Storms

Hurricane Dean waves - south of Santa Domingo

I love a good storm, thunder and lightning, wind, driving rain. It doesn't get much better, unless you add snow. A nor'easter or a hurricane just make life more interesting. The fury of Mother Nature is something to behold.

Of course, here in New England, the hurricanes we've had have been pretty mild, at least in my lifetime. We've had some where trees get knocked over, power goes out. The worst hurricane experience I can remember is listening to a generator running for over a week at a house across Johnson's Pond from where I was living. I'm sure they wanted their power back on, but I was probably as ecstatic as they when that generator was finally turned off. Usually when it's blowing, I go outside and walk around feeling the air and rain around me.

One time while living on the pond, Hooke and I were sitting on the screened porch watching a thunder and lightning storm. All at once, I could feel the hair on my arms stand up and Hooke went wild barking and doing his little donut circles on the floor, then BOOM, lightning came down and hit a tree that was about 50 feet away. It was great. There was a little fire that the rain put out after a few moments.

Whenever the weatherman is forecasting thunderstorms, I anticipate where I'll be, what the best vantage point is, how long will it last, etc.. Often, like the last few days, I'm disappointed when nothing happens. Where did the storm go? Who was able to experience it? Why wasn't it me? Hannibal isn't fazed at all by storms, sometimes he picks his head up when lightning flashes, but the thunder bothers him not at all.

I never understand people who are afraid of storms. They're so exhilarating, you feel so alive. Last summer, when Chelsea, Matthew and Emilee were sleeping over there was a storm that started about 11 pm. They were all nervous so I decided they needed to understand the feeling of experiencing something so wild. I opened the window, pulled the shade all the way up, and pushed the bed up against it. Then we all laid there feeling the rain blow in, watching the flashes and feeling the house rumble. I think they appreciated it, as they didn't seem to be afraid anymore. I hope they still aren't afraid.

Hurricane Dean was just upgraded to a Category 5 storm, with winds over 156 miles per hour. I've watched the weather channel on and off today to see where it's been and where it's headed. Unfortunately, the islands have been hit pretty hard, and there has been a lot of devastation. The buildings and houses down there are not built for the harsh environment that hurricanes bring, I'm sure many people are homeless and many lives have been lost.

So maybe we'll be lucky and have a hurricane here in New England this summer or fall. My request would be a Category 1 or 2, maybe a 3 tops.