Shazam!
There's a storm a-comin'
I awoke *way* too early (because my left ear has been bugging me, disrupting my sleep routine) to find that it had not rained overnight. That made me mad. Yesterday, I had taken extra time to mow the lawn and put out the herbs so they could get a proper drenching. Yet, it did not rain, as all the forecasts had predicted. Yet another weather fail!
Then, during my first shot of espresso, I took a gander at the radar:
Okay, so what was *supposed* to hit overnight is now swooping in like some kind of apocalyptic Storm Of The Century, to wipe Michigan off the map. Rain? You bet. Hail? Most likely. Tornadoes? One can only hope.
It’s no wonder meteorologists are having a tough time pinning down when and where severe weather will strike. We’ve done a really, really good job of disrupting the natural patterns of our planet. But don’t worry folks…we’ve created A.I. to help us look into the crystal ball of our very short future, a technology which will eventually replace all those pesky (and woefully inadequate) weatherpersons.
When *I* was young (puts on a cardigan and sits in a rocking chair), we didn’t have much notice before the skies decided to go sour. You’d just have to look up occasionally to make sure a twister wasn’t headed in your direction. Even back then, we put as much stock in the Farmer’s Almanac as we did in super-slick Bob McGill on Channel 8, who pointed at a series of blue and red lines on a map of our state as if those “fronts” were supposed to mean something. Hell, we probably put more stock in the sound of the township sirens, which went off once a month on Saturday, noon, or whenever something wicked had been spotted in a nearby village, spiraling its way across the landscape, destroying trailer parks and tossing cows over three counties.
In truth, I love storms. Always have. Even the nasty ones. My alarm clock is one of those “sound machines” with a handful of pre-programmed noises. I always select the thunderstorm/rain routine; have done so for many years. I even have an app on my phone with similar sounds, so I can fall asleep while traveling. (This white noise definitely helps with falling asleep, and perhaps keeping me asleep, but once I’m up—like today—I’m up. Now, the question is: once the *actual* rain arrives, will I be sleepy again? Probably.)
While modern newscasters—whole channels, fer cripes sake—make a meal out of *any* atmospheric disturbance, it’s really just mundane stuff. This is what our planet does…it makes weather. It’s not some miraculous retribution from on high, it’s science. So, let’s all simmer down, buckle up for the ride and try to enjoy what Mother Nature is giving us.
Because whatever she’s doling out, we probably deserve it.