Shades of Red 

Tonight has been perfect so far... thunderstorms have been rolling through all night. I went for a 12 mile training ride today after work in about 80 degree heat, averaging about 18 miles an hour in traffic. Commuters can be real jerks. Nothing is more frustrating when you're riding. But then it started to get real dark as the clouds thickened up, and the cool breeze started. As soon as I got home I jumped on the net and took a look at the local radar, and there it was. Beautiful shades of yellow and red as thunderstorms were west and heading this way. An absolute perfect end to this day.

I sit by the screen door and just enjoyed the smell, the breeze, the light show, and the sound. It's just perfect. I love the sound of the rain on the roof, coming down with a soft, quiet rumble. The lightning out the window is sharp and bright, streaking down to the ground in incredible patterns. I suppose it isn't so attractive if that lightning is streaking down on your head, but that's the great part of watching a storm from your house. Then there is the smell of ionized air wafting in, as the rain pushes all the pollution down, cleaning the air like nothing can, washing it away never to be seen again.

I love thunderstorms, and the redder the better. It's the great part about being a human being. We build things to protect ourselves from what could be a harrowing event. But now I can sit in a house, watching the thunderstorm, quietly laughing at mother nature for she didn't get me tonight. I hope it lasts until I go to sleep. Nothing puts me to sleep faster than rain on the roof.