Lions and Tigers and Bears: Whatever

It wasn't the furry threats of the forest or even the flying monkeys and wicked witch that got me scared as a wee one watching the Wizard of Oz. It was The Tornado that worried me. Dorothy's entire house lifted up off the ground and she couldn't make it to the basement in time. Growing up in Philadelphia though, there was rarely occasion to worry. A hurricane maybe, or a fantastic summer lightening storm might create some awe, and once, a downed tree in front of our house.
Moving to the Midwest brought me closer to the tornados. In Columbus, I was little concerned since Ohio is pretty flat and Columbus has its nearby fields and farmland, opening a wide avenue for any strong-willed tornado to cruise right through. My town had its daily test of the tornado alarm, which was a new routine. In Chicago though, I figured though it was still in the Midwest certainly tornados don't come after city folk. But they do.
I heard the shrill call of Evanston tornado alarms last night while driving home through puddles of rain and pools of Northwestern University students huddling for shelter under the trees. (You'd think such smart kids would know that you're not supposed to stand under trees in a lightening storm.) A real tornado warning -- not a test -- and I was driving right through it! More than a hundred tornado sirens went off last night in Chicago. I wondered, what do you do in this situation? Look for a store with a sympathetic proprietor and a basement? Drive faster? Although traffic didn't seem to cooperate. Pedestrians on the street stood waiting for their buses, but pointed to the sky behind me with concern.
I was nearly home so I rationalized that I could drive through it. My drive takes me from Evanston, right near Skokie and then into Rogers Park. And wouldn't it figure that the radio announcer provided updates that the storm was following me, heading to Evanston, now nearing Skokie. As I pulled into the alley and opened our back gate, the warning was extended to Rogers Park. Oh my.
After surviving my harrowing trip home, I'd like to point out that Jason suggested it might be a nice night to visit IKEA. Driving us through the neighborhood where live wires had been downed and streets were flooded. (I made him drive and I brought a book to read.)