Phoenix Monsoon

This weekend Hana's family went to Salt Lake City for the Utah game and I stayed here to watch the house and the dogs. I remember Angie saying it was supposed to rain all of Saturday but when I texted her around noon the sky was blue with a few sparse clouds.

I went to my casita and took a nap. I was awakened about two hours later by a loud sound. I opened my blinds and looked out the french doors. The sky had turned gray and it was raining hard. There was thunder and some lightning. The wind came in gusts. The bushes outside my doors kept swaying in front of my window and hitting the casita. I looked up in the sky and saw a piece of black debris fly by.

I opened the internet on my phone to check the weather. The report said that severe thunderstorm warning and that winds were in excess of 60mph. I began to worry about the possibility of a tornado. I knew the safest place to be was in the main house with the dogs who were probably scared. I put on my sneakers for better traction and put on my hooded jacket. I waited until a gust of wind subsided then quickly opened the door and ran into the house.

It was really dark inside. I took off my shoes and turned on some lights. The dogs found me and I petted them and said it was all right. I went to the front window and looked out. The two large screens were blowing hard. The bungy cords holding them down had come loose. The strings connected to them were mangled so trying to pull them up was pointless.

I tried turning on the tv but the storm had messed with the cable signal. I texted Angie to let her know we were okay. Finally the storm died down. The cable signal returned and I felt safe again.

Things in the backyard had been tossed around. The bushes outside my casita were a mess. Half of the hot tub cover had blown off. There was a large puddle on the ground. The pool was filled with fallen tree leaves.

 "Branches and debris littered streets around the city and at least one traffic light was knocked over. Some trees were toppled by the ensuing wind. The Salt River Project utility said that about 31,000 customers were without power as of Saturday afternoon."

What a way to spend a Saturday! Sunday I stayed home with the dogs and tidied up the place. The family returned home that night. Hana gave me a hug! Now for the next adventure: Hana's grandma comes to visit as I prepare to move back to SLC.