A Dark and Stormy Night

I took my Mother to Storm Spotter Training last night. I know what you’re thinking. “Ah, that Les surely does lead the good life. Such excitement!” The fact of the matter is that I have been a storm geek for years.


Any time the sky darkens, the TV is immediately tuned to the Weather Channel or, if I know the storm is bad, the live weather feed from KWCH. I alternate from running outside to look at the clouds to watching Merril Teller (KWCH) give us the latest path of the storm. If the sirens go off, we add the local radio guys to the mix. After all, they have a much better idea than Merril what is happening in Salina.

Now some might think this is sensory overload, but for me, it is bliss. Yet there is one small bit to mar my weather-watching delight: I’m not actually out there storm spotting. Don’t get me wrong. I would not be one of those lower-functioning individuals who purposely drives into the heart of a storm just to see what it is like. There are appropriate locations from which to watch a storm (we learned about those last night), and that is where you would find me.

I also learned that I can be a weather spotter from my house, which much excited Red, as she doesn’t like to drive in bad weather. The National Weather Service likes for people who have registered with them to let them know what the conditions are like in their particular neck of the woods during times of severe weather.

Mom did well, except, at one point she leaned over and told me she was about to go to sleep. It was a bit stuffy in the 4-H Building and I had taken her out to dinner before the training, so you couldn’t really blame her for getting sleepy. She perked up once they opened some of the doors and let the brisk Kansas night air into the building.

All in all, it was an enjoyable evening. We got some valuable info and learned to tell the difference between a super cell, squall line, and other types of storms. We also got to hear both the National Weather Service guy and the deputy emergency management guy for Saline County talk about the weather work a group of K-Dub students are doing. That was bonus for this PR Director!