Day 55: Summer Afternoon Thunderstorms

Rain in Seattle is more like a gentle mist most of the time. And, it's everywhere. Like, it would take 2 or 3 days for my clothes to dry. We lived in a small, little house near the university. It was absolutely fantastic and one of my favorite places we've ever lived (that would be 10 places if you were wondering), but I didn't really have room to hang my clothes in the laundry area, so I would just drape all my 'line dry' clothes all over the furniture everywhere. Dustin hated that. But, you know the dryer is basically taking layers off of your clothes every time you stick them in there. Also, they are never really the same shape again.

So, rain.

In Colorado Springs, it rains. Only it prefers to rain in the summer here, and it sneaks up on you. You wake up to a perfectly ordinary summer temperature of 70, and the temperature climbs on through noon and into the afternoon, and then BAM!, at 3:00 dark clouds swarm the sky. Within seconds big, juicy raindrops pelt the earth. 

Usually, we all run to the porch swing to either watch the show, or in the case of the children, BE in the show. Rain water pools in all the crevices. It doesn't take long for the kids to run back to the porch shrieking,

"Lightening!"

Sure enough, lightening stretches across the sky, and we all count:

"1, one-thousand, 2, one-thousand, 3, one-thousand, 4 -"

Rumble, rumble, BOOM!



You can feel Colorado thunder in your muscles. They twitch in reaction.

I so look forward to summer afternoon thunderstorms! I like that the rain is sort of angry, and yet, generous at the same time. I like that the lightening is such a show-off, and that the thunder will never be outdone. I love that Dustin and I always sit on the porch swing while the short-lived storm lets out it's frustration. Dustin plays the guitar and sings, and the kids lay their umbrellas aside and wash their hair in the fresh rainwater.

I think, maybe, just maybe I fell in love with Colorado Springs over this summer. I only got to number 55 in July! This is great news because that means I have more than 300 new Colorado discoveries to make. Wish me luck!