Weather watching in real time

Do you find yourself getting stressed out over certain weather predictions? I know I certainly do.

For days, meteorologists from the local television stations to the Weather Channel and CNN were warning that we, in Arkansas, were about to get deluged by rain and severe storms.

I tend to take real notice of these predictions, since the weather seems to be a bit extreme lately. We have all seen, thanks to the Weather Channel's Storm Stories and plain, old, regular news broadcasts, what Mother Nature can do to us when she really wants to raise a ruckus.

Needless to say, I was a little uneasy as the predicted cold front was about to meet our 80-degree atmosphere head-on. Sure enough, storms started forming, as predicted.

This situation has made me really grateful to today's computer technology. I cranked up the laptop set to my favorite weather site--Intellicast.com. I have used this site for quite some time, even though there are probably many others now that offer the same thing.

This one, however, was cutting-edge when I first got interested in such things. It remains my favorite. I have an Intellicast widget on my Google start page that allows me to see the weather at a glance in my area.

As the storm approached, I watched it bearing down. I have placed a marker where my house is located. Intellicast lets you zoom in close--close enough to identify roads and landmarks. I could actually watch the weather as it approached--not just the neighborhood, but my house.

This is a great tool. I was able to watch a break in the clouds that I could corroborate by having no rain outside. When the big orange blob came back, the rain wailed outside. This gives a better understanding when there are tornado warnings or severe thunderstorm warnings. It is an excellent visual that allows you to watch exactly what is happening in real time.

What a far cry from the days when no one ever really knew what was happening. We were at the mercy of Mother Nature. How many people have died in tornadoes that they didn't know were coming.

When people talk about how technology is ruling our lives, I just smile. I love this techno age. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Obsessed with weather

I'm obsessed with weather. I don't begin the day without at least one weather report, and sometimes several. If it is predicted to be an active weather day, I spend time watching the weather channel.

"You are the only people I know that watch the weather channel like it is a real show," said my daughter-in-law, about my son and me.

If there is any hint of rain, I use the remote, of which I'm always in control much to my husband's chagrin, to quickly reconnect with weather channel. I'm always searching for the weather on the 8's. My biggest pet peeve is turning to the weather channel during a commercial only to find a commercial there as well. I remember when the weather channel didn't have commercials. Those were good times.

Several times during the day I gaze at my computer to check out the local radar screen, promptly displayed on the top of my iGoogle start page. I use intellicast.com because:

- 1) It is the least intrusive to the workings of Sybil. I named my computer Sybil after the movie where Sally Field possessed multiple personalities. It seemed to fit.

- 2) Intellicast provides an instant look at current, local radar. Just one click provides a looped view, showing the path of a potential storm.

- 3) Intellicast shows various other maps, such as moisture, weather watches, storm tracking, global weather, and even the latest influenza report.

- I love Intellicast's pan and zoom feature. It lets you zero in on your own rooftop, so you can watch a storm relative to where you live.

- 4) With the kind of weather we have had of late, it is nice to know those bow echoes aren't aiming at us.

Thanks to the meteorologists on the weather channel, weather watching has become much more sophisticated. As a local reporter in Illinois I covered a story where members of the fire department took a weather spotters class. That means I got to take it too. It was fascinating and I highly recommend it.

I really love weather. Last year, we received 13 inches of rain. It was awesome. Because we live on a hill in the forest, the water just runs downhill toward a wet weather creek in the backyard. The sounds of the water rushing, the site of our yard transformed into a tropical rain forest, and the smell of the woods combine into a sensory delight. I love rainy days.

I think part of my interest in weather came from my grandfather. In fact, as I've gotten older, I think I've become him.

He lived in Michigan; we lived in Chicago. His visits were always a happy time, at least until 10 p.m. That was when he would put his finger to his lips and say, "Shhh, the news is on." He then devoted all his concentration to Fahey Flynn and P.J. Hoff, Chicago's local news and weather guys back in the 1950's. That was back when news and weather combined was only 15 minutes in duration. Sports scores were a mere mention back then.

When he and my grandmother moved away, I used to write him. His letters always began with a weather report. I noticed recently, that when talking to friends, I do it too.

That was so long ago. But as the times have changed, the tradition has not, at least in our household. I find myself shhh-ing just as Grandpa did whenever the news and weather is on. I always strain to hear the latest, amid all the noises that accompany a household with six cats, a dog, and a husband, telephones, and other distractions. The older I get, the more of a challenge it is to hear different noises at the same time. But then, I did live in too close proximity to airplanes and trains for an entire lifetime.

I wonder what Gramps would think of today's news and weather coverage around the clock and in so many varied ways. I bet he would be amazed. So the cycle continues.

Gramps died more than 25 years ago. I miss him. If he was here, he wouldn't have to shhhhh me.