Oklahoma Spring Storms

oklahoma wall cloud

every spring, us Oklahomans have some crazy weather to deal with. spring thunderstorms can be beautiful, but here in the Heartland they often turn deadly. the warm air coming in from the gulf hits the cold air and makes the sky go crazy. it turns ominous shades of greens, blues, and grays and forms wall clouds that may or may not form a tornado. being outside at these times has the oddest feeling of electricity and calm all at the same time. if you are from here, you know what i mean. all over the television and radio there are warnings and doppler radar pictures for us to watch, but most Oklahomans go outside and watch the sky. sirens could be going off, hail coming down the size of golf balls and most of my neighborhood would be out on their porch looking out. not me. i have a healthy fear of the beast we call "tornado". i call it healthy, it's probably not. they scare me, make me shake in my boots. if the sky even gets that shade of cloudy absinthe, i find the nearest basement to camp out in with my favorite possessions. a close friend of mine was taken by a F-5 (the strongest on the fujita scale) tornado May 3,1999. i remember that night, not sure what was happening in and around my state's capital. i was working in the kitchen at a local restaurant, we were all standing out back listening to the radio and watching the sky. we heard that it hit the city of Moore, we were all wondering if we knew anyone in Moore. i didn't think i did, so i felt fine. the next day i found out i did indeed know someone in Moore, Oklahoma. there was optimism in the beginning, we just didn't know where he was, that area was a mess, how could he call to say he was okay...over 40 people died tragically that day including Rusty. i think about him all the time, especially every spring.

the sky outside my house