Weather Tease

Here's the problem with my job. It's not really normal. We end up in some of places the average person would never expect, want, need or mean to go. Hurricanes, for instance. My dad was a reporter too, and some of my fondest memories were trips to the beach, but unlike everyone else, we would head to the beach when they would leave. When the meteorologist would say, "batten down the hatches," pop would say gather the kids up, it's time to head to the beach. (maybe I'm over exaggerating a little bit-- we stayed home for the really dangerous ones).

I remember one storm, the weather started out pleasant enough. We were shacked up in an average hotel, at an average beach in average America. I was young enough to enjoy the fact that a storm was coming and old enough recognize the fact it was a big a storm. It's true what they say, there really is a calm before the storm, and sometimes it can be absolutely beautiful. Blue skies opening up to a lightly radiating sunshine. The perfect weather for ice cream.

So the fam decided to walk down the boardwalk (which every beach seems to have), and get ice cream. Nothing better than boardwalk ice cream when you're 6.

When a hurricane is coming you can literally see it roll in. First the wind picks up from a blithe summer breeze to short indignant bursts. The peaceful, open skies are pushed out of the way by the ominous clouds. Then the rain starts. We got back to the hotel before the rain started, but it's incredibly hard to eat ice cream on a cone in gusts of wind that eventually could get up to 80 miles per hour (it was a weak storm) . We were inside the safety of our hotel long before they got that bad, but not before we were completely covered in ice cream. The rest of the storm was pretty uneventful. Dad worked, we watched on TV inside our room.

Since then I've covered several hurricanes, rode around brush fires on ATVs and helicopters, froze in snow storms, and spent all night running around tornado damage. All while my friends sit at home drink, and have hurricane parties. I'm working twelve hour shifts and they get sent home early.

I wouldn't give it up for the world though, who else can say they've been into the eye of a storm?

-- To all three people who might right this, you should check out my friend's blog http://specialagentm.com/ It's hilarious and I'm in it some times--