Fizzle, Melt, Chill

OK, here's what happened.

Paul's parents arrived on Friday night and stayed until Wednesday noon. I worked a little longer than usual that afternoon, while Paul stayed home with Ellie (who had a cold with fever). I got home and heated up some dinner while Paul gave Ellie her bath.

We'd just sat down to eat when we noticed that there was lightening to the north. Then the trees to the south went flat. Then the power went out. Then the storm struck. It was a quick Midwestern thunderstorm, didn't seem too unusual. We spent a little time in the basement with the hurricane lamp when the tornado sirens were going off, then opened all the windows as the rain passed and went to bed early.

On Thursday morning, as the outside temperature climbed higher than the inside temperature, I closed up the house and made plans. Both of Ellie's therapists cancelled her home visits, so we went to Walgreens (power!) the Post Office (power!) the gas station (power!) and the mall (power!). I was really glad to have air conditioned places to hang out, but I think it's pretty annoying when all the local homes are without electricity while the local businesses are lit up like football stadiums. Stadia?

Ellie fell asleep on the way home from the mall and took an uncomfortable nap in her bed. After that, no air conditioned businesses or cars were enough to make her happy. She was hot and she was pissed. This matched my mood nicely. My mom stayed home, glued to The Weather Channel all day, and called me regularly from Indiana with updates.

"Now they've called in the National Guard to help evacuate the elderly and people who can't get out on their own!"

I called Paul. I called him again. I left messages. He was very busy at work, where there was plenty of air conditioning. When he got home, he found two very hot and cranky women who were half-packed, sweaty, and ready to leave town.

So we took off for his family's annual reunion in rural Iowa a day early, and spent a cool, rainy night in a hotel in Kirksville, MO. With air conditioning.

Our electricity came back at some point over the weekend. Wahoo! And, somehow, the fish even survived. (Lizzi the pug came with us.) But, as usual, I was frustrated by having to throw away all the food in my frig and freezer, especially the huge box of boneless, skinless chicken breasts. The frig hasn't been this clean since, well, since last August's big 3 day power outage.

I used to love thunder storms as a kid. Now they make things really uncomfortable. Or deadly. And Parents magazine tells me that I should take my children inside as soon as I see the first silent bolts of lightening in the distance, not letting them go back out to splash in the puddles until well after the storm has ended. It's amazing I've lived this long.