First REAL thunderstorm

Okay, so a clear theme on this blog is the weather. i can’t help it, it is so different here. Last night was what I consider our first REAL thunderstorm in Colorado. There was even a Severe Thunderstorm Warning…exciting!!! At 4am we woke up (I almost always sleep through thunderstorms) to the tap-tap-tttap of hail on the windows and roof. The hail actually lasted for over 2 minutes, long enough to lay in bed, realize what that noise was, marvel at its intensity, get freaked out by the increased intensity, get out of bed and look out the windows and then discover our ceiling leaking on the carpet. NICE…so a perfunctory call to the landlord was made, because HELLO leaking ceiling!!! Don’t worry though, based on the charming water damage spots in the ceiling I knew it was only a matter of time before the ceiling collapsed on us and placed furniture away from the offending spots. One day I will post about all the problems we have had with this house. Thank god for renter’s insurance.

There was enough hail to pile up in places so that it almost looked like snow…in August, shoot me now. The hail was only pea-sized, maybe two peas-sized, coupled with an actual downpour and sufficient lightning. Sorry no photo, I was pretty much focused on making sure we weren’t going to die or suffer property damage, and getting back into bed.

One of the major differences here, is the after-effects of 1-2 inches of rain. Actually even a much lower amount. Because there is no grass, trees, etc. There is a real problem with flash-flooding. Now of course we have that back home, with the occasional creek over-topping its banks, maybe your basement gets flooded or a low lying road is blocked. But out here it is a lot faster, and seem a lot more dangerous. The other day a very small rainstorm washed out an entire roadway near here. Every open field has deep ditch/canyons called arroyos that snake across the land, heck we even have a mini-ditch that runs though our front yard. It’s just that water comes fast and doesn’t have anywhere to go. Plus all the mountains…that too. I will take pictures next time I get a chance.

Rain: Such a Tease

Today while waiting in the lobby of the Driver’s License office I had a conversation with a rancher from east of town. We started talking about the weather here and how it never rains. Apparently, though not surprisingly, there’s been a drought here for the last nine years. NINE YEARS!!!

Which brings me to the fact that…it never really rains here. One of the most frustrating things about living here is rain. There is lots of lightning and thunder and the occasional sprinkle, but serious ground soaking rains just never seem to happen.

The worst is when you can SMELL the rain, you can see the thunderclouds and the rain coming down off in the distance. It’s coming right for you, and then somehow it doesn’t rain. Or even better, it just rains a few sprinkles on the sidewalk that evaporate immediately and then speeds on out of town.

It has heartlessly threatened to rain here for several days, but still nothing…it actually started to rain here about 10 minutes ago and it’s already stopped. The areas under the trees aren’t even wet and it’s already over. The flip side of this whole complaint is that it is VERY sunny here most of the time and the evenings are enjoyable. Last night after the sun went down we went to get ice cream at Baskin Robbins and sat outside. It was the perfect temperature.

Since I haven’t put up pictures in awhile, here’s a view as you come into town…the big hill/mountain that you see is where Skyline Drive is located.