

Anyone who knows me also knows that I hate thunder and lightning.  Well, that's not necessarily the truth.  I have been known to get into my car and drive right into a storm, and I sometimes sit in restaurants like Panera that have big windows so I can watch the storms.  When I was a kid, though, our house and property got hit three times in two weeks, so I can't tolerate being in a house or near the windows at school, and there's no way I want to be caught outside in it, though that happens to me with ridiculous frequency.

Tuesday's storms send me into panic mode.  Sure, there is some stuff on the radar, but it quickly escalates into a tornado warning. By the time it hits full force, the storm had been going on for about forty-five minutes.  The worst of it lasts about twenty more minutes, with the house shaking and the floors rolling.  I am home alone, and I'm not going to lie, there is one point where I decide that sitting inside the tub might be a good idea.  When I emerge after the radar clears, there are some branches down, and apparently a piece of fence behind my house has taken flight, but it's dark, so I cannot assess everything. The real damage is mere miles away in the neighboring town, but I swear the shock waves from that storm came right through the walls of the house via osmosis.

The real reason Tuesday's storms are ticking me off, though, is less of anxiety and more because I just finished setting up the patio.  I re-potted plants, put out chairs, bought a new table, and have just used my brand new grill for the very first time.  My youngest and I have barely finished our grilled burgers when the rain starts for round #1.  Right after son leaves for work, the tornado warning bleeps across the television screen.  It's too late to haul everything back inside, and I'm not strong enough to move it all again, anyway.  I guess I'll have some freshly potted and recently grilled-on projectiles.

There's no point in worrying about it.  The stuff will either still be there when the storm abates, or the stuff won't be there when the storm abates.  It's the law of gravity versus the storm.

Remarkably, everything is still on the patio when I check on it post-storm #2, just in time for storm #3 to roll through.  At midnight, we're working on the tail end of storm #3 and about to get storm #4.  I'm not sure how many more will be indicated on the radar, so this may be a long night for me.  I cannot sleep through this weather.  Well, I could put on my headset, but every time a great song comes on (which is often since I programmed the play list), I wake up and hum along.  Sleep and music do not mix in my brain.

I suppose this is payback for all the times I goaded Mother Nature over the winter.  I get what I deserve.  However, if I could just make a deal to keep the grill, especially since it's brand new, then maybe someone could put in a good word for me.  Right?  Aw, come on.  I have an honest face, and I admitted I sat in the dry tub during a tornado warning when the house started shimmying.  That should count for some sympathy points.

P.S. Finally surveyed the damage behind the house ... More tomorrow (or less, if you count the missing tree.)