I Think We're in Kansas, Toto

When storms come rumbling, we pay attention in Kansas, meaning it's time to turn on the weather radio for watches and warnings, switch on the TV to see the radar, and tune the radio to one of the local stations to hear the weather spotters.  That's what we were doing Wednesday when storms crossed through the area.  When all was said and done, nine tornadoes had flirted with the area, and possibly the largest hailstone on record (7.75") had fallen.

My oldest granddaughter was here after school with my youngest daughter and myself, waiting for her mom (my oldest) to finish her visit to the YMCA after work.  We were all keeping an eye on the sky as reports came in that baseball-sized hail was being reported to the northwest of us and was headed our way.  We had hail, mostly pea-sized, for a while, then it stopped and rained.  And rained.  Then the hail picked up again, a little bigger this time.  Suddenly, we heard the announcement on the radios that we were under a tornado warning and should take cover.  At the same time, my oldest daughter called and said to get to her house.  She was on her way there and would meet us.

The tornado sirens blared around us as I drove the three of us the three blocks to my daughter's house, while nickel-sized hail pounded the car.  I prayed the very cracked windshield (compliments of my oldest grandson, a metal toy car, and a rock) would hold up against the onslaught.  If it wasn't for the fact that I don't have a basement, but my daughter does, we'd have stayed home.  For the next twenty minutes, we watched the hail from inside her house, as it went from marble and nickel size to golf ball size, and finally to billiard ball size.  The first photo above was taken after being rained on for ten minutes, while we debated who would go out to retrieve some to keep.  The photo above and to the right is what had earlier hit the airport, where my daughter's husband works.  It was a bit bigger!

We're all thankful that damage from the storms wasn't severe, but the insurance companies will be busy assessing dimpled cars and broken car windows, along with battered roofs.  Ah, yes, it's Kansas in spring autumn!

Almost Paradise

Well, it had to happen sooner or later. Ever since we changed the locks on the lake house, I realized that the back doorknob and the front keypad had a tendency to lock themselves. For that reason I turn the deadbolt to an extended position before shutting the back door, just like my daughter taught me to do while going to get ice in a hotel. So far, so good, until today. During a brief visit to the lake with our project manager, Michael, and our two installers who were working in the area, Terry and Derrick, (who all loved the house and can't wait to go fishing) I followed them out the front door to see the trees and a nearby house. Click. We were all locked out.

And the dark clouds were rolling in from the south.

And my dog was locked inside the house.

With my purse and keys.

Lucky for me, Terry and Derrick had tools and Michael had an idea; remove the air conditioner/heater unit from the window of my porch and enter that way. Okay, better than breaking windows. They went to work while my dog, Chloe, looked at us through the door as if we were crazy. "Why not just open the door?" she seemed to be asking. My daughter offered to drive the hour and a half to Mineola to bring me a key. Not necessary, I bravely announced. It took the guys about fifteen minutes to shatter a board, unscrew everything, and open the window. And maybe the same amount of time to get everything back in place. I have one thing to say; thank goodness for men with tools!

Terry and Derrick left for Dallas, while I got Michael a beer and I finished off the last little sip of a bottle of wine, strictly for medicinal purposes. The afternoon got darker and the lake turned to cobalt blue. Birds frantically twittered from tree to tree. That should have been a warning. Michael and I locked up the house properly this time, and began the drive back to Dallas, knowing we'd get there right after rush hour traffic. Believe me, you do not want to get there during rush hour traffic. The rain started almost immediately after we got on Hwy. 69, and increased as we drove west. About halfway to Dallas, hail pelted us. And then bigger hail. I thought about trying to get under an overhang, but I could barely see. I kept driving. Fortunately, Chloe slept through the whole thing. We drove out of the hail after maybe ten minutes, then the rain stopped just east of Dallas. We got back just after rush hour to no rain and warm temperatures. When I turned on the television, I discovered there were tornado warnings for the county we'd just driven through.

That was my day. As for my work in progress, I wrote nine pages yesterday and none today. I was too busy locking myself out of the house and getting pelted by hail. As soon as I finish writing my blog, though, I'm going to get to work. Hopefully, my characters will have a good evening, although I may throw in a thunderstorm just for spite! As my hint for the month, always hide a key. And remember where you hid it. Have a great day!