Weather Watching

Palomar · 2003-09-03 13:40:37

*Are there any other amateur meterologists and fans of weather watching here?

I've watched the weather since childhood, around the same time I took a serious fancy to astronomy. A few days ago a member of my Yahoo! Group recommended a book his cousin had in her library: "The Nature Companion: Weather Watching." I found a copy at Sam's Club. It is a HUGE book, nearly 500 (glossy) pages, 10 chapters, and weighing at least 5 pounds. It was published this year, so everything is current.

It is chock full of information, graphs, illustrations, photos (all in color). Not just the weather, but also how it impacts upon our ecosystem. I especially like the detailed information about clouds -- I'm an avid cloud watcher! Especially of huge, billowing thunderheads!

Weather on Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and other planets and moons in our Solar System is also discussed, with big beautiful photos of them all. Back on Earth, weather in regions of the world are also outlined (Shaun, the book says that a hefty percentage of all Queenslanders will have developed some sort of skin cancer in their lives...I can't find it again in the book just now, though, and came across it accidentally a few days ago, while browsing).

Each chapter is preceded by beautiful poems about the weather, or a fitting quote from an author. Here's one:

"I wield the flail of the lashing hail,

And whiten the green plains under,

And then again I dissolve it in rain,

And laugh as I pass in thunder."

--The Cloud, Percy Bysshe Shelley

And:

"...weather lovers are part scientist, part poet. They rejoice in the forms and colors that glorify the weather. They delight in extremes."

--Knowing the Weather, T. Morris Longstreth

As for my corner of the world: Clear, warm, sunny, low humidity today (30% or so), with a few high wispy clouds.

--Cindy

P.S.: The book is a steal for $13.84 at Sam's Club!

Byron · 2003-09-07 07:20:12

*Are there any other amateur meterologists and fans of weather watching here?

You can count me as one..lol. I actually pay hard, scarce cash to subscribe to Accuweather's Professional Service (mainly to read Wx 'guru' Joe Bastardi's daily meteological column. He is one dude who knows his weather.)

I've always been a weather fanatic, for as long as I can remember. Clouds, storms, rain, hail, *snow* (god, how I miss that wondrous stuff), hurricanes, cold waves....I love it all. Few things give me more joy than watching a fierce thunderstorm with its crackling lightning and house-shaking thunder...and my house has actually sustained some direct hits (!) And clouds...that's certainly one thing Florida excels at...big, billowing things sailing overhead during the endless summer, or the wispy cirrus clouds of winter, streaming in the midst of an otherwise clear blue sky at over 100 mph in the jet stream.

The seasons are another thing I'm highly attuned to...especially the constant shifting of the sun as it shifts from winter to summer and back to winter again. In an area that doesn't see much change in temperature from month to month, the angle of the sun is what I notice the most here in Florida - the sheer verticality of it during high summer (zero shadow at noon,) and the long, slanting shadows of deep winter...even at midday. It is truly amazing to me how much the sun's angle changes every six months.

Now that I'm thinking of it...it's hard to believe that the glorious season of winter is only *three* months away...when I'll be able to open the windows at last and let in the cool breezes... (not to mention a dramatic lowering of my power bills... :;): It can't come fast enough for me, though...)

B

Palomar · 2003-09-07 16:30:44

*Hey Byron!

Byron: "The seasons are another thing I'm highly attuned to...especially the constant shifting of the sun as it shifts from winter to summer and back to winter again."

*I knew a man in Iowa -- years ago -- who only "discovered" the sun sets towards the SW in the winter months and towards the NW in the summer when he was about 40 years old (then!). We were walking across campus one day, and he asked if I'd noticed that! I was like, HUH? Yeah, I'd noticed it since I was a kid (I used to gauge the sunsets' slow seasonal treks "up and down" the Western sky via a farmhouse in the distance). I tried to be polite and not offend this man. I wondered if he'd ever heard of the Earth tilting back and forth on its axis?!

Byron: "Few things give me more joy than watching a fierce thunderstorm with its crackling lightning and house-shaking thunder...and my house has actually sustained some direct hits (!) "

*Eeeee! I remember storms like that, up in the Midwest: The thunder's so intense it rattles windowpanes. Ha ha ha, I certainly remember ALL the times my family rushed to the basement during tornado watches and warnings. Usually we'd sleep down there on makeshift beds, and in the morning my father would absent-mindedly lock us into the basement, on his way to work: My sister is smaller than I am, and lucky Susan had to be pushed out of a basement window (fortunately my mother would take her purse - and key ring - with her to the basement on nights like those), unlock the front door, walk across the house and then let us out of the basement. I haven't thought about that in years, teehee.

I'll bet you've got at least a couple of hair-raising hurricane stories you could share. I'd like to read about them. If I recall correctly, Josh lives in hurricane country.

And believe it or not, I never witnessed a tornado myself (all those years of living in the Midwest!) until I moved to New Mexico -- about 5 years ago. Weird.

Byron: "I actually pay hard, scarce cash to subscribe to Accuweather's Professional Service (mainly to read Wx 'guru' Joe Bastardi's daily meteological column. He is one dude who knows his weather.)"

*I've never heard of him (what a name...).

I read in the book I purchased that rain-bearing clouds can be generated out of the smoke from forest fires. Wow, interesting. I'd seen lightning in volcanic clouds before (via documentaries, never personally!), but...well, how fascinating! Iceland has some pretty cool ash-and-lightning effects going on.

Do you have any hurricane stories, Byron?

--Cindy :laugh:

Byron · 2003-09-07 18:55:34

--- Do you have any hurricane stories, Byron?

Not yet...I've been here in FL for over a decade, and while I've sustained a direct hit from a tropical storm and several brushes by hurricanes 200+ miles away, there hasn't been a direct hit by a hurricane in the South Florida area since Andrew in '92 (just before I moved here from Orlando.) But this is the time of year that I keep a close watch on the weather sites...and there's a new hurricane way out in the Atlantic (Isabel) that Bastardi thinks has a good chance of making it all the way across to the U.S.,(as does the Hurricane Center) and it'll probably be the season's biggest storm, as it may experience some explosive deepening in about 4 days' time. Definately something to keep a very close eye on...

I have heard some harrowing tales of people who were in the path of Hurricane Andrew, however, like people having to huddle under mattresses as their houses blew apart around them. In one case, a guy attempted to keep the wind from blowing down the front door, but it eventually blew it open like an explosive device, with tornado-like winds howling through the entire house in seconds, tearing off the roof as if it was tissue paper. Such is the power and the fury of a 140-mph hurricane ???

Hurricanes are serious business around here, and when they do threaten this area, all the local TV stations go to 24-hour news, and governments have to evacuate the coastal areas, while people rush the home improvement stores to prepare for the possible impact. I live about five miles inland from the ocean, so I'm not in an evacuation zone, but I have a number of over-sized jungle trees in my backyard, which would surely come down in a 100-mph+ storm, so if we do get nailed by a direct hit, I'd better get my chainsaw ready...lol. As for the house itself, all I can say is, State Farm had better be ready to pay out big...lol...as I've been paying some big, fat premiums to them lately :angry:

If and when a biggie does hit around here, I fully expect Uncle Sam to be forking out some serious cash for the rebuilding as well, because if we can spend a half trillion for Iraq, we can surely help our own in times of need.

If Isabel does make it all the way across (in about 8 days' time,) you can bet that I'll have my video camera ready to catch the action...at least until I'm forced to retreat into the old sauna (!) in the garage that I'll be using as a safe room..lol.. :laugh:

In spite of the tremendous damage these storms are capable of inflicting, I still can't help but to be completely awed and amazed by these incredible cyclones...as there's really nothing else out there on this planet Earth that can come even close.

B

P.S. While I've yet to see a hurricane...I've seen things like eight inches of rain in like 3 hours...boy, you should see what that's like...

Byron · 2003-09-07 19:37:46

Your line about the rain from smoke clouds reminds me of a harrowing journey I made in early July of 1998 to the northern part of Florida (from the south) during the time of a major outbreak of wildfires...

While the news had been making a huge deal of the ongoing fires in northern Florida, I really never paid much attention to it (had a lot going on in my life at the time, etc...) But my friend and I decided to run up to see his mother for the 4th of July on the spur of the moment. However - that was when the brush fires were getting really bad, which actually forced them to close I-95 for the entire nothern half of the state, as well as canceling the Daytona Nascar races (which really is a HUGE deal for that area.) But in spite of all that, we were like...it's just a brush fire...how bad can it be?

We got in the car and drove north towards Orlando, with temperatures climbing towards 100 degrees. As we approached Orlando from the south, we could see a strange, gray haze on the distant horizon, which of course grew more and more ominous the further north we drove. We stopped for gas once we got to Orlando...and I was shocked to see a copy of the Orlando daily newspaper with the words (in huge "doomsday" typeface) that read: PRAY FOR RAIN. That was when I realized how bad the heat and drought had been for that area in the previous weeks (while So Fla had been doing just fine, if not a tad on the toasty side.)

But we decided to press on, after all, neither of us had ever seen a big fire before...and I was filled with a morbid curiousity to actually see what was happening in the fire zone, and I really never felt like we were doing a foolish thing, as if the road was open for passage, I figured it would be totally 100% safe, or they would simply turn everyone back. Yeah, right. It turned out the two-lane road that we were on was the last remaining open highway in that part of the state, and they needed to keep it open for evacuation purposes. Too bad we didn't know that at the time...

We left Orlando, essentially leaving civilization behind as we headed into the forest...and the once-distant smoke clouds drew closer and closer, eventually filling the entire sky from one horizon to the other. Still, I kept driving, with a fire truck in back and a news crew in front, the smoke and the strange orange light underneath directly in the path of where we were headed.

Then excitement quickly turned to raw fear as we drove right into the thick of it - nasty, acrid smoke filtering inside the car as we drove past charred remains of what *used* to be forest. The scariest part of the journey came a few moments later, when we actually drove through the path of the fire...with actual flames on both sides of the road licking the tires of my car! Damn, I was scared out of my mind. You couldn't see more than a few feet, and while everyone kept moving, I was so afraid of getting stuck and not being able to breathe amid all the smoke (the smoke from fire is really what kills most people in these kinds of situations.)

Then the smoke cleared somewhat as we passed by one firebreak after another (part of the heroic efforts of firefighters from 47 states), and as we rolled towards the sanctuary of Palatka, FL (which was untouched by the fires,) there was an endless line of cars on a normally sparsely-travelled highway...1000's of evacuees from the fire zone fleeing to safety.

Of course, my friend's mom (and my parents as well) freaked out that we actually came on through instead of turning back like we should have. But we were both like, "we didn't think it would be that bad." We really didn't. It's never "that bad" until you experience it in person, and that's exactly what the survivors of Andrew will tell you time and time again.

But this story has a good ending, at least, as within hours of us surviving the Great Fire of '98, a huge cloudburst came through and unloaded much-needed rain across the entire area, which allowed the firefighters to stop the fire cold...otherwise, it would have marched all the way to the coastal cities and caused an unimaginable amount of damage. But when it comes to fires, let's just say that I now have a *huge* amount of respect for them. This is one stunt I do not care to try again in the future...

B

Palomar · 2003-09-07 20:33:44

then excitement quickly turned to raw fear as we drove right into the thick of it - nasty, acrid smoke filtering inside the car as we drove past charred remains of what *used* to be forest. The scariest part of the journey came a few moments later, when we actually drove through the path of the fire...with actual flames on both sides of the road licking the tires of my car! Damn, I was scared out of my mind. You couldn't see more than a few feet, and while everyone kept moving, I was so afraid of getting stuck and not being able to breathe amid all the smoke (the smoke from fire is really what kills most people in these kinds of situations.)...But when it comes to fires, let's just say that I now have a *huge* amount of respect for them. This is one stunt I do not care to try again in the future...
B

*Byron!! Criminy! My god, you guys were LUCKY to get through that as you did.

Wow, I was visualizing all that as best I could. I think I can somewhat imagine your fear. You know, if you guys -had- gotten stuck, dying of smoke inhalation would have been the merciful way to go.

I remember those fires, on the news. I thought it was strange -- a state like Florida, surrounded by water on 3 sides and usually superhumid, being "dry" and sustaining forest fires because of it.

Well, of course I'm glad you're okay!

BTW, did your friend's mother and/or your parents threaten to thrash your guys' butts? 30-something status notwithstanding?!

--Cindy

Shaun Barrett · 2003-09-08 02:00:51

Another interesting thread, Cindy.
At least it helps to keep us all amused while we wait for more data from Mars probes! :laugh:

Cindy, the guy who didn't know Earth's axis is tilted was probably a nice enough person but people like that just make me cringe and think unkind thoughts. I want to grab their lapels and shake them and shout at them to wake up and get their heads out of the sand!! :angry:
It's people like him who, through their total lack of appreciation for the glorious planet they live on and its place in the solar system, act as a brake on space exploration. They have no idea what's 200 kms above their heads, dismiss it as irrelevant, regard space as a waste of money, and think of space advocates as starry-eyed cranks! Their political representatives in turn, many of whom are probably just as ignorant as those they represent, continually oppose space initiatives in congress or parliament or wherever.
I'm sorry but as I get older I find I have less and less patience with people who make no attempt to keep up with even the most basic of scientific advances! It's not really them I dislike so much as the very real regressive effect they have on mankind's future as a space-faring species. Space and its associated technologies and resources are extremely important to our future prosperity and our development, both economic and social. Kids fight over who does what in the sand-pit until they mature and realise how trivial the sand-pit actually is in the great scheme of things. Earth is our sand-pit and the man from Iowa is one of the many children in it. We fight over a corner of the sand-pit because we don't see the bigger picture and this ignorance is a childhood disease too many of us carry over into adulthood.
I don't have time for it; humanity may not have time for it either. You have to grasp opportunities with both hands and right now in human history is one of those opportunities. We could step up to a new level of exploration, expansion and prosperity for all, but so many ignorant Luddites have the vote and wind up dragging us down!
Phew!! I must have got out of bed on the wrong side today! Or do you understand my frustration and feel it too?

Actually, Cindy, I didn't set out to vent my spleen in a tirade against Luddites at all. ["Really?!", says Cindy in abject amazement. "You could have fooled me!" ]
No, I just wanted to respond to your comment about skin cancers among Queenslanders (and Australians in general). What you read is true. Australia is the skin cancer capital of the world because it consists of a largely northern European population living too close to the equator for their pale skin.
I've had numerous solar keratoses burned off with either cryo- or laser and I've had 4 suspicious skin lesions excised - two of which were harmless, the other two being basal cell carcinomas (BCCs). [As I'm sure you know, BCCs are malignant but very low-grade malignancies which almost never metastasize unless you leave them untreated for years.]
I'm not especially unusual in this regard, either. I have plenty of company; including my own general practitioner himself!
But it's the squamous cell carcinomas you have to watch for, together with the grandaddy of 'em all, the malignant melanoma! Another doctor we knew when we lived in Victoria (a southern state of Australia) found a dark mole on his leg and had it investigated. It turned out to be a malignant melanoma and he died less than six months later. Those melanomas are particularly aggressive cancers and Aussies are advised to have skin inspections every year.

And Byron, you are one crazy son-of-a- ... gun!
Didn't anyone ever tell you not to play with fire?!

Byron · 2003-09-08 06:31:39

Cindy, the guy who didn't know Earth's axis is tilted was probably a nice enough person but people like that just make me cringe and think unkind thoughts. I want to grab their lapels and shake them and shout at them to wake up and get their heads out of the sand!!
It's people like him who, through their total lack of appreciation for the glorious planet they live on and its place in the solar system, act as a brake on space exploration. They have no idea what's 200 kms above their heads, dismiss it as irrelevant, regard space as a waste of money, and think of space advocates as starry-eyed cranks! Their political representatives in turn, many of whom are probably just as ignorant as those they represent, continually oppose space initiatives in congress or parliament or wherever.

Yes, I was appalled to read about that too...to think that a 40-year old person could be so ignorant about something as basic as the seasons.... ???

But here in the States...that sort of thing is distressingly common. Like my friend who is a successful architect was asking me about why people don't live on Mars....as if he honestly didn't know what an incredible achievement it would be just to get someone there and back, not to mention people actually living there. So many people in the U.S. "just don't get it." They really don't. They're so busy wrapped up in their own little world that they don't even take the time to read the newspaper anymore, let alone take a moment or two to figure out some of the basics of the universe around them.

I think a lot of it has to do with our parents...because I was extremely lucky to have a dad who sparked my interest in things like science, weather and astronomy...he would actually go out with the Astroscan and look at the stars and planets with me when I was a kid, and he was the one that constantly pointed out the amazing sweep of the sun as it traversed through the seasons, not to mention standing on the back porch with me during those rock-'n-roll summer thunderstorms. Furthermore, I had the good fortune of being able to spend summers at my grandparents' farm, where I got to experience the wonder of nature firsthand...to me, life just wouldn't be the same if it wasn't for those wonderful memories of my childhood.

To me, this is a constant lament of the modern American era...we, as a people, have forgotten what it's like to experience the awe and wonder of the world around us...and it's just not learning about space and the weather and all of that...it's about the little things too...like the things that make us human. Like the popular contemporary trend of mothers hiring nannies from 3rd world nations to raise their kids so they can spend 24/7 at the office...as if working and making money is the end-all, be-all of their existence. No wonder why there's so much unhappiness around here these days...

I'm *seriously* beginning to think that a major economic depression a la the Great Depression of the 1930's is exactly what this nation needs at this time...so we can get back to being *human* again...and perhaps people would take a moment to actually look up at the nighttime sky and experience the emotions of wonder and awe. Parents need to be able to come home from work at 5pm (like my dad, my mom came home at 3pm, when I got out from school,) and actually take a few minutes each day to teach their kids about the world around them. That sort of thing just doesn't happen anymore.

Sometimes to get where you want to go, you have to step back a bit, and sadly, I honestly think that's exactly what this country needs right now... ???

Shaun, it sounds like you're playing roulette with your skin...lol...as if I should talk...lol. Seriously, though, that sounds pretty scary, expecially since I'm only 26 degrees off the Equator myself...and I have no health insurance. If I start getting those nasties on my skin, I'd be up sh*t creek without a paddle. Be very thankful that you guys have universal health coverage down there (like the rest of the "sensible" world.) I just have to sit back and hope to God that nothing seriously happens to me health-wise...at least until we have our Democratic revolution and we get some damn health coverage for those of us who need it and can't afford it. Please let me know when the Australian government starts allowing Americans to immigrate there...seriously, I'd move there in a heartbeat, if only I could...

B

Palomar · 2003-09-08 10:23:43

Shaun: "Cindy, the guy who didn't know Earth's axis is tilted was probably a nice enough person but people like that just make me cringe and think unkind thoughts. I want to grab their lapels and shake them and shout at them to wake up and get their heads out of the sand!!
It's people like him who, through their total lack of appreciation for the glorious planet they live on and its place in the solar system, act as a brake on space exploration. They have no idea what's 200 kms above their heads, dismiss it as irrelevant, regard space as a waste of money, and think of space advocates as starry-eyed cranks! ... Phew!! I must have got out of bed on the wrong side today! Or do you understand my frustration and feel it too?"

*My dad frequently said: "Most people only care about what they can put in their mouths and their wallets today."

Shaun: "Actually, Cindy, I didn't set out to vent my spleen in a tirade against Luddites at all. ["Really?!", says Cindy in abject amazement. "You could have fooled me!" ]"

*Oh, I completely understand where you're coming from. At least you still feel a justifiable level of outrage regarding the overwhelming apathy of our species "in general"; that's a good sign, on your end of things.

Shaun: "No, I just wanted to respond to your comment about skin cancers among Queenslanders (and Australians in general). What you read is true. Australia is the skin cancer capital of the world because it consists of a largely northern European population living too close to the equator for their pale skin.
I've had numerous solar keratoses burned off with either cryo- or laser and I've had 4 suspicious skin lesions excised - two of which were harmless, the other two being basal cell carcinomas (BCCs). [As I'm sure you know, BCCs are malignant but very low-grade malignancies which almost never metastasize unless you leave them untreated for years.]
I'm not especially unusual in this regard, either. I have plenty of company; including my own general practitioner himself!
But it's the squamous cell carcinomas you have to watch for, together with the grandaddy of 'em all, the malignant melanoma! Another doctor we knew when we lived in Victoria (a southern state of Australia) found a dark mole on his leg and had it investigated. It turned out to be a malignant melanoma and he died less than six months later. Those melanomas are particularly aggressive cancers and Aussies are advised to have skin inspections every year."

*Yipes. Yeah, the skin type and geographical location (I transcribe plenty of dermatology reports). Is this *regardless of* wearing protective clothing (long-sleeve shirts, hats, etc.) and sunscreen protection?

Byron: "I think a lot of it has to do with our parents...because I was extremely lucky to have a dad who sparked my interest in things like science, weather and astronomy...he would actually go out with the Astroscan and look at the stars and planets with me when I was a kid, and he was the one that constantly pointed out the amazing sweep of the sun as it traversed through the seasons, not to mention standing on the back porch with me during those rock-'n-roll summer thunderstorms. Furthermore, I had the good fortune of being able to spend summers at my grandparents' farm, where I got to experience the wonder of nature firsthand...to me, life just wouldn't be the same if it wasn't for those wonderful memories of my childhood."

*Wow, that's great. My father was, early in life, curious and interested in things around him -- he had the potential certainly, but didn't develop it much. When my mother became a fundamentalist Christian in the early 1970s, he shut his mind off in favor of her and opted to live in this very narrow, constrictive religious cocoon. I can't understanding turning one's mind off. Watching that happen as a kid is, I'm sure, what spurred me on to constantly and actively exercising my intellectual life.

Byron, if only more kids had a parent like your dad, and how wonderful for your memories of your grandparents. A lot of people look down their noses at farm life and etc.; I've never lived on a farm or even spent a summer on one, but I saw enough farm people to know they are generally wonderful salt-of-the-earth people, happy and well-balanced, with a good sense of life and outlook on it. At least back in my childhood and teen years, they seemed this way to me.

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-09-09 13:34:58

*I read in the _Weather Watching_ book that (this will be of no surprise to Americans, I'm sure) central Oklahoma (hey -- I just now heard some thunder; must be a late-afternoon storm developing) has the "dubious distinction" of experiencing more tornadoes per acre than any other location on Earth.

I recall Laura Ingalls Wilder (of the "Little House" series of books fame) discussing the terrible summer of approximately 1885, while she was dating her future husband, when South Dakota experienced a horrific rash of them. Two young men from the town had been out riding their donkeys; they tried to outrun a tornado that had formed suddenly and was bearing down on them. One of them survived: The winds stripped him naked and when the tornado dissolved he was set gently onto the ground, I believe feet first! His poor brother was not so fortunate: He, too, had been stripped bare by the winds and had been slammed to the ground; every bone in his body was broken. The donkeys suffered a similar fate. How weird, the way tornadoes "do."

Shaun, the book says tornadoes "regularly" occur in Australia. Of course, I know you have a low population as compared to the land mass. But that surprised me.

In the Midwest, tornadoes and thunderstorms generally travel from the southwest to the northeast.

You know, I like watching tornado chasers on TV channels like "Discover." It gets irritating, though, when someone is jumping up and down in front of the camera, pointing and screaming about the tornado over there. Well, DUH.

--Cindy :laugh:

::EDIT:: I just now remembered that, for quite a few years, I would dream of tornadoes when a change was about to take place in my life: It was like a herald of sorts. Never scary or frightening dreams, though; just that I'd see the tornado coming or it was (benignly) trying to find me. That all ended about 4 years ago. I always wondered if I could control such a dream to the point of getting into the tornado itself -- "Project Dorothy," ha ha. I was curious what the dream would become -then-! It never happened, though.

Has anyone else here had weather-related dreams which presaged life-changing events? I'd like to read about them.

Byron · 2003-09-09 14:58:42

Has anyone else here had weather-related dreams which presaged life-changing events? I'd like to read about them.

I don't know about the life-changing part, but I've had some pretty hair-raising tornado dreams when I was younger. One dream I remember in particular (because it was just so real): I dreamt that I was working as a counselor at a summer camp for kids (Although I went to them as a kid, I never worked at one), and there was this nasty storm coming. As I was outside looking at the storm, I saw a ragged funnel drop down and begin advancing towards the camp. It was big, it was ugly, and it was moving in for the kill. With time rapidly running out, I rounded up some of the kids and herded them inside one of the cabins (which was so stupid of me, as those things are so thin and flimsy.)

And then I remember looking outside as the tornado closed in, and the trees (the camp was in a really wooded area) were bending sideways as the wind surpassed 100 mph. With nothing else to do, we laid flat on the floor in the middle of the cabin where the bathrooms were, and as the tornado hit, the cabin just blew apart all around me as I held on to a doorway by the tips of my fingers as the wind attempted to snatch my body into the swirling void.

And then I woke up, heart pounding.

I've always wondered if that meant I "died" in my dream. But the thing that was so incredible about that dream was the superior quality of the fx effects...the swirling funnel as it moved closer, the deafening roar, the trees being flattened by the wind, the disentigrating cabin, the whole works.

I've had other weather-related dreams as well...like heat waves in winter, or cold so severe that the windows turned white with a thick layer of frost, as well as being at the beach and watching a series of super-high waves rolling in, water rushing over the dunes, forcing me and others to flee to high ground.

I also used to have a lot of dreams about buildings - like going up to the top of them in elevators that go way too fast for comfort. (In one of them, some guy told me we were going 55 mph - straight up. As if there would be something like that in real life...)

The scary thing is, the most common of these dreams took place in the World Trade Center towers, going up and down in crazy-fast elevators... Needless to say, I don't dream about the WTC anymore

On a more positive note, I've dreamt about buildings of the future...whimsical-looking things with lots of space, color and light with open terraces and the like. Maybe someday, when I'm old, I'll be able to see some of these architectural wonders I dreamed 50 years previously...

As to why I have these weird dreams...I haven't a clue. I just know that I have far fewer of them than I used to.

Question: Do most of you dream in full TechniColor? I've have people tell me they only dream in black-and-white, which sounds kinda weird to me...

B

clark · 2003-09-09 15:00:12

Tell me about your mother.

Palomar · 2003-09-09 15:18:31

I don't know about the life-changing part, but I've had some pretty hair-raising tornado dreams when I was younger. One dream I remember in particular (because it was just so real): I dreamt that I was working as a counselor at a summer camp for kids (Although I went to them as a kid, I never worked at one), and there was this nasty storm coming. As I was outside looking at the storm, I saw a ragged funnel drop down and begin advancing towards the camp. It was big, it was ugly, and it was moving in for the kill. With time rapidly running out, I rounded up some of the kids and herded them inside one of the cabins (which was so stupid of me, as those things are so thin and flimsy.)
And then I remember looking outside as the tornado closed in, and the trees (the camp was in a really wooded area) were bending sideways as the wind surpassed 100 mph. With nothing else to do, we laid flat on the floor in the middle of the cabin where the bathrooms were, and as the tornado hit, the cabin just blew apart all around me as I held on to a doorway by the tips of my fingers as the wind attempted to snatch my body into the swirling void.
And then I woke up, heart pounding.
Question: Do most of you dream in full TechniColor? I've have people tell me they only dream in black-and-white, which sounds kinda weird to me...
B

*Wow, Byron; I'm about to call it a day. It's a miracle you didn't have a heart attack during that dream.

I don't recall anything ever so graphic in mine.

I dream in full Technicolor: Always. I also occasionally have the senses of smell and taste in my dreams (which is supposedly VERY rare for people to have).

That little bit of thunder I mentioned earlier has now developed into booms, rain, and a nasty crackling of lightning just 5 minutes ago.

Byron, more on your dream later. Wow. So intense. It'd be interesting to try and read some Jung into it.

Did you maybe have a "near-miss" with a tornado as a child/toddler and you don't remember it?

--Cindy

::EDIT:: I am able to, 9 times out of 10, stop a scary event in a dream before it gets too bad; I can either wake myself up or make the dream change. But this is recent; when I was a kid, I had to go through the nightmare regardless.

I'm glad you're back with us, Byron; you're one cool guy.

Byron · 2003-09-09 15:52:35

I am able to, 9 times out of 10, stop a scary event in a dream before it gets too bad; I can either wake myself up or make the dream change. But this is recent; when I was a kid, I had to go through the nightmare regardless.

I would say that's true of me as well...when I was a kid, I went all the way through to the end, but now, I can usually stop/change it. I've even woken up in the middle of a bad dream, thought about what needed to be changed, and promptly went back to sleep and the same dream as before, fixing what I thought about when I was awake (!)

Also, what's the deal with differing rates of "dream time" and "real time?" It's been my experience that dream time runs far faster than real time, and I've heard it in others as well. I've even had nights when I was waking up like every 15 minutes, but I would have vivid dreams in between. What seemed like an hour or more in the dream only turned out to be 15 minutes off the clock. I've always found this to be pretty weird...

B

Byron · 2003-09-09 15:54:21

I'm glad you're back with us, Byron; you're one cool guy.

---smiles--- Thank you, Cindy

I think you're pretty cool too :;):

B

Shaun Barrett · 2003-09-10 06:50:31

Wow, that's quite an exchange you had going there! At my rate of typing, that's about two weeks worth!

For what it's worth, I don't seem to remember dreaming much at all in recent years - busted brain cells, I guess!

I'm sure tornadoes occur regularly here in Australia but neither my wife nor I have ever seen one and we don't know anyone who has. We remember a T.V. report about a tornado somewhere in Queensland earlier this year but they certainly don't seem to feature in Australian life the way they do in American life, thank God!
As you hinted, Cindy, most probably occur toward the middle of the country where there is only a very sparse population because of the extreme desert conditions.

Just touching on that skin cancer thing again, most of the damage is done in the first 10 or 12 years of life and sun exposure then pretty much determines your chances of skin cancer later. I spent a lot of time in the sun as a kid; many weekends at a surf beach at Ballina on Australia's east coast, swimming or leaping off huge sand dunes just for fun. In those days nobody worried much about sunscreen etc. and regarded a tan as healthy.
Since the age of ten, I lived in cloudy London for 16 years and I've spent almost all my time indoors since then but the damage was locked in all those years ago. There's nothing to be done now except watching, zapping and cutting!! :laugh:
Needless to say, I don't spend a lot of time in the sun these days if I can avoid it!

Byron, your father gave you a wonderful start in life. My Dad was good to me too and there should be more of it!

I'm sure your Dad meant well, Cindy, and he was probably just exhibiting loyalty to your mother with the religion thing. Anyhow, from what you've mentioned about him, I've formed the impression he was a nice guy.

sethmckiness · 2003-09-10 07:06:17

Well. It's looking like Super Typhoon Maemi is getting closer and closer to where I am at in Korea. Never bean through a Cyclone, but been through just about every other type of weather patern I can think of, from living in Iowa.. I'll keep everyone posted.

Byron · 2003-09-10 09:33:18

Yeah, Hurricane Isabel is still rumbling across the Atlantic...unfortunately not even Wx god Bastardi can say whether or not it'll make it all the way across to the U.S., but he has said that everyone from Florida to North Carolina needs to keep a close eye on it...

Guess I'd better make sure my home insurance papers are up-to-date...lol..

B

P.S. Shaun, that still sounds pretty scary about your skin, as I honestly don't know anyone around here locally that has to get "zapped" like you've mentioned. Southern Florida is equivilant to southern Queensland latitude-wise, I believe...so one would think there would be similar skin cancer rates. Hopefully I'm "safe," as I grew up in North Carolina (36 degrees latitude N,) and I didn't get burned too many times as a kid, although I did get some hellacious tans...lol ("You're as brown as a bunny," my grandmother used to say...lol.) I just hope the U.S. implements a European-style medical care system before I get too much older, perhaps then I wouldn't be so freaky about my health all the time...it really does suck being "exposed" like this....

B

Palomar · 2003-09-10 09:46:17

Byron: "I would say that's true of me as well...when I was a kid, I went all the way through to the end, but now, I can usually stop/change it. I've even woken up in the middle of a bad dream, thought about what needed to be changed, and promptly went back to sleep and the same dream as before, fixing what I thought about when I was awake (!)"

*Geez...I'm not to that point yet!

Byron: "Also, what's the deal with differing rates of "dream time" and "real time?" It's been my experience that dream time runs far faster than real time, and I've heard it in others as well. I've even had nights when I was waking up like every 15 minutes, but I would have vivid dreams in between. What seemed like an hour or more in the dream only turned out to be 15 minutes off the clock. I've always found this to be pretty weird..."

*I've experienced this too, especially early in the morning (when I don't want to get up); I can have a dream in 7 minutes. But doesn't it also seem that some dreams drag themselves out? Or (thankfully -rarely-) that the night is unusually long? My mother read or heard, years ago, that dreams generally play out very -slowly- in one's mind; it seems some do, but most of mine seem quicker, like yours.

Byron, I keep going back to the images in your dream of your herding some kids into a flimsy cabin to hide in, as the tornado approaches. Seems to me they indicate your being a protective, brotherly person to the kids in the dream. The cabin probably symbolizes your having felt very anxious or even vulnerable about something at that time in your life (its inability to adequately protect you).

Shaun: "For what it's worth, I don't seem to remember dreaming much at all in recent years - busted brain cells, I guess!"

*Teehee. Some folks just don't dream that much.

Shaun: "I'm sure tornadoes occur regularly here in Australia but neither my wife nor I have ever seen one and we don't know anyone who has. We remember a T.V. report about a tornado somewhere in Queensland earlier this year but they certainly don't seem to feature in Australian life the way they do in American life, thank God!
As you hinted, Cindy, most probably occur toward the middle of the country where there is only a very sparse population because of the extreme desert conditions."

*The _Weather Watching_ book lists Australia immediately after the U.S. as the nation which has the most tornadic activity; it says November through May is tornado season there (your spring and summer, of course). I was surprised Australia ranked behind the U.S., hmmmm. And Shaun, where is your sense of adventure? Might be a fun evening, you and your wife scrambling for shelter in the bathroom, hanging on like mad to the bath fixtures while howling winds start ripping away the roof...you know, it beats playing Monopoly!

Shaun: "Just touching on that skin cancer thing again, most of the damage is done in the first 10 or 12 years of life and sun exposure then pretty much determines your chances of skin cancer later. I spent a lot of time in the sun as a kid; many weekends at a surf beach at Ballina on Australia's east coast, swimming or leaping off huge sand dunes just for fun. In those days nobody worried much about sunscreen etc. and regarded a tan as healthy.
Since the age of ten, I lived in cloudy London for 16 years and I've spent almost all my time indoors since then but the damage was locked in all those years ago. There's nothing to be done now except watching, zapping and cutting!! :laugh:
Needless to say, I don't spend a lot of time in the sun these days if I can avoid it!"

*Wow. I had no idea that it was such a major issue for you Aussies. And thanks for the kind words about my father; yes, he was a very nice person, just a bit too giving to my mother, IMO.

How about RECURRENT dream themes? I've had a few in my life, this one (briefly) in the past 3 - 4 years: I'm walking through a large, old-fashioned home, 1920s or 1930s in style. I enter one particular room always from the west. This room is central in location to the remainder of the house. Inside the room are overstuffed chairs and sofas adorned with tassels. The colors are usually olives and tans. Draperies are similar. I like this room very much, then exit it directly opposite a doorway to the east. I look at the remainder of the house, then want to return to that one room. And I cannot find it. I've had this dream at least 4 times, and each time the house is slightly different, but entering and exiting this central room is the same (as are the furnishings) -- and I can't find it again.

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-09-10 09:53:20

Well. It's looking like Super Typhoon Maemi is getting closer and closer to where I am at in Korea. Never bean through a Cyclone, but been through just about every other type of weather patern I can think of, from living in Iowa.. I'll keep everyone posted.

*I checked your profile, and see you're in the military. Yeah, keep us updated. A super-typhoon, yikes. And you're from Iowa.

--Cindy

Palomar · 2003-09-10 11:46:58

Could this be represenative of your childhood? Or, if we want to add some other demonstrated personality behaviour to the mix, the room is indicivitive of your search for meaning in life via religion and philoshy. The changing house, with this one room always the same (and a feeling of contenment or pleasure) represents your changing views, but that need to find the contenment of an actual belief.
That will be a nickel.

*Perhaps; anything's possible. I've wondered if it relates to my missing two very significant persons from my growing-up years (an uncle and a grandmotherly neighbor, now deceased). Could also relate to some issues with my hometown...but won't get too personal here.

Is that a nickel ala Lucy's tin can ("The Doctor Is In/Out")? ::plunk::

Clouds Over Aurora

*This is a really cool photo. Since auroras relate to the weather, I thought I'd put it here. I don't recall ever seeing such a photo; all prior photos of auroras I've seen involved just those beautiful colors in an otherwise clear sky.

Would any of our more northerly neighbors care to discuss auroras you've seen? Around 1990, while living in northern Iowa, my sister and I saw a very faint patch of greenish aurora...it would shine weakly, then fade, and continued doing that, like a pulse. I think that's the only time I've actually seen aurora phenomenon.

--Cindy

Byron · 2003-09-10 12:25:56

Byron: "I would say that's true of me as well...when I was a kid, I went all the way through to the end, but now, I can usually stop/change it. I've even woken up in the middle of a bad dream, thought about what needed to be changed, and promptly went back to sleep and the same dream as before, fixing what I thought about when I was awake (!)"
*Geez...I'm not to that point yet!

Well, that's a pretty dramatic example that I've experienced just a handful of times. At one time, back when I was still a teenager or my early 20's, I had an interest in "dreamology," and I would read stuff about how you can "control" your dreams by keeping dream logs, making efforts to think about dreams upon awaking, etc....and by exercising this conscious "control," I believe I was able to actually get to the point of controlling my dreams from the "outside," so to speak.

But let me tell you this...(this is so weird, and it's a clear example of how amazing the mind can really be sometimes...) When I read your post about smell and taste in your dreams, and how rare that's supposed to be. I took a few minutes to try and remember whether I've experienced smell or taste in my dreams...and I couldn't recall any examples of experiencing those two senses in my dreams. But just last night, I was taking my pills as part of an asthma study I've just been enrolled in, and I noticed they had a bitter taste to them, as opposed to placebos which can sometimes have a sweet taste to them (as these are usually made of sugar.) Well, I had a dream early this morning in which I actually bit down on one of my "morning" pills (I take 4 per day, only the evening ones have the bitter taste,) and I *distinctly remember* it having a sweet taste, as I if was eating a peice of candy. Isn't that weird, or what?? So I know I can at least "taste" stuff in my dreams..LOL...so we'll see what we can do about smelling things in dreamland...

As for recurring dreams...I have a number of those, even now. One is driving up to the top of tall mountains (to where it's cold and snowy), another is New York, as if I'm looking for something there, like where I used to live or something. (I can't tell you how many times I've "visited" NYC in dreamland, although I've never lived there...as to why, I haven't a clue.) Yet another is about airplanes doing crazy stunts in the sky and crashing down to the ground, forcing me to either freeze with pure horror as the plane dives right towards me, or me attempting to run to safety as I watch the plane crashing down way too close for comfort. Other dreams I've had in the past have run just like a feature-length film, with characters and a plot and everything (those are cool, as they seem to last for hours, and gives me stuff to ponder the next day.) Also, in the past, I've noticed how easily I can run and jump over things without ever getting tired, as if I had an unlimited amount of physical stamina.

On rare occasions, I've had dreams of me traveling to the future, such as the whimsical-looking buildings I mentioned before. Probably the most poignant "future" dream I've had is when I went about 100 years ahead in the future, in the hometown where I grew up. There didn't seem to be too many people around, with none of the hustle and bustle that you typically see today, and harmony with nature seemed to be the order of the day. I remember going into a low-key store where they sold stuff, but the "merchandise" was behind glass enclosures, like you see at musuems. There was an attendent in this store, asking me if I needed assistance, but I kindly refused, as I "knew" I didn't belong there (and not wishing to embarrass myself due to my obvious ignorance), but for the life of me, I couldn't figure out how to "buy" something in this store (there being no visible interface or anything.) It wasn't until later that I found out that you were supposed to communicate with a computer by way of *thought* to find out about it, purchase it, or whatever, which made perfect sense in the end. As far as the past goes, I can only remember going back to about 1970 or so...and I've never dreamt of old houses and stuff like that.

I guess that's why I'm now an aspiring SF writer...after all, they talk about how Steven King writes his books from his dreams..lol. As for that "tornado hits cabin" dream...who knows...? I just remember the stupendous roar of the wind, the screaming kids, the air being sucked out of the cabin, the suction trying to yank me away as the cabin was blowing apart around me, ect. I honestly can't remember what was taking place in my life at the time.

Dreams, if you can remember them, are pretty weird animals, aren't they?

B

Byron · 2003-09-10 12:41:13

So, Byron, are you afraid of failing?
That will be a nickel.

Isn't everybody? Makes sense, anyhow..

O.K., Lucy, here's your nickel You might think about raising your rate *just a tad*...

B

Byron · 2003-09-10 15:05:47

And now back to our regular scheduled programming...

The 5:00 update on Isabel now shows that's a 140-mph hurricane. It is crawling to the west at about 20 degrees latitude. The 5-day forcast track now has it in the southern Bahamas. Next stop: Florida.

Bastardi is now saying the the models are now "implying" a hit on the southeastern United States..which means anywhere from South Florida to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. However, it is expected to weaken at least some before eventual landfall.

Is it too early for me to start biting my nails?

B

Byron · 2003-09-10 15:26:12

In case any of you would like to keep tabs on Isabel, here's an excellent site... 2003 Hurricane Site

It's a very clean, fast-loading site that has all the updated reports put out by the National Hurricane Center (NHC) <Tips hat in due respect>

The link marked "Discussion" is the best, as it has all the detailed explainations concerning current conditions and the various forecast models. (Warning: Jargon Alert, for non-weather people.)

B

P.S. I can't wait until the Hurricane Hunters start making their runs into Isabel (when it draws a bit closer). Those boys are going to be in for a bit of a ride! <gives salute to these brave souls>

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