Things May 20, 2013 taught me

1- Being in your closet isn't going to be enough.  Even with a helmet and a mattress on top of you.  If a tornado of any magnitude is coming toward you, get underground or get in your car (if time allows) and drive the other way.

2-  Have all your important stuff with you.  If you have a tornado shelter, move all your important papers, pictures, etc to that safe place, all during tornado season.  If you are dumb like me, and have no place, have a bag made of all your important documents, so you can grab and run. 

3-  Scan all your pictures.  I picked up hundreds of pictures in the debris of the storm.  Every one of them represented a special time for a family.  I realized I would be in deep deep trouble if I lost my pictures....I have NONE scanned. 

4-  Take extra clothes with you.  Most of these families came home to nothing but sticks and debris.  Very little was salvageable.  Wear tennis shoes and pack extra clothes, you don't know how long it's going to take.

5-  Charge your phones.  If you know you are in a threat situation (Like today)... keep your cell phones charged!  You can text with very little problem (calling is not easy), and when you have kids in different areas, this is the only way to know all is well.  My phone got so overloaded with texts it froze up a few times, but other than that.... I kept that baby charged.

6-  Have a plan.  If you think you are going to always sit out the storm in your closet, I'm hear to tell you, that is not a plan.  That was my plan until last Monday.  Now if I hear EF3 or above, I will be heading the other way.  Make sure your kids know the plan.  The best way to stay calm in the rising crisis of a storm, is to have a plan and stick to it.  This is hard for me, because I'm not a planner.  For tornadoes though, going forward....I have a plan.

6 1/2-  Have a plan for your pets.  Nothing broke my heart more than all those pictures of homeless pets. 

7-  Debris.  If a tornado hits my house, in it's current state, I will be leaving a debris trail of 200 miles, just from my house alone.  It will NOT be pretty.  I apologize in advance for anyone getting ANY of my garage contents or attic contents, or house contents, as far as that goes. 

8-  Take pictures of every room of your house.  When recounting what you lost, if you have a picture, you remember even the smallest thing.  This will come in handy to replace things lost. 

9-  Get your kids early.   Everyone has this idea, so the earlier the better...to avoid the panic that is happening when you all get there and the bad weather is 14 minutes out. 

10-  Above all, stay calm, and rely on Rick Mitchell.   Wait.   Mike Morgan.  If he starts to swear or get jacked up and yell things like "Scud" and "Getner", and "Debris Ball".... take it very very serious.  I've heard him swear twice in my life and the first time was May 3, and the second was May 20.  If he is amped up, my suggestion is you get amped up too. 

Be safe friends.... the only thing that is important is you...