Tornado Alley-Oop
Near the close of business yesterday, my benevolent employer sent out a general-attention email.
The National Weather Service has issued a TORNADO WATCH for Oklahoma County…
My reaction? “Aww-right! First sign of spring! Bring it on, baby! Woo-HOO!!!”
If the stunned silence around me was any indication, I probably should have remembered that most of my coworkers live in Moore.
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Yeah, but that’s the truth. It does mean spring is here! Bring it!
The truth comes out… I always knew you were an insensitive yutz. It’s all a scam! Just kidding. Joe’s very protective in times of crisis - this coming from a sister who’s had many a mattress, pillow, blanket, etc., thrown over her in the bathtub whilst the men of the family stand directly in front of the window.
I would say that is a true statement when Dad is around with us. He brings out the courage in all of us men. On the other hand, that night when the tornadoes came within 2 miles of mom’s house, it was just me, mom, and the kids at mom’s house at the time. When it looked like it might hit, I threw them all in the tub, grabbed a mattress, and covered us all up. Then you, Brent, Nancy, and Robert arrived seconds later. We were able to squeeze you and Nancy into the tub with us, but Robert and Brent stayed out in the living room. Being the brave sole that I am, I stayed in the tub with you all.
Thank God for big tubs, 3 small kids, and one small mom. Hey, somebody had to take the brunt of the impact if the wall came crashing down, though my weight on top of you all was probably impact enough.
In all fairness, I yelled for Robert and Brent to at least get in the inner closet and cover up, but they have that Dad mentality that nothing will happen to them. On the other hand, my mentality is if something is going to happen, it will always happen to me.
The true sign of an Oklahoman male — when the tornado sires blow, he runs outside. Preferably with a video camera.
Yes, speaking of editing and spell check, I remember how those tornado “sires” used to test every Saturday. It’s amazing how King Gary England could get his royal servents to blow those trumpets so loudly.
Just playing on previous posts.
Aw, man…probably the thing that I miss the most about OK — the tornado watches/warnings.
It’s funny you say that David, and I don’t know if you just meant that in jest, but sometimes I truly do miss the excitement of tornado watches and warnings. Granted, I live in the DFW area now, and we get our share of them here, but still nothing compared to living in OKC. As a child, it was a different story. Joe can attest to this. When I was very young, and there was a warning for Oklahoma County (a very large county, mind you) I would be terrified. I would go as far as to make my dad promise that a tornado wouldn’t hit our house, which he did of course, and fortunately was always right. As I got a little bit older, it went beyond the “ask dad for assurance.” I would actually call the local television meteorologists, actually get through to them, and ask them the probabilities of tornadoes in our immediate area. I actually ended up having a good rapport with Ross Dixon.
Strange, I know. In my final stage of tornado curiousity, later in my teenage years, I would actually “storm chase” tornado warnings with my friend Dan.
So, yes, I do miss the excitement sometimes, though I guess the line of thinking is always as long as it doesn’t happen to me. I can tell you for sure that, like I mentioned in my previous post above, I was actually a terrified 36 year old man that night the storm was 2 miles away. More so for my family, but admitidly for myself too.
For you native Oklahoman’s, there is nothing like “wild and wooly weather.” Fred Norman: Eyewitness News. My hero!!