The gods of weather

It would seem that the weather gods kind of hate the fair city of New Orleans. See, first there was that big hurricane that everyone talks about all the time (not that there's anything wrong with that), then, shortly after the start of the year in 2006 there was another big storm. Just a winter storm, really, but apparently in the south they come with tornadoes*. Lots of tornadoes, that just happen to like to hang out in New Orleans East. Remember, that place where all those people lost everything they had? Yeah, they like it there. So, things are quiet this hurricane season and I'm guessing the weather gods got to thinking to themselves "I wonder how New Orleans is doing? They must be rebuilding there or something. We can't let them get too complacent, surely. Let's give them a little taste of what they missed this summer." So they sent another winter storm our way, and there were tornadoes, and they decided that New Orleans East and Gentilly would be a great place to touch down. So they came through and ripped a roof off of a motel holding a bunch of evacuees and tore up the upper floors, and then another one came over to Uptown and hit an electric substation. Fun stuff, really. And yet, when people ask me what I like about New Orleans, the answer always seem to include "Well, the weather's much better here than up North." Go figure.

*Strangely, I am much more terrified of tornadoes than hurricanes. They're way more sudden, and none of the homes here in New Orleans include basements that one might be able to hide out in. So I spent much of the very early morning, looking at the strobe light-ish lightning, cowering and wondering if the study would make a good tornado shelter. Probably not, for what it lacks in windows it makes up for in a big, rickety wooden door.