SUMMER STORMS By Morgan Mandel

MEN OF MYSTERY AT http://acmeauthorslink.blogspot.com.
WEDNESDAY - AUG 13 - MARCUS SAKEY - FRIDAY - AUG. 15 - JOE KONRATH.

It seems every other day it wanted to snow this past winter. I missed way too many aerobics classes on Wednesdays when I'm off work because the roads were too slippery to navigate. Most of the time I couldn't even walk the dog and made her fend for herself in our enclosed yard. She managed, but wasn't too happy about it, judging from the way she raced back in really fast.

Summer at last. No more snow. Instead rain. Lots of it in June. Almost every day I carried my umbrella to work. It had to stop sooner or later, but when? A summer squall broke out the first night of our 4th of July Festival. Activites were cancelled as people ran for cover.

Finally, we got a dry spell. With it came the heat. Then, last Monday on the way to the train, more dreaded rain and lots of it. My puny umbrella was no match for the gusty winds and buckets of water from the sky. My shirt got soaked, as did my jeans as I stepped onto the train. When I got off, I and lots of other commuters waited, looking out the windows at Ogilvie Transportation Centre, hoping for an opportune time to dash to our offices. After I'd ventured out, I made a quick stop at Walgreens for a cheap shirt and a hair dryer so I wouldn't be uncomfortable all day.

The storm in the morning was nothing compared to what was in store for us that evening. The weather service issued a tornado warning for Cook County, Illinois, not just a watch, including a large area, part of which was Downtown, the Lakeview area, and Park Ridge, which is not far from our house.

After a look out our back window, we rushed to the basement herding Rascal with us, though she's usually not allowed there. To say she was confused is an understatement. Along with the dog came my laptop computer, purse, cell phone and a few flashlights. I forgot to bring some of her treats with, but it was too dangerous to venture back upstairs and get them.

From the windows we could see an enormous amount of lightning flashes and heard the pounding of wind rain against the roof and rest of the house. Later I heard someone on the news say the cloud-to-ground strikes that night were 800 per minute, some kind of record.

The game was stopped at Wrigley Field, where the pennant-contending Cubs were playing. Fans were herded into the shelter of the building. Here's a link to an article found by my friend, Rosemary Braun, who was at the game that night.

http://www.comcast.net/articles/sports-mlb/20080805/Severe.Weather/

From what I've been telling you, you can see how weather has played a large part in my life. I'm sure it does in yours as well. When you write a book, don't make every day in your character's lives picture perfect, because, let's face it, weather usually isn't. Think about your own experiences with the vagaries of the seasons and include that in your stories.

Morgan Mandel -- looking forward to a few dry and calm days!!!
www.morganmandel.com
www.myspace.com/morganmandel
http://acmeauthorslink.blogspot.com
http://blogsthatrule.blogspot.com