Concern over tornadoes is just a way of life in our area. I found this online article about a unprecedented upcoming Tornado chasing effort in Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Nebraska and the Texas panhandle. $10mil is the expected budget for such a huge endeavor.

The chase will run between May 10 and June 13th of this year….and we have a huge week long camping trip planned at Meade State Park right in the middle of it. The way my luck has been runnin’ maybe we ought to take out some extra insurance.

 BIGGEST TORNADO CHASING EFFORT EVER PLANNED

Though I was not directly affected by the Greensburg tornado, I realize that my family will never be the same since that weekend. I never returned to work (well except for one day) after that night. Our flooded basement was nothing in comparison with the devastation seen by those in Greensburg that night.  I remember sitting in front of the television and the internet while listening to the radio…worried about my daughter who traveled on her way to a State Forensics Meet, through Greensburg,  less than 45 minutes prior to the tornado swallowing the town. All night we visited on the cell phone, worried about the other storms in their path. Upon her return two days later, the little van carrying a frightened team dodged tornadoes and large hail off an on for 4 hours.

When I lived in Texas, I loved thunderstorms. I enjoyed the thunder and lightening. Don’t get me wrong, Texas has its share of tornadoes…but it seems that here in Kansas EVERY thunderstorm brings a tornado somewhere. An exaggeration? Yes…but it does feel as though I cannot enjoy thunder without worrying about tornadoes.

So $10 million does sound like a lot of money…but if I were on the voting committee to approve the funds…..I would ask to vote YES….TWICE!

Old Man Winter has brought us a dusting of snow this morning. The cold is unbearable. This morning I reached into the cabinet for a glass and the glass was could not have been any colder than if it had been sitting in the refrigerator.

Because I do not go outside much during the winter months, the winter weather does not usually bother me. I love snow…and don’t even mind a bit of ice now and then…unless I have to drive in it. For some reason this year I am thinking that maybe I would prefer to live in a warmer climate. I have always loved living someplace that actually had four seasons, but as I get a bit older my thoughts are that I might enjoy a year round climate of around 68-78 degrees. While I am dreaming, I would like that place to not have tornadoes, hurricanes, monsoons, tsunamis, or dust storms and even though it is not weather related, add earthquakes to that list also. A girl can dream, can’t she?

According to the internet, the temp this morning was 2° with a wind chill into the negative double digits. Now that is COLD. We actually have ice forming on the inside of some of our windows and yesterday I even saw a few snow flakes gliding in through the leaks in a northwest facing window. I already had some large bubble wrap adhered to the window panes, but the snowflakes brought out that plastic shrink wrap stuff intended for winterizing your house. Up it went…for the first time ever. It is making a slight difference, but I know the tape isn’t holding like it should. Maybe the box was a bit old….who knows how long I have been storing it.

Yesterday, as I was going out to feed the cats I noticed that our storm door was covered with ice. My hands were damp and as I grabbed the door handle from the inside, my thumb attached itself. It reminded me of Christmas Story where the little boy had his tongue stuck to the flagpole.

We have family in Texas and I read someone’s status on Facebook where they were complaining about having to turn the air conditioner on in December. Gosh, how warm did it get in Dallas this weekend? I am wishing warmer weather to those who need it and cooler weather to those who might be thinking of turning on the air conditioner….just now…as I hear my own heater firing up. BTW–it is set on 58.

Lately, I have been a bit afraid to travel. It seems that we cannot go anywhere without having to dodge storms…some that include tornadoes. Sunday, we traveled to Kansas City and then returned in the same day. I saw some of the most unique clouds I have ever seen while on this trip.  This video shows a storm in the Greensburg area.

You can view some sky photos at my new photo blog Kansas Weather.

Just coming across the bottom of the news screen…damage at KSU and surrounding buildings. Overturned vehicles and windows of Fiedler Hall (Engineering) on campus were blown out.