Indiana update...take 2

[Gothgrrl]

So this one Saturday morning, the siren goes off at 8 a.m. I quickly get out of bed and yell to hubby that it's the tornado siren. I scrambled about, got my dog and ran to the basement. I had on just my sleep t-shirt and no bottom pants. Hubby was checking the Weather Channel. Then it stops. About 2 minutes later it goes off again. This time, I ran upstairs and grabbed some pants. Back to the basement. I was yelling at my husband to grab his dog and come down here. So there we were, and then hubby said it's just a warning for a big storm coming in. So we go outside and our neighboor was outside waxing his car. "Mornin'" We said good morning. I heard someone mowing their law. Everybody was going about their business. Then the rain came. I never heard thunder and saw lighting like that before.

My husband said that it wasn't too bad. He was talking about the thunder and lightning. He rather enjoyed it. I on the other hand said that if it goes off again, I think I'll have a heart attack. I then proceeded to have a very big panic attack. My hubby said that he felt bad for me, but he was very entertained with me running around like a chicken with its head cut off. He said it made him laugh. It's nice to know that my husband remains calm in pretty much any situations, while I fall apart.

So I came to the conclusion that the people here are very nice. Other than that, I really miss my life back in CA.

 

[iugurl]

There aren't tornadoes or severe lightning ever in California!? lol.I have lived in Indiana for 20 years. While I have been under Tornado Warnings A LOT, I have only seen 1 with my own eyes, and it was very small. At least with tornadoes you (most of the time) have a warning! Unlike earthquakes!

 

[JewelFreak]

No, there aren't tornados in Calif. In 9 yrs in San Francisco we had almost no lightning & thunderstorms. Gales out the wazoo but you don't get sound & light shows. So it's a new experience for Gothgrrl.

Thunder & lightning aren't going to hurt you, GG. Chances of being hit are, as you know, less than infinitessimal. I love those storms; it's neat to be cozy & dry inside while things boom. We have tornadoes here in the south too -- as you can't avoid hearing on the news presently. That prospect IS scary -- but again, your chances of one are very very small. You learn to live with that as you did earthquake threat in CA. Only, as iugurl says, you at least get a warning with a tornado. We've had warnings often but haven't taken cover ever, smart or not.

It's different from your old place. Calif. may always be where your heart is (mine's in New England) but take it as a chance to live in & explore a new culture. That's a gift. It takes time, but it will make you grow as a person.

If you're ever visited by troubles, believe me, you want mid-westerners around. They are solid as earth -- help even when it's not convenient. And as you've discovered, they're nice the rest of the time!

--- Laurie

 

[ksinger]

If Indiana is blowing their sirens for anything less than a massive circulation or a tornado on the ground, then your emergency guys should be shot without remorse.

Honestly, I feel your pain, although I am more calloused than you I suspect, having grown up in tornado alley. But Oklahoma has gotten wonky in the last decade about blowing the sirens. For instance, for a while in Oklahoma County, if there was a tornado ANYWHERE in the county, they would blow the sirens EVERYWHERE in the county. Sounds not too bad except when you realize that Oklahoma County covers over 700 square miles. Overkill much? Makes me furious that they cry wolf like that. They've gotten a bit better in the last couple of years, but May 3rd, 1999 really made people crazy here, and now they overdo stuff more often than not.

I can't speak for Indiana, but HERE, the last word on what is going on is NOT the Weather Channel, it's the local guys on the local stations, who are the top of the weather heap nationally, and have state-of-the-art equipment. I only panic when THEY say panic, and they are always more current than the NWS.

Take a deep breath - the others are right: your chances of being hit are very slim. Do a bit of research, talk to the locals, and learn to read the weather signs there. I know that's why I get so annoyed when they blow the sirens and yet MY read on the weather is that the danger is to the east or north. Long experience can let me look at the skies and know when a siren is just stupid for my area.

 

[Gothgrrl]

iugurl....California don't really get severe weather. It does rain and we do have thunder and lightning, but not like the mid west. I have lived there all my life and I can recall that it did snow in the 70's. But it was very little and looked more like small feathers. And I do remember a small tornado did touch down somewhere in the Bay Area. Now that was very scary. We get more earthquakes since they have many faults running through. I was there for the 1989 earthquake. That was kinda scary.

Jewelfreak...thank you for your calming words. Yes it is different and I do like the people here. I can't believe how friendly everybody is. Big change, coming from paranoid Californians. tee hee.

ksinger.....wow, I don't think I could ever live in that area. I would be living in the basement. We did get one of those weather channel radio things. It does make me feel a bit better. I set it up to just warn me for tornados. As I said before, hubby really likes it here. He wants to go and chase tornados. He watches all those storm chasers programs. I said your not going do that and if you do I'll kick your fanny! I don't know if he is fearless or just plain nuts.

 

[zipzapgirl]

I agree with Ksinger that the best source is always the local meterologist. I think those guys are just so much more involved than weather people even in other geographical areas. They all run live doplar all the time when there is bad weather.

It might sound like they are overreacting, but there was a tornado about 5 years ago that touched down on the bypass in a trailer park and killed about 5 people in Evansville, so I think that leads to people being more cautious for a time. Just remember that if you start to hear noises like a train is coming through or see swirly clouds in the sky, that's the time to take cover. Tornados develop up high and stay there most of the time, but it's when they drop that you have to worry. You'll start to get a feel for when those bad storms are coming - usually the sky turns dark grey or a very strange color yellow and the humidity is unbearable beforehand.

 

[iugurl]

No, there aren't tornadoes in Calif. In 9 yrs in San Francisco we had almost no lightning & thunderstorms. Gales out the wazoo but you don't get sound & light shows.

Wow. I had no idea. I knew that tornadoes were a lot less common over there, but had no idea regular lightening storms were very rare. Weird...

@gothgrrl, I think that over time, you (hopefully) will get used to thunderstorms. I actually like them. I like watching the lightening and listening to the thunder. I have been scared a few times, when it has been VERY, VERY severe and close to my location. When I was growing up lightning struck very, very near to our house. Our windows cracked on one side of the house. Our whole house shook. That was scary.

and @Ksinger, I think in my county they blow the sirens every time there is a "tornado warning." I guess I am not positive about this, but every single time I have seen a tornado warning flash across the tv or on the radio, sirens soon follow. I have never heard the sirens without a tornado warning in our county.

 

[Gothgrrl]

zipzapgirl,,yes it's much different here. We got one of the weather channel radios. Last night, the siren goes off. We turn on the news and it was a tornado watch for Gibson County. It had goen of 3 times. I still don't know why it doesn't just go off for tornados. I don't think my radio went off. I am slowly getting used to it and not really panicing.

iugirl...they blow the siren off every Friday around noon. That's just a test. But the other times it wen't off, I turned on the news and it's just a tornado watch. Most people in Indy tell me not to worry. They hardly get any. Well on one hand, that makes me feel better. But hearing those sirens do make my heart skip a beat.

Thanks to all who replied. It's nice to get advice. I know nothing about the living, weather, people here. But I'm here to stay....storms and all.