Lean on me...

The last time I prepared for a tornado was in the 6th grade. It was Jessup Elementary School in Cheyenne, Wyoming, around 1990. All of us kids were shuttled into the hallways, and told to bring our biggest book (usually Social Studies) with us. We'd squat in the hallway and put the books over our heads to practice a tornado drill. We all felt rest assured that flying debris and glass would certainly bounce off of a 12-year old's school book.

Fast forward to June 23, 2010, and a tornado warning was in effect for Chicago, Illinois. Suddenly I'm 32, without a Social Studies book, and not a clue what to do when all the tornado sirens are going off in the city. Check out the video...it's kinda creepy.

Of course, I turned on the TV to find out what was going on, and surprise, surprise, DISH network didn't have a signal. (See earlier posts.) The Internet wasn't yet updated, and I was freaking out. Should I evacuate? Should I pack up the dogs and hide in the closet?

I did the only thing I know what to do--I posted a message on Facebook and Tweeted that I was scared. Suddenly, two of my friends and former meteorologist co-workers e-mailed/texted me back. Detroit's favorite meteorologist, Sean Ash, told me not to worry--the line of storms was clearing out. Peoria's favorite meteorologist, Jeff Desnoyers, texted me, asking if I was okay. How cool is that? I had people living in other cities, telling me I was going to be A-OK.

Here's the thing--you can't always count on technology to help you out, but you can always count on your friends.