My love affair with doppler radar

Every morning when I wake up, I begin my morning ritual of hoping, wishing, praying that my dreams will come true. I tumble out of bed, creep over to the window, and peek outside. What is it I am looking for??? Clouds, precipitation, lightning, thunder, anything but sunshine, please- no sunshine!!

I love rainstorms. I love clouds. I love snow. Waking up to it is my own personal winter wonderland.

It all started as a child. My father began to peak my interest in weather before I reached double digits. I can remember being at home on the weekends with him, a storm would be brewing, and my father would gather my sisters and brother and me up. He may lead us to the front porch, in front of a window, maybe even to the backyard. And there we would wait.

Then it would begin. The downpour, the rolling thunder, the blazing lightning. I loved every minute of it. I have loved it ever since.

I am addicted to the weather channel. My friends and siblings grow very impatient with my need to see the radar. They don't care about the bright reds and purples and greens and yellows that color the screen. For me, it is heaven.

My mother surprised me the other day. Lately she has been using a noticeably advanced vocabulary. We tease her about it. Deep down I am proud of her and pleasantly surprised that she knows the meaning of the new words that she uses. It shocks me each time. We oftentimes meet up at restaurants near her apartment. They have to be close so that she can ride over on her scooter. Because of the rain we have had to cancel lunch and reschedule- this usually pisses her off. But what can I do? I don't want her soaked to the bone just for a rooty-tooty-fresh-and-fruity and forty-five minutes of the latest celebrity gossip! Anyway, there we were, at the nearest 24 hour diner, and those intermittent storms popped up. Then stopped. Then began again. My mother crouched down so as to see under the window shade. Out of nowhere she says, "I love cumulus clouds. They've been my favorite clouds since I was little." She went on to tell me about a science project that she did in elementary school. She got excited while telling me about the cotton balls she made to look like clouds. Who would have thought that one of the few things that my mother and I have in common is a love for the cumulus cloud?

I enjoy the little snippets of history my mother shares with me. They are few and far between. I want more of them and lately seem to be getting them. I'll never forget her cumulus cloud science project story.

So here I am waiting for the next round of severe thunderstorms. Records have been broken. Grass is growing. I love it.