I’ll preface this post by saying, unlike this young girl, I won’t be outside with my watering can anytime soon.
Here in Michigan, the weather pattern has had no rhyme or reason in 2018. I’m happy as long as I can get out for my daily walk, but since the beginning of the year, foul weather has been my nemesis.
I am what you call a “weather worrier” and not just because I don’t like being surprised by a sudden drenching downpour, but I also worry about severe weather. I follow several online weather sites and listen to a variety of radio meteorologists daily.
Yesterday, I walked in the morning, then had a busy workday, putting the finishing touches on all the documents needed for today’s hearing. When I finally got to the computer for some “me time”, it seemed as if the torrential rain had been nonstop all afternoon and into the evening. I clicked through the rounds of the social media sites I frequent, the weather sites being first and foremost. The meteorologists all predicted more rain overnight, some gusty winds and intermittent thunder, but no severe weather. My eyelids started fluttering, heavy from my five-mile walk, a long day of screen time and the incessant rain pounding on the roof. A sudden long rumble of thunder roared across the sky and jolted me back to life, so “time to shut down” I thought, so I trotted off to bed.
I enjoy drifting off to sleep, or awakening, to the sound of the pitter patter of the early morning rain on the patio roof . I think it is peaceful. In Summer, during an early morning rain, or Winter, when freezing rain pelts mercilessly against anything in its path, the sparrows line up along the brick ledge outside the bedroom windows. Birdie mumblings will usually wake me up, as my fine-feathered friends are all tucked together, peeping softly as they seek refuge from the elements.
This morning, the alarm went off, and, as I walked down the hall and to the kitchen, I switched on the lights, whispering a silent “thank you” that the power had not gone out. The early news reported flooding and power outages galore throughout Southeast Michigan. Again, I felt lucky to remain unscathed from this latest bout of bad weather. There were reports of three inches of rain at nearby Metro Airport. Yikes! Once it was light, I peered outside – everything looked fine but it was gray and gloomy looking, as if more rain threatened. I decided a walk in the neighborhood might be better than heading down to the Park where the leaf-soaked trees would be dripping onto my head as I passed underneath them, and likely the squirrels would stay in their nests and not venture down to ground level.
When I finally plunked down in front of my computer and checked my e-mail, my inbox said I had 22 messages – what in the world?! One in particular leapt out at me, a message from the emergency alert center in my City:
I promptly forwarded that message to my friend Ann Marie who lives in Southgate and said “I didn’t know about this!”
A slew of other weather-related messages seemed almost as ominous:
So, it looks like I went to bed thinking that overnight would be a little more rain, thunder and some gusty winds, certainly not a tornado! And how many people were checking their voicemail at 12:49 a.m. to discover a tornado was imminent (by 1:15 a.m.)? Hopefully our City’s emergency sirens, which are tested the first Saturday of each month, would have erupted into the still night were a tornado imminent. I heard nothing.
I had to gulp hard as I took all this info in, and, even more, when I discovered a tornado had indeed touched down in Taylor, on Pardee Road, just a stone’s throw away from Heritage Park which I visited last weekend. Reading the account of the tornado’s path, and, seeing the pictures of the aftermath of this tornado that touched down only 6.1 miles from my home, gave me a sinking feeling right in the pit of my stomach. Mother Nature’s wrath has already inflicted a meteorite and an earthquake here in 2018; I am glad this is the last month for tornado season.
Our grand total was 3.57 inches of rain in a 24-hour time period – like I said, the watering can and hose can have a rest for a while.
[Photo credit of “A Girl With A Watering Can” by Pierre-Auguste Renoir from Marilyn Reid on Pixabay]
Linda Schaub
WALKIN', WRITIN', WIT & WHIMSY 
Miss Linda………………………….we both are like that “Little Blue Girl With the Watering Can”…………………yeah we don’t need to water the flowers for awhile
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ann Marie – why they didn’t mention the tornado on the early news I don’t know. All they mentioned was the power outages, flooding at Hines Park, and a lot of power outages in Livonia for some reason. And, had I gone to Council Point Park, I am sure people who might have seen the story on the TV news would be talking about it – I stayed in the neighborhood this morning as it looked like it might rain, and I have that mile to/from the Park. The National Weather Service didn’t confirm it as a tornado in Taylor until mid-afternoon. Too many weather abnormalities in these parts these days to my liking!
LikeLike
I get the feeling Detroit has more than its fair share of awful weather.
LikeLiked by 1 person
This year’s weather has been very unpredictable Anne. Since I always follow what is going on with the weather, not only for walks, planning purposes for the few errands I go on, but most of all for severe weather … the idea that with all the sophisticated meteorological info they have out there and none of those weather folks saw this tornado coming just floors me.
LikeLike
We feel that weathermen hype everything, but they miss the most scary things. What other job is there where you are paid whether you get things right or not?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Right you are Anne and I often have muttered that to myself too. Then, when they mess up badly, they blame it on balloons or false readings, never themselves!
LikeLiked by 1 person
There was a lot of rain! We in southern Sweden have probably not had more than max 1 inch rain throughout the summer, except for single nights when it’s raining. It has been shown on the asphalt when I cycled to work in the morning. We have hardly any tornado in Sweden, and they are very small and do not destroy anything. It is so dry that farmers get emergency slaughter animals, but queues to slaughterhouses are at least 6 months, so they have to wait until 2019! We have the warmest summer of at least 256 years.
LikeLike
I wish I could send this rain over there to you John … it was almost 3 inches on Tuesday alone and then another 1 inch on early Wednesday morning … just incredible. The idea of this bad weather popping up so suddenly really scared me. It is just as well I was unaware of it … I’d have been a nervous wreck.
LikeLiked by 1 person
well,….. If it had hit you wouldn’t of been scared for long. Nature doesn’t care if you know or not,If your scared or not.
You should have a back pack with survival gear ready however.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have a closet with emergency items in it – lanterns, flashlights, and for Summer, battery-operated fans and chill towels; for Winter, battery operated scarves, an aluminum NASA blanket and a lot of big blankets … all in the closet. That’s assuming I stay put in the house. When I had my canary I had to ensure I had him either cool enough or warm enough depending on when a power outage hit. They don’t do well with extreme temperature changes … especially heat and I couldn’t take him downstairs to the basement as I was sprayed for centipedes/spiders for too many years. Canaries are susceptible to any kind of vapors – it causes respiratory distress. I had a bag packed for him with his food and supplies should I have to take him to a vet or someone’s house if something happened to the house. I think I will get a backpack and do as you suggest – hopefully I never need to to run off in a hurry.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I had a vision of your little canary with a tiny suit case like tweety bird would have!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ha ha – Buddy, (and Sugar my canary before him), were so spoiled and I not only had their tote bag packed with all their essentials for an emergency, but I had a closet devoted to just their things … an extra cage, extra toys and accessories, food and treats and all the emergency preparedness stuff for a power outage. no matter the season. I worried the furnace would break down in Winter (I had many issues with my new furnace until the HVAC guys finally figured it was not pitched correctly … it kept coding and shutting down), so I had a small electric lap robe for the cage and a hot water bottle. I always kept a flashlight on the kitchen table in case the power went out so they would not be scared at the sudden darkness. They were treated like little princes, better than some kids I suspect.
LikeLike
thats why Parker is attracted to you………he heard from a little birdie that you treat critters excellent!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Parker is back again for that very reason! He made me laugh this morning … he’s not returned to the Park after the robin picked on him, but lives on the next street over. I see him when I walk to and from the Park – so Tuesday morning he came over to see me, and I gave him some peanuts and on the way home he “hit me up” again. So, I gave him some more. This morning I saw him enroute to the Park and he came running over to my shoe and looked up. Fed him 5 peanuts – he stuffed three peanuts in his mouth at one time – WTH? I said “hold that pose” … nope, he scurried away. He did the same thing coming home. He’s no dummy and knows I am a soft touch. Maybe tomorrow. I have to clip a cup on the side of my fanny pack so I can keep the camera handy to get a photo and feed him with my left hand.
LikeLike
he trusts you & that is a compliment of the highest kind!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I miss him when he is not around. He gives me my morning smile with his personality and antics.
LikeLike
It’s fantastic to get to know a wild animal isn’t it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It is Wayne – he looks up at me, this tall human towering over him, and there’s no fear at all – all seems to be right with the world then.
LikeLike
making “contact” reminds us who we are & where we came from.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thankful for your safety, and yeah, we’re in similar boats (which we may need by the end of this rain season! 😂). This week has seen rain almost everyday, and yesterday, about mid afternoon, the skies turned an ominous gray, and I suddenly remembered the email I DIDN’T read in the earlier morning about thunderstorms and flash floods…great thing to remember when I’m about 30 minutes from home be have to drive back into that mess! To make matters worse, my oldest was at our offices awaiting my arrival. He called me four tunes, trying to get me, and I finally was able to call him back. He said it was scary where he was, because it seemed the thunder and lightening was popping together! Thankfully, it passed over rather quickly, and we met up and enjoyed a late lunch/early supper together. … Will be praying for your safety and for some sunshiny weather very soon! 😊 ☀️ 🌂
LikeLiked by 1 person
It is scary and knowing it is just 6.1 miles away and there were no predictions of this tornado just floored me. They had mentioned flooding mostly due to all the rain on Tuesday (3 inches) but nothing about severe weather. And to see it after the fact and know I had no clue and I heard no sirens going off is scary to me. My friend lives in the next city over, 2 miles away, and she has a smartphone (I do not) and her phone went off and the City sirens went off. Thanks for your thoughts and I am glad you all got together without incident.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Praying for you!
LikeLiked by 1 person
*sorry for typos! I’m so tired that I failed to proofread before hitting reply. 🙄🤦♀️
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s me sometimes after typing all day … and the comment box in the notifications section and the comment areas have such tiny print … and I just got new glasses with a strong prescription and it still happens!
LikeLiked by 1 person
We remain bone dry here in north central Illinois; it’s really turning into a drought season here!
I used to live near Colon, Michigan on Long Lake. There is a Magic Trick Store in Colon that has all kinds of really awesome magic tricks for sale. The store is known by magicians from all over the world! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Tom – we had a dry July, I think an inch of rain the entire month and this torrential rain was incredible … ground was dry so it didn’t soak in for awhile. I am almost ready to go to Fall here. I am not familiar with Colon, Michigan – I just “met” a fellow blogger from Dryden and I didn’t know where that was either. She has a lovely blog about living in the country.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I loved that trick store! Some of the tricks that i bought were used years later by me at the school for the multiply handicapped that i worked in; they were a blast! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Speaking of magic tricks, when Harry Anderson who starred on “Night Court” died recently, there was much written about how he used to do magic tricks and was very good at them. I don’t recall him doing tricks on the show as I didn’t watch it until it was in reruns.. I believe it was on opposite something else I watched and this was before VCRs.
LikeLike
It is so weird how the weather can change so quickly. Thankfully you are safe.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Zena … I am grateful it did not come any closer than it did. I worry every Summer from May to August, especially when we have an extremely hot spell … we are headed into a hot weekend and some hot weather days next week as well. That kind of weather is unstable and causes bad storms or tornadoes. I could never live in the states that are termed “Tornado Alley” – I’d be a nervous wreck.
LikeLike
Greetings, Linda. I get migraines the day before it’s going to rain or snow, so I don’t need to watch the weather report. But I do recall an experience similar to yours years ago when I was up at midnight, working on a brief no doubt, when the TV announced we had a tsunami warning. Mouth drop. I was glued to it for several hours until it ultimately canceled. Nowadays, I like to watch for the aurora forecast.
LikeLiked by 1 person
What floored me with this Keenan was the fact that they always warn of bad weather and I nonchalantly went to bed just thinking it was routine rain and a little wind, maybe a little thunder. I always unplug the computer and shut the A/C in case of a lightning strike. I was oblivious to it all – I’m glad for that. My mom had multiple orthopedic issues, some 42 operations in her lifetime as she was hit by a car as a child. She, like you, could predict wet weather the day before based on her bones. The tsunami warning would scare me too, especially after seeing the devastation from Japan’s tsunami a few years ago.
LikeLiked by 1 person
So glad it didn’t hit you! I use to work for a gas company and a tornado touched down in our town. I was called to shut the gas off to the area homes and the fire department had to get me to the gas meters to turn them off, even walking across a tree to get over a creek. Power lines on the gas meters and the fireman saying it’s up to you if you want to touch it! Personal belongings scattered everywhere…so sad!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh that’s terrible Diane – we have had several natural gas explosions the last few years, nothing to do with bad weather, just a natural gas explosion. That’s something that is worrisome to me because all of a sudden a house will explode into smithereens, with only debris left, and sometimes taking the occupants along with it. I’m glad you don’t have to endure that responsibility and worry with your current job.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow! And, here, we have a massive drought. Wildfires… but no tornados, so there’s that. Anyone who is still trying to claim that “everything is normal” weather-wise is nuts. I’m glad you got a good night’s sleep free of fear.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Janis – no worries today and in fact it’s a beautiful day. The stories on the wildfires are just so sad. Watching the news where 1,000 homes have been lost, many lives lost, not to mention the devastation of land, wildlife. A fellow blogger from Sweden tells me about the wildfires there … they had about an inch of rain in Sweden all Summer and it is the hottest Summer in 256 years. The farmers cannot water their crops, so the livestock are dying and being sent to slaughterhouses which are six months behind in processing due to all the extra animals. I’m with you – this weather is not normal and if this is the “new normal” I don’t like it at all.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Tornadoes – scary!!! We almost never get those, luckily.
I’m so disappointed though, yesterday I had tickets for a tennis tournament here but it was rained out! No roof! No refunds!!! Only got to see 15 min. of warmups and then the rain fell! A HUGE schlep it was to get there and back home. I ended up walking (and up and down stairs in the subway where many escalators weren’t working!) the equivalent of 4 km!! …For me that’s like a dozen miles for you in terms of fitness – or I should say, my lack thereof! My thighs still hurt today.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, I worry every time we have a bad storm that it will turn into a tornado. Especially when we have a string of really hot and humid days (like we have now, our third of four hot and humid days). It is 79 degrees (26 C) now at midnight! The rain has ruined so many events this year for me. Earlier this week they said today (Sunday 08/05) was to be stormy in the afternoon, then they said Monday. Then this morning, rain/pop-up storms were expected. I lost $$ on a 5K that was rained out. The steps are good exercise but in these hot days, very uncomfortable if you have a lot of them. Hope you are feeling better soon. I know I went up and down the stairs to the basement about 15 times after doing a big grocery shopping. I had switched shoes to street shoes and the next day I had shin splints so bad I couldn’t go down stairs for almost a week!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I hear ya. Lost $18 on the tennis I never got to see. 😦 For me that’s a chunk of dough. My legs hurt from all the stairs! Ay yi…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, that’s a lot and the 5K was 37.50 (they charge an administrative fee of $2.50 and this was a large amount just for “education” for our City). I wanted to do the anti-bullying walk and it was rained out as well, but it was free and if you wanted, you could buy a tee-shirt for $10.00. The money lost from the 5K was a chunk of dough for me too. This weather has been so unpredictable this year.
LikeLiked by 1 person