Writing that headline put me in mind of the Ray Scott classic, “Ain’t Always Thirsty” — the line, “Last night I passed out with my boots on” — but it wasn’t like that. I had my Skechers on my feet in case we got a tornado warning and had to make a mad dash (with three dogs) to shelter in the campground washhouse.
Everything pointed to that being a distinct probability. For the last several days, all forecasts called for a serious threat to Boone County, Arkansas — 8+ on a scale of 1 to 10 — and unlike the last two rounds of severe weather, this time we were smack-dab in the middle of the tornadic bullseye.
As I predicted the other day, our luck — dodging the worst of spring storms rolling through The Ozarks — was bound to run out. It began to look like this would be weather we’d actually have to deal with.
Deb and I never panic, but we do prepare. Before bedtime last night we reviewed our plan (we already had one of those), made sure that our phones were set to receive alerts (volume all the way up), started Ryan Hall Y’all‘s live stream on the bedroom TV and settled in to see what the overnight hours would bring.
From the time we retired until about 3am, nothing much happened here — strong storms popped 50 miles east of Harrison and in the state’s northwest corner, minus any concerning supercells. Then, southwest of us, atmospheric ingredients began to combine and we were placed under a tornado watch.
Warning after warning was issued, one eventually extending into the part of Boone County where we’re camped. The local cable TV provider and our phones blared their various alarms each time. Our cozy bus sounded like the set of a bad B-movie.
The time was 6am.
We were under our own tornado warning, with another issued for an area four miles west. A supercell with rotation was bearing down on Harrison from the south-southwest. Right behind that was an ominous storm producing golf-ball-size hail.
Knowing that a motorhome would be a lousy place to ride-out conditions like that, we had a decision to make.
We peered again at radar, paying particular attention to the tracks of the storms, which at that moment were about six miles away. It looked to us like the worst would pass just south of us. The cell to the west, we determined, wouldn’t pose a threat.
We decided to stay put.
That turned out to be an ok move. Radar tracked the threatening cells doing exactly what we suspected they would — we high-fived as they went around us, one east and the other west. All we got was a half-hearted rain shower and a puff of a breeze.
I took the dogs outside around 6:30am. Skies overhead were clear. Looking east I could see a large cloud bank, remnants of the storm that held tornadic rotation and large hail. (See the panoramic image I’ve included below.)
We’d dodged another bullet.
That said, I can’t (and I don’t) suggest you do what Deb and I did. We made a bet, pushing all of our chips — our lives and the lives of our dogs — to the center of the table. Had that warned storm dropped a tornado that hit or even passed close to us, we could’ve paid a very high price.
But was it a foolish choice? No.
We gathered information, calculated risks and made a rational, independent decision. It was, without exaggeration, an exercise of Liberty. Feel free to draw your own parallels.
Behind the supercell outbreak came a cold front bringing rain, wind and temps almost 20°F cooler than those at dawn. It had pushed past us by 10am. We’ll see an afternoon high today in the mid-60s.
The atmospheric cleanse also ushers in a ten-day stretch of calm, dry, warm weather. Perfect.
Take a look at this photo — take a good look.
After Trump’s arraignment yesterday, a reporter asked the current occupant of the Oval Office, “Is the indictment of your predecessor politically divisive?”
He didn’t answer. He didn’t say a word. He smiled a self-righteous smile, and then he laughed.
The press was escorted from the room.
What we see in this photo is unmitigated contempt for the People. The shit-eating grin is an expression of derision for Law and Liberty. It captures the unmaking of America.
We didn’t get a mug shot of Trump, but we have this smug shot of Doctor Dementia.
He hates us. Never forget that.
Take care of yourselves, Patriots. Stay calm. Stay sharp. Stay free.
#WiseUp #LibertyOrDeath #Ungovernable
#LetsGoBrandon #FJB