#SOL20: Unfortunately/ Fortunately
Unfortunately:
It is past the middle of October. October weather is fickle. Sometimes the first snow has fallen before Halloween. More often than not, the first “measurable snowfall” occurs much later.
This warning yesterday was not unexpected. Last week the ten day forecast showed snow . . .
for Thursday . . .
NOT for Monday.
This tweet also showed up in my weather alerts but I dismissed it. Not my problem. Not my part of the state. (Little did I know that it would be a part of my “What on Earth Should I Write About” slice today.)
A snow squall. We had just discussed this in a Twitter group last week when there were snow squalls in Canada. Words, meanings, and application.
Snow squall in Iowa on October 19, 2020. Ironic?
Straight across Iowa. Straight across I-80. The line typically between ice and snow.
The same line that the derecho followed in August. Every other month weather occurrences. Two months and nine days apart. Freaky!
Fortunately:
North of me,
Knock on wood,
Not my part of the state.
An hour away.
Sigh of relief and thankfulness.
Weather changes . . . How do they impact adults? How do they impact students, families and communities? How do our reactions contribute to our own physical and mental security? How are we REALLY coping with all the stresses in our lives?
Thank you, Two Writing Teachers, for this weekly forum. Check out the writers and readers here.
#SOL20: A Single Hour
Let me be perfectly clear. I’m lucky I live in SE Iowa. Out of range.
Yes, it was black out. Yes, I watched as the wooden chair tipped over and was pushed across the deck. Then another chair twisted in the wind as it toppled over. The glass-topped patio table danced three feet across the deck. I watched the plants in pots in plant stands topple over. Living green leaves attached to skinny branches were driven into the ground like darts and soon dotted every square foot of the yard. Dead branches looked like Tinker toys as they fell from the trees.
Wind, yes.
Scary, yes.
Life-threatening, no.
Loss of electricity, no.
Damage to homes, no.
I’m lucky.
Our area was lucky.
Others not so much.
A derecho hit Iowa last week.
A tornado with category two hurricane force winds.
Little notice.
Folks now living in tents. No electricity. No food. No water. No showers. No internet. No phones. No air conditioning. No fans. No light. No electricity. No viable homes.
Day 6 . . . 90,000 without power.
60 minutes
Day 7 . . . 63,000 without power.
Day 8 . . . over 30,000 without power.
- Linemen working night and day.
- Debris that must be removed.
- Crews from as far as Canada are on the ground providing assistance.
And yet many are existing in tents. 20,000 fed, Covid-safely, yesterday.
3,600 seconds later . . .
Early estimate: 10,000,000 acres of crops look like this. Ten million acres.
2020 . . . the year that just keeps giving . . .
Thank you, Two Writing Teachers, for this weekly forum. Check out the writers and readers here.
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