Thursday, July 15, 2021

Throwback Thursday - Thunderstorms

 


Photo by Suman 🤍 from Pexels

I love thunderstorms, the dark skies, the flash of lighting, the rumble of thunder. Whenever there's a thunderstorm, I always think of Himself, Sr.

One sultry Summer day, I was next door playing with Himself and his siblings. I was around 8 years old. 

Himself Sr, was sitting outside smoking a cigarette. The sky turned dark and there was a rumble of thunder. Time to go in.

As I ran across the front yard to go home, Himself Sr. called me over to him. I have such happy memories of him. Sky blue eyes, red hair. Well, he had a fringe of red hair around his bald head. He had the map of Ireland (freckles) tattooed all over him, even on the bald spot on his head.

Standing in front of him, he taught me how to count the space between a flash of lightning and the grumble of thunder to see how far away the storm was. Flash! One thousand one, one thousand two, one thousand three. One thousand four. One thousand five.  Clap of thunder.  The storm is 5 miles away.  We counted down until the storm was 2 miles away and then he told me to go home.

The odd thing about this memory is I don't remember running across the lawn in a panic. I don't know why Himself Sr called me over to him. I don't remember the other kids with me circled around him. Himself doesn't have this memory. Just me. 

Maybe Himself Sr. was worried about me. Ma worked so I'd be home alone until she got home from work. Maybe he thought I'd panic while the storm crashed and boomed outside, and he gave me a way to keep calm. Whatever the reason, to this day more than half a century later, I still count the pause between a flash of lightning and a rumble of thunder, and I think of Himself Sr. 

28 comments:

  1. Nice story, I always count, too! Here it's just flood, floods, floods just now. Stay safe, Valerie

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    1. I saw that on the news, but the reporter just said West Germany and not where in West Germany? Was this your area? Is the Rhine at flood stage? You stay safe and dry, too.

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  2. I always count too! We also have a lightning 'alert' on our phones. The trouble is.....we HEAR the thunder BEFORE our phones alert us! LOL Not very helpful..... :-/

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  3. WOW, what a memory! Funny how our minds work sometimes. The pic is amazing!

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    1. Go to Pexels.com and type lightning in the search. There are some amazing shots

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  4. CJ; not only do I thoroughly enjoy this post but I enjoy storms too. I've often thought how awesome it would be, to be a "storm chaser" ....call me weird....many do;)

    we were taught the same "technique" count. Wonder how many meteorologists today know about this !!!

    happy weekend to you ! ☺☺♥♥

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    1. The old meteorologists probably do. The young ones probably rely on Doppler radar

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  5. Running For Cover - Better Than Digging With A Shovel - Enjoy The Next Front Moving Through

    Cheers

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  6. I remember running through a huge storm to get home with two little children under my poncho, and reassuring them that the thunder wasn’t to worry about. Then we smelled the ozone, and it turned our the lightening had hit the power pole behind our house. No need to count by thousands.

    best…mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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    1. The Young One and I had a close call like that when I had picked her up from college. We were just near the car when lightning struck very close and made us jump in the car!

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  7. Interesting you lived near Himself. Nice memory. Did you get any thunderstorms lately? Not us, they seem to miss us.

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    1. We’ve gotten some pretty good ones all week

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  8. I looooove thunderstorms and lightning!
    We got the biggest show in Australia´s Outback on Hubby´s Birthday (here sadly no such luck).

    LOL - a tattoo on his head! Very cool!

    Yes, the counting! When disconnect TV and internet?

    Some memories are but yours, isn´t that also kinda wonderful (if odd).

    Very sweet, wise man... and post!

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    1. I'm afraid my phrase "map of Ireland tattooed" wasn't a good description. I meant Himself Sr. had freckles all over him even on his bald head.

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  9. wow, love your memory with your dad. My grandpa was so full of irish - His nickname was "Scotty" for some reason but I don't have a lot of memories of him - i was five when he died. But my other grandpa - i have good ones ..he was such a poet, artist, story teller... I still have some of his art, very little though. Sounds like your dad is still around. Fortunate u are.

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    1. Nope, my dad passed away in 2013 though he is always with me. Sometimes I can hear his voice. Both my parents, actually. Himself's father passed away at the age of 52 from cancer. Long before Himself and I became a couple

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    2. oh.....that's cool you can hear him - I seem to feel more than hear - that tickle on top of the head tells me that someone I know and love is still around. Mom left in 1985, and dad in 2001...

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  10. I loved thunder and lightning storms as a kid, and learned the same counting trick from someone (a brother perhaps). Now, with "modern technology", I was able to count, as well as see where the lightning struck in a recent storm. A few strikes were too close for comfort, but thankfully not in my yard. (I have the lightning tracker link on my blog.)

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    1. We just had a wicked storm come through a few hours ago. Lightning struck just above the roof. Knocked out the Internet. Took a bit to get things back up and running. Through the phone was able to connect to a troubleshooting bot to get the problem fixed.

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