I enjoyed lightning storms before I was a teenager with my neighbor who became a scientist,and storm chaser.

When I became interested in Scanner radios,and short wave radio,I worry about those antennas being struck by lightening. I even have two antennas on the back of my car for listening to a scanner,and short wave radio at the same time. I have a third antenna for AM,and FM music.

I know. It sounds strange. BF:hug::hug::hug:

Respect for the power of nature
 

Waves,

I am doing laundry and delaying packing.



He sounds like a fun guy.



==========


My parents and brother lived in an area that got hit hard by this one:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Bob
My brother had his own place but lost electricity after the storm for about two weeks. My mother was exasperated after a while when he was coming back and forth to use their hot shower.
My father spoke about going out in the eye, saying hello to his neighbor who had also come out, and then going back in.
(Remember that the eye is the calm part.)

======
Going out in the worst of the storm . . . ..that reminds me of one:

I evacuated inland because the house I lived in was within the evacuation zone by a block.
Apparently my roommates stayed behind for a hurricane party (lots of friends and booze). Later one roommate told me about the one crazy guy who tried to go out even though they tried to stop him. He may have gotten a few steps out into the yard.


BTW, afterwards the area was under a state of emergency.
Two guy friends of mine at the time were dealing with the courts.
One had restricted driving rights because of a DUI another one had to go to court for suspended license or something. The hurricane hit the same day as his court date to straighten out his license.
Until the court system got back up a few weeks later and caught up with its backlog, one was driving w/ a suspended license and the other (DUI guy) was driving with no restrictions.


This one is about smell and memory

http://health.howstuffworks.com/ment...ion/smell3.htm

http://www.slate.com/articles/life/f...ou_think_.html
I cannot find what I want -- an article about either teenage years or twenties and why we can remember them so clearly.


[QUOTE=waves;1077267]We had the same run-ins... or close.


Yeah. There were lots of storms that we prepared for that did not even come near.

Dad was always gone (with work) for our storms and Mom was on her own with us.
I do not think she was scared. I think she liked to be prepared.

Poor woman.

We had one hit at the end of the summer and the first day of school. For years, people were superstitious about something -- not sure what.

I use hopeful language when I talk about weather.
I do not want to send it away to someone else. I ask that it veer out to see where no one is around or at least not inconvenienced much.

I do not know if my perceptions have changed. I cannot remember sh.

Right. I understand that.


Hurricane Wilma: First floor apt. No shutters. Landlords stink. . . . . no inside rooms. Hallway would have been better than nothing but it was too small. The living room felt like the best place to sleep because the windows were a few feet away -- not like bed and windows in a tiny bedroom.
That storm was in the process of breaking up. Even though we were technically in the eye (the calm center) . . . .

That is the time I either made a call or got a call from my mom.
I am going to try again.

. . . . . Thinking too fast and too much to type:
The first half of the storm came by and we got the eye. But there was no second half of the storm.

What seemed like a relatively weak storm in some ways wreaked havoc because many had no power. I / We (Hubby was with me) was without electricity for 8 days. Work was back up before I was and what a hassle that was -- to get dressed with no laundry, no iron, . . . no way to prepare food,.. . .working out of a cooler, . . .
We were lucky that i lived near a CHinese restaurant that got up one day later because it had gas grills or something.
I took two huge containers of special friend rice to my friends' house to trade for ice. (They were on generator power.)

The secretary at my old pdoc's used to say something to me when I was leaving the office like, "Take care and have a quiet sumer." I would say, "You too."


It is strange but each storm has a personality --- even the ones that do not come.

And we remember who was with us when it hit, who we were dealing with later in the aftermath.

Hubby, who was very close to/in the the middle of the one of the huge-est (technical word)hurricanes, is unfazed by the storms.
I think he does not have a healthy respect.
But we did make alterations to the place we have now (roof, windows,. . .) so maybe he is merely practical in his attitude.

M

Oh, yeah. Steve. :hug::hug::hug:

I can see that. . . . especially if you had a scientific neighbor.

(I think I hate loud storms more now than I did when I was younger. I am more sensitive to sound.)

Yes. I understand about equipment concerns.
Right now you have what you need and the antennas are working for you.
I hope that that continues.

M

Thunderstorms are bigger ... and louder!!
 

I noted that last year, Mari, that there was a totally different quality to some thunderstorms. About this time of year on the best coast.

It was almost unnatural, just how big, how booming, how loud, shaking the house, feeling the vibrations in my very body of of the intense crack and rolling boom, like artillery or bombs.

It was one of the two most terrifying thunderstorms of my life.
I was all alone and seriously ill with cellulitis for that one. No one to call.
Scary as he**._

The other was decades ago in the Black Hills of North Dakota ... Camping no less! We prayed aloud and fervently through that one!
It was the sweetest most peaceful, calm, quiet morning/day following that, with lots of folks coming together to help, assist, share dry clothing, food, etc.
My friend and I drove to town to a fave thrift store to buy warm clothing, mittens, socks, boots, hats, etc for the little kids in camp.

A good storm can bring out such an instant authentic sense of community, naturally working together for the greater good.

Or in my case last year, the frightening realization of just how alone and vulnerable we can become.
I've lost my fearlessness, I'm sorry to say.
I am no longer the intrepid younger woman I was.

They tell me out here that the NW coast doesn't get thunderstorms. Odd.

I've noticed the BOOMING:eek:sound in the Spring thunderstorms in the last several years.

We had black clouds all over the place on Thursday afternoon. I experienced four thunderstorms.

I have antennas on top of the house,and the antennas,and radios are grounded with several deep ground rods. I have a couple of big copper wires coming into the radio room from the ground rods that have been driven into the ground.

I have one radio's outside antenna plugged into the scanner right now,but I'm going to unplug,and secure the antenna end into a glass mason jar that is filled with rubber,and has a ground wire right over the mason jar. Any lightning theoretically will follow the copper into the ground. I do this to often. To much information. Sorry BF:hug::hug::hug:

Hi,Theta,

Sometimes the thunderstorms change the air in a good way.
Black Hills?! That must be amazing!

We ARE alone. Sometimes I can trust Nature.
It does its thing and then goes on to its other thing.
Of course, it helps to be safe and secure when it is doing its most to get our attention.

M

Steve,

That makes perfect sense.
Can one ground a computer? I only have a surge protector.

When we first started using computers back in the early 90 s / old AOL days, people told me to get off until the storm passed.

Mari

Hey Mari My computer isn't grounded,but the electric system of the house is grounded. If there is a terrible thunderstorm,a surge protector,and unclipping the telephone wire from the wall behind the computer should be sufficient. My satellite TV receiver box is grounded,because the satellite Dish could be struck by lightening. So anything with a outside antenna needs to be grounded.

I'm not a electrician,or an expert by any means. These are some things that I have learned over the years.

The electric system of this house is basically protected by the ground rods that I have driven into the ground. If there isn't a ground rod protecting your electric system,I'd get it grounded. It takes a standard 8 foot ground rod to protect the electric system. Lightening wants to go into the ground,so the ground rod protecting the electric system is a good idea. A ground wire from the rod in the ground can be attached to a metal screw in the back of the computer cabinet case. It's not needed if the electric system in the house is already properly grounded,but you can.

The electric outlet in the houses standard plugs can be checked to see if they are grounded with a ten dollar electric outlet polarity socket checking device from Lowes. I believe that the electric power supply in the computer is grounded by the electric power outlet if it is grounded through the electric systems ground.

It's complicated because people will tell you different things. I've had one of my antennas struck by lightening,but the lightening didn't come down into the radio room,and the antenna was heavily grounded,and the lightening went right into the ground. It could have because you never ever know exactly what lightening will do.

What I get concerned about is the tall transmitter,and reciever antennas on top of this house could get struck by lightening,and the lightening can come down in the room where I have my radio transmitters,and receivers. One of those antennas are over 20 feet tall on top of about 20 feet of mast,attached to the chimney on a second floor,and there are wires called guide wires to keep the antenna in place during high winds.

I have two scanner antennas on top of the roof,and one is attached to the back of the house with about 30 feet of mast. I have two other dipole antennas that are horizontal.

I'm not an expert,or an electrician. I just know the basics. I hope that this helps. I hope that I didn't make it to complicated. If anyone out there is a electrician,please feel free to add anything that could be helpful. BF:hug::hug::hug:

Thanks Steve.

I mostly understand. I will get back
To you .


M

Mari I was "in the zone",and wrote out to much information. I wanted to be thorough,but it was to condensed.

I hope that you are having a positive experience outside of the comfort zone. I hope that you can get some rest while out of town. BF:hug::hug::hug: