Last Wednesday night there was a nasty storm in the area. Eureka missed the tornado warnings, but Mom Bore was driven to her basement by sirens blaring in Fredonia several times. Her next door neighbors have no such shelter, so they joined her--four adults, two little kids, and a dog. Where in the world they all positioned themselves, I have no idea. I later told Mom she would have been better off staying upstairs. Her basement is small, cluttered, and (shudder) spidery.
I have little room to badmouth Mom's underground quarters, though. Although my basement is much bigger and more organized, thanks to Big Bore's orderliness, it is damp. If it wasn't for the sump pump, I'd have drowned long ago. It does serve the purpose of providing safety, however, if the tornado sirens start wailing, which has happened twice in the 26 years I've lived on St. Nicholas Street.
The last time this happened was around ten years ago. Now, being the good cat mom that I am, I wasn't going to leave my three "kids" behind, so I tried rounding them up to take them to the basement, which, unfortunately, has an outside entrance. I had two cat carriers, so it wasn't so bad getting Shadow and Babe downstairs, other than getting drenched and freaked out by the wind and lightning. Corralling Little Bit, however, was a different story. Upon hearing the sirens, he glued himself underneath the far corner of my bed and wasn't budging.
I begged. I pleaded. I prodded him with a broom. He wasn't going anywhere.
"We're going to die if you don't come out right this instant, Bitsy!"
I have little room to badmouth Mom's underground quarters, though. Although my basement is much bigger and more organized, thanks to Big Bore's orderliness, it is damp. If it wasn't for the sump pump, I'd have drowned long ago. It does serve the purpose of providing safety, however, if the tornado sirens start wailing, which has happened twice in the 26 years I've lived on St. Nicholas Street.
The last time this happened was around ten years ago. Now, being the good cat mom that I am, I wasn't going to leave my three "kids" behind, so I tried rounding them up to take them to the basement, which, unfortunately, has an outside entrance. I had two cat carriers, so it wasn't so bad getting Shadow and Babe downstairs, other than getting drenched and freaked out by the wind and lightning. Corralling Little Bit, however, was a different story. Upon hearing the sirens, he glued himself underneath the far corner of my bed and wasn't budging.
I begged. I pleaded. I prodded him with a broom. He wasn't going anywhere.
"We're going to die if you don't come out right this instant, Bitsy!"
No movement. Finally, I shimmied under the bed, grabbed the back of his neck, and yanked him out. I was determined that the next morning's headline was NOT going to be, "Woman Loses Life Saving Stubborn-Ass Cat." Down the basement stairs we fled and stayed there until the all-clear sign.
---When I spoke to Mom on the phone the day after the big storm, Big Bore, eavesdropping in the background, had me ask her if she took her cat Annie down in the basement with her and the neighbor crew when the sirens went off.
"Hell no!" she said. "I just worried about myself."
Ah! I guess that explains how she raised five kids by herself and has lived to be 84 years old, independent and unscathed. Survivor Instinct.
---When I spoke to Mom on the phone the day after the big storm, Big Bore, eavesdropping in the background, had me ask her if she took her cat Annie down in the basement with her and the neighbor crew when the sirens went off.
"Hell no!" she said. "I just worried about myself."
Ah! I guess that explains how she raised five kids by herself and has lived to be 84 years old, independent and unscathed. Survivor Instinct.
5 comments:
I am soooooo glad we don't have those such storms here. I am terrified of those things and just happen to be in the May 4th tornado that went through Carl Junction Mo. It went right over my parents house and our house. Jason had never seen one so he was outside admiring the scenery, I was in the basement with all the zoo animals crying because I thought I was going to be widowed..Ahh those were the days!!
No tornado stuff in Canada, huh?! What about high gas prices?????
There are sporadic tornadoes but they don't even have sirens or any warning system for them. So I guess you could say they are rare. We have blizzards instead and snow squalls!! Gas prices are about 1.20 a liter which is about 4.80 a gallon.
Your such a good cat mamma. I would like to think I would do the same for my cats. ;) They find the far corner under the bed too. Dummies.
Scour rummage sales for cat carriers for all your felines, NG. ONe of my best friend went through Katrina and she came here and issued us orders about what it takes to get through a national disaster. We've had over 600 earthquakes in the past seven weeks but only felt two, but I have my emergency preparedness stuff ready. We have no basement here or in Ca. but you don't want one in an earthquake. YvG was suggesting to me I needed to go to Fredonia to escape the EQ's and glad I didn't. My wrost experience was a hurricane in Ct. when several tornadoes came down my driveway. Turned 40 apple trees upside down in our orchard which had been there since Geo. Washington's troops came by. there are disasters everywhere. There is no escaping them, so we all just have to be prepared. Don't forge some stash of your ear meds as a disaster will set that off for sure. Look for extra cat carriers as almost no where will let you evacuate with your pets unless you have them. Sometimes discount stores have fabric ones that might do in a push. The poor animals do not fair so well if left behind.
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