Thursday, February 25, 2016

Too many tornado warnings. . . . . . . . . .


It was eerie.
 It was unusual for February. 
It meant preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.
We had it all, torrential rain and gusty winds, even periods of sunshine
 and blue skies.
Then the schools closed and children were dismissed early.
Over twenty tornado warnings, and six tornadoes touched down across our state.
There has been damage but fortunately no deaths or serious injuries.
By 4 PM it was getting scary as the storm got closer. 
TV showed an array of hailstones falling in different areas, softball, golf ball
and ping pong ball sized - take your pick, all will damage your car.
We removed the vacuum cleaner and such from the small coat closet under the
stairs and tucked in a large flashlight, a warm throw, and a small bottle of
white wine with two glasses in case we were stuck in there and feeling thirsty come
aperitif time. If you're laughing, I'm serious!
Lovely friends called from as far away as Washington State (thank you Sandy),
to make sure we were safe. Texts flew back and forth from family members
around town. You, my dear blog friends, left comforting comments which meant
so much and I thank you for caring.


Around sunset the heavy rains ended, thunder in the distance faded
in the cooler evening air. We went outside to view the flooded area of the
back garden, picked up fallen twigs to add to the wood pile, and watched
 the amazing cloud formations as they scudded in an end of day
 race across the sky.

 Later we were out again to view the brilliant full white moon, the sky was as clear
 as a bell and the stars bright and amazing.
At midnight I was definitely not happy and had a hard time going to bed,
not turning in until close to 2 AM and then not able to sleep.
 The winds had picked up again and were gusting fiercely, the trees
 swaying dangerously and branches were falling on the roof.
Honestly, I was more scared than I had been all day.
I love our older neighborhood built on what was once farmland, by builders
 who left the beautiful, stately trees.
I love the majestic old oaks surrounding my home, some must be close to
 80 feet tall, and are homes to squirrels, woodpeckers and many other wild birds.
I am now terrified living here during storms when I know the ground has been
 saturated by heavy rain, and the strong winds arrive circling through the tree tops
 which are far too tall, and the roots much too shallow. I dread huge trees falling on 
the roof as they did during two hurricanes some years back.

I think the time has come perhaps to move on to a place where I feel
 safer and life will be easier.




15 comments:

  1. Good morning Mary, I'm happy to hear that you were safe and had a safe spot to hide should you need it. That same storm system brought freezing rain for us and this morning we are having thunder storms as the warm air pushes up and brings rain. Hard to believe that same system is affecting us both when so far apart. I'm hoping we don't lose power as thousands already have. Murray went to work but the schools are closed due to terrible icy conditions early this morning. I can understand your thinking that a move might be in order for you and Bob to 'more comfortable' surroundings. Wishing you well and that you have a better and quieter day today.
    Hugs, Pam

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  2. Glad to know that the storm has passed and you suffered no damage. The old Oak trees are beautiful to see, but when they are so near your home, it's always a worry. I know how relieved we were a few weeks ago when the huge trees next to our property fell away from the house. I must tell you I did smile about the bottle of wine and the 2 glasses under the stairs. This year the weather has been so strange everywhere. I'm sure you'll be catching up on your lost sleep today

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  3. I have that same dread. We're surrounded by huge trees and I worry when the ground has been saturated - as it has here - we had that same torrential rain, thunder and lightning. It makes me very nervous. Glad you're okay, Mary.

    xo
    Claudia

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  4. Oh Mary, I have had trees down from weather too. Rain, ice and wind. Twice last year, large branches fell on our cars causing damage. We finally got the tree down, but there are a million more. And spring storms are near here. We built far too near trees and they grow too so a word of warning to those planning to build.

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  5. Dear Mary, Have been worried about your safety and I am so glad that you posted this morning. Hope your weather conditions have settled down a bit so that you can get a good nights sleep tonight.

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  6. I lived through the tornado of 1988 when it hit Raleigh and am thankful to be alive. Those loblolly pines (if that is what you have in your yard) hit our house 2 times, both when I was home in '96. We now live in Northern VA and last night we were in the basement for an hour as the storm passed over us. The weather is changing on the east coast. Maybe New England is the last safe place to live in the US!!
    Ann in NoVA

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  7. Weirdly we had one ourselves, here in Upstate NY. I go into a controlled panic .. making sure I know where the cats are and their carriers. The idea of going down into my basement for anything other than a fast dash to the washer/dryer and back upstairs, fills me with dread. I hate that basement ... it is like something in a 50s horror movie.

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  8. Glad you guys are safe and sound. It was iffy here a time or two yesterday. I spend a good deal of time in our basement waiting for the angry storms to pass over. I don't think we have a thing such as tornado season anymore. With the weather now days they hit winter and summer but the threats always have me dreading the spring. I don't blame you for thinking of a safer place to move.

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  9. It sounds like you had a few scary hours Mary. I admire your positivity. Such a good idea to put two glasses and a bottle of wine with you into the closet, for emergencies :-)

    I am happy to hear you are both well!

    Madelief x

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  10. I'm glad you and your family are safe! Blessings!-
    Abi

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  11. So glad you are OK. How scary! Maybe it won't come again for many years. Your sky photos are gorgeous.

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  12. I am glad to hear from you, Mary. Those tornado warnings are frightening. I completely understand your fear of the trees in the water-logged ground and I understand your thoughts about moving. Last summer was our first in town, and while I missed Pondside I did NOT miss the fear of forest fires with which we lived all the previous summers.stay safe!

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  13. Thankful that you and Bob and family are safe. Serious weather is very stressful. I've experienced hurricanes and tornadoes as well as serious flooding. It's frightening to look out a window and see funnel clouds dance across the sky. We had a tornado hover over our neighborhood several years ago. It blew out windows and stripped the trees of all their leaves.

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  14. I understand your feelings completely - and am especially glad you are still safe. We have trees about 30 feet tall in our yard - but just across the narrow street is a woods of very tall old trees - on a hillside. Two years ago the city thinned out the trees that they felt were in danger of falling on our house and car and it completely changed our micro climate. Before - we never had any wind - we would shake our wind chimes just so we could hear them tinkle. We could see the wind in the tops of the trees - bending and stretching them - but the wind never reached us. Now we have some very strong winds - like the rest of the neighbors always have - but we also have a lot more sunshine. The woods are to the west of us and the sun in the winter would never get above the trees (late Sept to early April). Now we have sun in early February - not a lot - but it is cheery to have it shining in the living room windows for part of the day - and it shines on our house until late October. Generally our winds are not strong - just gentle breezes - which does help on the warmer days in summer - though I can't say I'm enjoying the strong storms this winter that lash the trees about. But I am glad for so much more sunshine - and the lack of the threat of trees falling on us. Stay safe my friend.

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  15. Here is a thought; if you had a true storm shelter that was 'bullet proof' for all type of storms- would you move? What would be on your must have list for the next place to live? Would it be cheaper to build an actual storm shelter than move? Just thinking of now/present priority's and reasons, the pros and cons...

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