Thursday, August 23, 2007

DAMN, THAT'S SOME CRAZY SHIT

The weather Gods must be pissed at Chicago because this afternoon's predicted thunderstorm turned angry, nasty and violent, (kinda like my cousin after a few too many stiff cocktails).

My desk at work faces two large plate glass windows so I had a ring-side seat to the storm. It started like most August Midwestern one's do...the temperature drops, the wind picks up and the dark clouds roll in. However, this one was unique in that the dark clouds weren't just dark, they were black as night and very low. The sky almost looked like an angry sea in that the clouds did not move in one direction, but rather seemed to churn together. That usually means one thing and one think only, tornado!

Thankfully I didn't see one but the rain was fierce and pelted the big glass windows with intimidating thuds. Then the power went out, then on, then off and then back on after five minutes. Huge pieces of debris from a nearby construction site wafted through the air and sirens blared in the distance.

A tornado warning (not a watch, a fucking warning) was issued for central and east Cook county thus the air traffic controllers at O'Hare and Midway airports had to abandon the control towers, (I would not want to be flying in or out of Chicago tonight).

When it was time for me to drive home the storm had died down and despite fallen trees and broken traffic signals, the commute home wasn't too bad. In fact, it was downright eerie at times with that empty streets and green sky casting an ominous haze over everything. Of course, right before I got home the storm picked up again, this time even more intense and the short sprint from my car to my front door was enough to get soaked to my bones.

Now I'm sitting in my place, nice and dry, sucking on a beer and enjoying the sound of the thunder crashing down all around me. The street outside my window has over a foot of standing water in it now, which kinda worries me but not as much as the enormous 85 year old oak and maple trees that are right outside my window. That would kinda suck if one of them got hit my lightening and crashed in to my place. Thankfully, I doubt that will happen.

I love summer thunderstorms! Bring it on bitches!

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Lucky you.....the one day I traveled outside of my downtown office to visit a client (in NW Indiana), was today. I got effed and it took me 2 hours to travel 26 miles! Oh well, most days, it is only a 10 minute commute...guess I have to pay the piper sometimes!


dollar

David said...

Love the sun here in LA, but I got to admit, I miss the weather back home -I've always loved thunderstorms. At my Mom's house in Hoffman Estates, she has no power tonight and does not expect it back on until tomorrow.

Chicago's Bi Guy said...

I know what you mean Justin on my way home from work yesterday I pulled up right outside of my dry cleaners and then the sky open up and started to come down in sheets. I decided to pick up my clothes another day. On my way home I was around two blocks away from my house as I turned down a one way street (which was only 5-7 min after the stormed started) there was already a down tree in the middle of the street with no way around. So now I'm going in reverse on a one way street with zero visibility. I decided to take the main street over one block and hope it was not blocked ,however when I turned down that street there was ANOTHER down tree luckly this one was only blocking half the street. When I finally turned down my block I guess I must have been a good guy lately because there was a parking spot right in front of my apartment (with no trees around me). I managed to run in without getting hardly any water on me.

Soul Seared Dreamer said...

Whoa, sounds amazing. We don't really get weather like that here.

MEETING NEIL IS EASY said...

This rain is about as exciting as a mosquito bite.

dan said...

man I hear ya about, bring 'em on! I feel the same here in okc, tornado alley, and I couldn't be more comfortable melancholy mood than when a good tornado watch or warning type weather is going on... my new kids at school from panama said they were going crazy last weekend when the sirens went off due to Erin, and I told them, huh? I slept right through it.... ahhh
later.