Lori at -50F in Minnesota, what a dork!
On October 12th, San Francisco received a gully-whopper of a storm.
It manifested as the kind of storm that knocked down power lines and telephone poles, as well as the occasional tree.
Holy Falling Debris Batman! Eep!
You’d think I’d be used to it, growing up in the Midwest and attending grad school in Minnesota. I loaded hay bales in the back of my pickup truck as an annual winter activity—to keep it (and me) from sliding across the highway. My first fall in MN I had to shovel snow from around my vehicle on September 8th. We received about 52 inches (1.32 meters) of snow that winter between November and January alone. I actually cross-country skied to work a few times. I shoveled lots of snow.
It was a long winter.
But, it was fun somehow. I learned the limits of human existence and what human skin can tolerate before it succumbs to frostbite. No joke. I proved that I could run outside for about 20 minutes in the bitter cold if I donned the proper protective equipment. The photo above documents my experiment.
I’ve lived in California for almost a decade now and the closest thing to crazy weather I’ve seen is a kooky fire storm last year and a few minor earthquakes.
Child’s play.
San Diego Fire 2008
WTF!??!!! I moved here to chillax, to keep it real. Well, real is what I got a couple of days ago!
The screens on my window were threatening to pop off. The noise deafened me for hours. My hearing has been really sensitive lately and I had to wear earplugs! What a gomer!!
Memories of tornadoes growing up in the Midwest swirled. And, man, tornadoes strike fear into the heart of grown men, let alone a 10-yr old girl. Have you ever seen one? I guarantee you’ll never forget it if you do. You’ll realize how small you are.
As a result, during the storm my internet decided to give out. It, too, needed a break. A call to my internet provider indicated the local router sourced via a fire station and that part of town had lost power.
What?? You mean I have no internet all day?????
Yes, Lori, no internet. I promise you’ll survive.
I grabbed a book.
I wrote an outline for my Writing Experiment.
I meditated.
I txt’d my good friend Jay via my cell phone.
My day unfolded into one of my best in recent history.
What did I learn from thinking my window screens and doors would pop off?
Unplug.
Chillax.
Just be.
Now it’s your turn!
What was the most harrowing natural weather disturbance you’ve ever experienced? I was running during the “World Series Earthquake” of 1989 near the epicenter. Freaky! Water towers were tipping over!
Create Your Day!
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It’s so funny because yesterday, *my* Internet went out all day long…the day after yours did. It gave me the chance to catch up on some reading, and I watched the coolest show about Indiana Jones and his contributions to real-life archaeology.
I think it’s good for us to unplug sometimes, and take a step back from the information overload that the Internet can dump on us if we’re not careful. Sometimes, it takes a storm to get us to slow down and appreciate life more.
.-= Jay Schryer´s last blog ..Memories Best Left Forgotten =-.
Jay, you sound like Hunter. When I tell him it’s time to unplug, he switches from Playstation to cartoons. I have to remind him that cartoons are still electronics, and he needs to do something UNPLUGGED, for a change!
It’s not surprising, since Hunter and I are about on the same mental level…
.-= Jay Schryer´s last blog ..Memories Best Left Forgotten =-.
Man, I’m feeling bad/sick for a day and I come back here to find you two bantering away. You two crack me up!
I could see you and Hunter being Indiana Jones and Indy Jones Jr. However, I don’t know who’d play the adult and who would play Indy Jones Jr. It’s a toss up.
I’ve been through LOADS of hurricanes and they are actually one of my favorite types of weather. Waiting out a hurricane is like camping in your house and there is nothing like experiencing the intense weather!
(I wasn’t able to get online on Monday and I lived, read a book, and the world didn’t end.
)
.-= Hayden Tompkins´s last blog ..The Truth About Rapid Weight Loss =-.
Hi Hayden,
When you said, “Waiting out a hurricane is like camping in your house…” that brought back a lot of memories being stuck in the basement with a radio while a tornado passed. Good visual!
I’ve only been in one hurricane while I was in basic training and it was frightening. There’s something about being surrounded by a bunch of burly drill sergeants that eased the fright, somehow, though. It made them nice for a day.
I’m glad the world didn’t end, too.
Mine is a bit off-topic. I was directing traffic at a race-track. It was a brutally hot day. I was standing outside for about 10 hours in the sun. I was wearing a baseball cap for protection from sunburn. However, because I was standing on white sand all day, the reflection from the sun and direct sun on the sides of my face caused me to get severely sunburnt.
The next morning I woke up and could feel beads of sweat running down my face. I got up and looked at my face in the bathroom mirror. To my horror it was sweat, buy yellow pus that was oozing from my burnt skin.
.-= Gordie Rogers´s last blog ..Is There Anything That’s Unforgivable? Part 1. =-.
Dude! Oh man! Holy oozing yellow pus!
I have never been sun burnt that severely, but that sounds PAINFUL!
And, yeah, I wouldn’t have thought about the reflecting sun off the sand, either. It kind of reminds me of getting burnt while skiing, from the reflection of the snow. (Not oozing burnt, just garden-variety burnt).
Mother nature is a cunning fox.
I’m glad you’ve healed though, and thanks for sharing your story!
Hi Lori,
When we lived in India, the power would go out three or four times a day. One night, it went out just at a crucial point in a movie we were watching on television. In the beginning it used to drive me crazy. But eventually I learned to live with it.
And the wildest weather experience I ever had was in India too. It was two day before we left and monsoon season was just about to start. In the distance, we saw these really dark clouds. Within about a half hour, the dark clouds were in our little village. It rained unlike any rain storm I had ever seen. The place where we were living in started to flood. The roads below were flooded too. We had to keep up with the storm or the damage would have been huge.
Two hours after the storm had passed, everything dried up somehow. The streets were no more flooded. I have yet to see a storm like that here.
.-= Nadia – Happy Lotus´s last blog ..Breathe in Life – Interview with Dorothea Delgado =-.
Hi Nadia,
I knew you’d have a good story from your time in India. And, you delivered! Thank you!
Your story reminds me a little of the sandstorms in Saudia Arabia. The rain there was different that any I’ve experienced, too.
The power thing, though – I think that’d drive me nuts! It is a good reminder of the many places in this world that don’t have access to electricity. It sounds like you were able to find you peace with the intermittent juice, which is such a Nadia trait. You continue to inspire me.
My least favorite is earthquakes, although I don’t think that counts as a weather phenomenon. Went through some near-miss tornadoes and flooding in Georgia, which were not fun, but not super frightening either (since we weren’t in the direct path).
As for being unplugged, when I went to Costa Rica I learned that I actually CAN survive even if there is no power for a day or two (that means TV, too, Jay!).
Now I kind of like having days here and there where I just don’t plug in at all the whole day… lots of reading, writing in journals, and TALKING to Hunter and Jeff. I’m kind of Amish for a day so I can reconnect to what matters.
.-= Lisis´s last blog ..Jackie and Heidi: A Tale of Unlikely Companions =-.
Hello…I *read a book* too, not just watched TV!
.-= Jay Schryer´s last blog ..Memories Best Left Forgotten =-.
You’re spot on, Lisis! Earthquakes definitely weird me out. Well, I think I probably was thinking of earthquakes as weather because I mentioned it at the end of my post. Good point…but, back to the earthquake, I’ve been in a lot of little ones and one BIG one. To me, it is so weird how the floor seems to turn into a waterbed during the quake. Very disconcerting…
As for TV, I actually don’t have one – but I probably make up for it with my Mac – downloading movies, etc. You gave me an idea, maybe I’ll designate one day a month as Amish day and unplug. The 12th was a great day; I need more of them. Good idea, as usual!
hey jane!!
you can’t ask us what our most harrowing weather adventure has been and right after say, ” I was running during the “World Series Earthquake”" – that’s like IMPOSSIBLE to beat
haha.
back when i was in school, we used to go on camps once a year. we went to the middle of the bush and wound up getting lost. had no water for 2 days. yikes. bearing in mind i live on the southern tip of africa. uhoh
made it though. glorious story. def made me stronger. didn’t kill me. rocken non stoppen 
awwwwsome site allround. super cool.
keep well and in touch jane!
alex – unleash reality
Hey Alex! Thanks for your story!
I’ve been to (and lived in) several countries outside the US, but Africa is a place I’ve always wanted to visit but just haven’t been able visit, yet. So, I loooovvvveeed hearing your version of a harrowing weather adventure!
Wow, no water for two days sounds WAY MORE HARROWING than the earthquake I was in. You went with no water, that’s really dangerous! (I realize we’re not trying to story-top each other, just saying…)
You should write a post about your experience! I’d love to get the details of your glorious story. How did Alex keep on keepin’ on, “rocken non stoppen”?
Thanks for visiting! (Oh, and I could kick myself for naming my site Jane Be Nimble, cuz my name is Lori…Jane just seemed to rhyme better at the time – sorry ’bout that. I go by either name now. ha)
Wow, I admire you for running in that cold…ouch! I know people think Chicago winters are bad — I don’t think we got anything on Minnesota.
My worst weather moment happened when I was driving home with some friends from Milwaukee’s Summerfest (awesome festival BTW). We left a little early to try to beat a storm that was coming in. Well we didn’t beat the storm and actually had to pull over on I-94 in Kenosha because it was raining and hailing so hard. A tornado passed us nearby. My friend was freaking out and called her sister to say goodbye. Well we all survived and ironically my friend took a storm chasers class a couple years later where she met her husband. Better to be a chaser than a chasee.
Thanks for another great post!
Hi Tim,
I’m not sure admiration is the right word – I’d call it more like dorky or goofy. But, thanks either way.
Man, dude, I totally know what you mean about tornadoes! Awesome story! I was cracking up, maybe a bit inappropriate I know, when you said your friend called her sister to say goodbye. I seriously know how she felt! I can remember pulling over a few times to wait out storms, too (like softball hail in Phoenix, AZ and tornadoes in the Midwest).
And, to top it off, that’s awesome she went to that class. I had no idea that kind of thing was even offered. It actually sounds like good fun!
Thanks for another great comment! I’m just a mirror.
Lori,
Don’t worry, you don’t know me. I recently discovered Larry Brook’s fantastic storyfix site, and got here from your post.
I am desperate to get parts 2 & 3 from the story structure series, they are not on the site anywhere.
I assume you did get them, and pray you archived them. Could I impose on you to send those two pieces to me at capngp@hotmail.com? If not, could you refer me to someone that might have them? Help a stranger…
Thanks Lori,
Greg
Not a problem, Greg! I didn’t know you, but I know you now.
Larry is an awesome guide in the adventure of creating the perfect story. I’m glad you found him, too.
Parts Two and Three are actually still up on his site. You can use the search function at StoryFix.com; but you’ll need to click the “Previous Entries” link at the bottom of page one to get to Parts 1, 2, and 3.
~Here’s Part Two: http://storyfix.com/story-structure-series-2-–-milestones-along-the-4-part-storytelling-road
~Here’s Part Three: http://storyfix.com/3-–-five-missions-for-the-set-up-part-1-of-your-story
Have you considered participating in NaNoWriMo? (See a my previous blog post.)
Although, Larry would probably cringe at this thought.
Happy Story Telling!
Hi Lori! Looks like Mother Nature provided you some inner calm amidst her storm! Nice to “chillax” without all that technology sometimes.
I live in New England and personally look forward to being snowed in. I love when the world stops because it has to, because we’ve got to hunker down to survive. No one expects you to do anything or go anywhere, it’s such a nice break!
I’ve never seem a tornado, YIKES! I can’t imagine it.
The wildest weather I ever lived through was the Blizzard of ’78. I was young, and there was no school for 3 weeks. We had to shovel to get outside the front door! But the snow drifts were over 12′ high and so fun to play on. We had to walk to get food and the stores rationed out the amount of food, milk, and water people could buy per day. Everyone pulled kid sleds to bring back the bundles on. I think the adults had a lot to manage during this, but I just remember it being loads of fun!
-Miche
.-= Miche – Serenity Hacker´s last blog ..There Is No Such Thing As Stuck =-.
Hi Miche!
Hey, awesome story! Yeah, aren’t snow storms the bomb? You know, this is very interesting. We must be about the same age because in the ’70s I was a kid, too, and we had some of the heaviest snowfalls in the Midwest those years. I can remember drifts so high – covering our door, too! Wow, girl, crazy stuff.
I can relate, and I definitely think it was much more fun for me than for my parents. And, wow, rationing food? Using kids sleds as transport? Really cool, Miche (maybe not so much for the adults, though). Great time to be a kid!
It’s funny, I really enjoyed storms as a kid, and I still enjoy them now, because they create a real sense of adventure. The rainstorm that happened here (Northern CA) recently really lulled me to sleep, I remember, and I had epic dreams.
Great point, Chris!
There’s no adventure like a great storm. I mean, geez, rides at Disneyland are so predictable, but a good rainstorm, blizzard, hurricane, or tornado can really stir up the sense of adventure.
And, hey, I didn’t know you lived up here, too! Geez, Chris, you slept through that!? Maybe I need to get new storm windows… (ha)
Take care!