Storm Season Comes In With A Bang!

Yesterday, we had a big storm hit Brisbane at around 4:30pm; then another hit later that night on the other side of town.  Yep, Australia's storm season has begun with a bang; and not a whimper.

The day felt very hot and sticky and nothing I did helped cool me down.  Birds were going nuts, the fan was brought out of storage, all the windows were open and even Little Miss Stevie was thrilled to be in the breezeway for once!  But when those threatening clouds darkened our skies, everything began to take on a different feel.  I went outside and took as many photos as I could before the thunder began to grumble around the place; and before I had to begin thinking about closing up the house.  However, if it wasn't the rain and wind that brought in the water, the noise of the hail was horrifying.  I taped it on my camera from my carport while I was on the phone with Mum.  She couldn't believe how noisy it was and put me on speaker on her mobile so everyone down the coast could hear too.  And just look at the size of them!  I picked these up from my backyard; and have kept them in my freezer in a bag to show my folks when they come home for Christmas. 

And if yesterday was just a taste for things to come, today was something else all together!  I hadn't noticed anything was out of the ordinary until I looked up from computing at around midday or so and the sky was dark, the house dark and everything was very humid.  So, I turned the sound off on the speakers and heard thunder grumbling just off in the distance.  Quickly, I switched off the computer and unplugged everything; including the modem.  Windows were half-closed, I grabbed the torch, a book, found the battery-run radio and prepared for a storm; because this one looked like something I could read through.  Just a bit of thunder and lightning and rain.

Boy, was I wrong about that!

This storm was anything but tamed.  I was soon running around opening the side gate and keeping it open with a length of wood, sweeping out the carport - because it flooded - and wiping down the glass of the windows because all of them had to be shut.  This storm came from all directions; not just one direction, then turned around and then the other.  It was wind, rain, blinding lightning and thunder that made me cringe when it crashed through the clouds.  I really didn't want to be out in it, but had no real choice.

By the time it had ended, and I went outside to see the damage, I found that my front door stoop had flooded, my carport was just draining from the inch of water that had turned it into a river, my back lawn squished under my thongs and we had had 41mm of rain in about half an hour.  But it felt like the storm lasted a lot longer than that.  I broke a broom while I was sweeping water from my carport; so had to use my other one.  In the end, I got wet anyway; but not as soaked as I did yesterday.  The one thing was thankful for was that the storm drain next to my house was still open.

Well, we're in for more storms until Sunday (as I said) and so, it's going to be a bumpy few days.  Until my next post, take care and Merry Christmas!