Today I had to hose out a bus. Why? Because a passenger pissed in one of the seats.

....Yup.

Ok, that's enough about that.

The Raging Storm

Last night we had our first major thunderstorm of the year. We've had regular thunderstorms already, but this was our first "Ma-grab-the-kids-and-head-for-the-storm-cellar" storms. (I was going to put up an image of the radar from last night, but I hunted around and couldn't find any. Doesn't anyone keep archives of radar images? Sheesh. Anyway, I'll try to get one next time.)

When Jaws darted under my chair at the sound of thunder, I decided it was time to shut down the computer. Not five seconds after I finished shutting it down, all hell broke loose. The power flickered uncertainly, and I heard stuff blowing around outside.

I also heard my neighbor outside calling desperately for her cat. I thought, "Honey, he's probably all holed up someplace safe. Get yourself inside!"

The warning siren started to go off, its drone rising in pitch as it got going. I went upstairs to watch the storm.

From my bedroom, I could see that this was One Big Storm. The trees were bending almost in two. I watched a lawn chair bounce by on the sidewalk, followed by a cushion and a plastic table. Water quickly pooled in the depression by my stairs. I feared for my vegetables.

I have large floor to ceiling windows in my apartment, and I could hear the glass shaking in the wind gusts. Curious, I held my hand to the window and felt it bending in under the force of the wind. These windows could break I thought.

I decided it wasn't a good idea to stand in front of the window.

Come morning, the damage was found. Downed tree limbs and power lines. Water had soaked into everything; the rain had blown in around the edges of my front door. Mud was caked where pools of water had sat, and people were gathering up lost furniture.

I got off pretty easy. My plants were ok, since the wall of my patio shielded them from the brunt of the wind. All three of my birdfeeders had fallen, and one had been blown into the tree outside. The cat was traumitized. Other than all that, I was fine.

Woo! Go Me!

What the heck? Today seems to be my day. Not only do I always get several visitors from Staci, I was mentioned in two high-profile places today. I am Journal of the Day or something at About.Com, and Kymm (you know, that Kymm!) linked to me as well.

cringe Sheesh, I feel so exposed! Anyway, if you're visiting for the first time... Hi!

...and wipe your feet.