Comments on Cranky Fitness: Lightning is Frightening!

oh lightning. we have a lot of lightning and thund...

2009-06-25T17:34:28.008-04:00

oh lightning. we have a lot of lightning and thunder here with our late-afternoon summer storms in colorado (raining as i type this ... check that: POURING).

what we were always told is after you see lightning, count the seconds until you hear thunder - each second represents one mile (so 10 seconds; 10 miles away).

or maybe it was the other way around. again, learned it in grade school. still, not something you want to #*$( around with.

I am a little in awe of that campaign. Wonder who...

2009-06-24T23:28:38.162-04:00

I am a little in awe of that campaign. Wonder who thought up that idea.

Personally I'm a fan of lightning I tend to watch lightning during storms... right up until the point when I hear a tornado and am forced to haul ass inside. I'm quite lucky I haven't died yet.

Maybe this is a new job opportunity for you Cranky...

2009-06-24T22:16:16.786-04:00

Maybe this is a new job opportunity for you Cranky, writing slogans for National Lightening Safety Week. I am sure if you did a pitch with yours, especially "If You See Lightning Strike, Cancel The F@cking Hike!" you'd get the contract next time! It is brilliant and would make anyone think twice about hiking in a storm. :)

I saw a news story many years ago about a couple t...

2009-06-24T20:45:41.067-04:00

I saw a news story many years ago about a couple that was sitting at their kitchen table, during a strong storm, planning their first vacation in several years. She took a potty break and was electrocuted while there. It was so sad and bizarre, that it is forever etched in to my brain, and has caused me to develop a very strong storm bladder. :-)

Sorry Crabby, but you did ask for scary stories!!

Just when I was getting over my fear of bears, the...

2009-06-24T20:39:00.369-04:00

Just when I was getting over my fear of bears, there's this. Guess I'll be staying indoors all summer. Thanks a lot.

Congenital worrywart.

2009-06-24T18:58:55.398-04:00

Congenital worrywart.

Lightning story: When I was 10, we moved from PA ...

2009-06-24T18:18:29.926-04:00

Lightning story:

When I was 10, we moved from PA to CO (5 people, front of moving truck, car chained to back, hot weather, fun times--but I digress).

The moving truck was sitting in front of the house in PA with a long metal ramp that went into the front door of the house. Twas a hot day--windows cracked, fans running.

A summer storm blew in out of nowhere. Our neighbor, who was helping us was leaned over to pick up something when a lightning bolt whizzed over his head and out one of the open windows. He had very curly hair, and when he stood up, his hair, in my father's words, looked like, "An explosion in a steel wool factory".

Our neighbor and my folks were quite shaken.

But all's well that ends well, I spose.

As a native Floridian, I grew up with almost daily...

2009-06-24T18:02:21.562-04:00

As a native Floridian, I grew up with almost daily thunderstorms. I love the heavy rain, thunder and lightning! It's been so strange out here in the SF Bay with none of that!

Your chance of getting hit with lighting is really very low, unless you're in a flat, open area. Almost every year there's a new story in southwest FL of a high school football player getting hit...

Awesome slogans! Perhaps they (or anyone else need...

2009-06-24T17:26:22.206-04:00

Awesome slogans! Perhaps they (or anyone else needing a slogan) will start emailing you and you can start a slogan empire and begin conquering the world. Lightining right. We get lovely summer lightening here too but usually when our storms roll around they look very menacing so you get some warning to get to shelter. But you know there is also freak lightning that comes out of nowhere?

I have a love/hate relationship with thunderstorms...

2009-06-24T17:05:17.243-04:00

I have a love/hate relationship with thunderstorms.
And, silly me, it's the thunder that I'm afeared of..... duh.

LOVE your slogan! Wish I had my wits about me today, but I think I left them in the car (or they spilled out somewhere along the highway.... but I am NOT going back to look for them!)

And POD? You got me with the genital warts comment - I had to go back and see if I missed something!
Crap, I just realized I'm signed in wrong..... hey, that might not be such a bad thing.... nobody will know it's me! Hehehehehehe
(BL)

Fortunately I live in an area where thunderstorms ...

2009-06-24T15:33:24.242-04:00

Fortunately I live in an area where thunderstorms are rare. My friend, who is very afraid of lightning is going back to Florida next month and will probably spend most of July and August under the bed!

I hate getting wet like a cat. I like watching th...

2009-06-24T15:17:12.675-04:00

I hate getting wet like a cat. I like watching thunderstorms from my comfortable 12th floor perch, though. You can see for miles. We were really jazzed several years ago when some hurricane or other made it all the way up to NYC, except by then I think it was a tropical storm. It was way cool.

I recently found out that if it's lightning out, y...

2009-06-24T13:41:35.447-04:00

I recently found out that if it's lightning out, you should take out hair clips.

I love storms!

"If You See Lightning Strike, Cancel The F@cking H...

2009-06-24T13:41:01.680-04:00

"If You See Lightning Strike, Cancel The F@cking Hike!"
LMAO!!

Thanks, I learned some things about lightning today!

Electrifying!!! I saw a Mythbusters episode onc...

2009-06-24T13:05:25.773-04:00

Electrifying!!!

I saw a Mythbusters episode once where the poor test dummy was electricuted in the bathtub. He was totally fried! I guess our mothers were right about that one (among others)...no more stormy baths or showers for me!!!

I rarely worry about being hit by lightning. I do...

2009-06-24T12:34:05.218-04:00

I rarely worry about being hit by lightning. I don't like to ride my bike in the rain or run with wet socks and shoes, so I do indoor activities on bad-weather days.

The one or two times I've been caught unexpectedly while running, I figured as long as I kept my distance from trees and other tall objects, I was pretty safe. In an urban area, it's unlikely I'll ever be the highest point lightning can reach.

The only times I've really been concerned is while walking with an umbrella. I've never heard of anyone getting hit while carrying an umbrella, but it seems like carrying a metal conductor in one's hands would be a bad idea.

Still, I don't worry about it much. Maybe it's because storms aren't as fierce in urban areas as on the outskirts. Or maybe it's because having been through two hurricanes, numerous tropical storms, and a terrifying tornadic storm in 2nd grade where lightning hit the school, brought down trees all over campus and the day was black as night until afternoon...well, most other storms are just anti-climactic.

Living in the lightning capital of the world, this...

2009-06-24T12:27:03.806-04:00

Living in the lightning capital of the world, this is serious stuff for us! I was caught in a storm about two weeks ago while on my morning run. I didn't feel safe till I was back in the house!

"Cancel the f*cking hike" and "If your kid's coach...

2009-06-24T11:45:34.002-04:00

"Cancel the f*cking hike" and "If your kid's coach looks like this, lightning is the least of your worries" made me fall of my chair laughing (or was it a lightning strike?).

Don't have any shocking stories to share even tho I'm a life-long New Englander. I generally herd myself into the basement as I know not to f*ck with Mother Nature. My son and husband are quite another story as playing with fire, electricity and pointy sticks seem to be present in some extra male DNA stand - until it goes wrong - then they're crowding my basement space.

Poor little Leon looks like he's taken a couple of lightning strikes to the head.

I grew up with thunderstorms in the mid-west but I...

2009-06-24T11:43:01.468-04:00

I grew up with thunderstorms in the mid-west but I've lived in storm-free California for my entire adult life. I miss the crack of thunder and flash of lightning but the one time I've been caught out I wasn't too happy.

While visiting family in the east during the summer several years back, we were running a 5 mile loop around a lake. It went from heavy humidity to dark clouds to loud thunder to pouring rain and repetitive lightning. When we were still over a mile from the car. We decided it was a good time to practice sprints but it was pretty scary.

Although it was amusing to watch all the people standing under tall trees trying to stay dry and safe.

Darn. Now I'm going to spend my whole morning at work trying to think up a slogan entry for a nonexistent contest.

I think I've only been worried about lightning onc...

2009-06-24T11:33:06.930-04:00

I think I've only been worried about lightning once, and that was when we got caught on top of a fourteener in the middle of a storm. My jacket was squeaking with all the electrical charge and I was pretty sure I was doomed.

Otherwise, I ignore all storm warnings and sirens. Especially the ones at 2AM.

ok you should SO WRITE PSAs woman. I ADORE THAT. ...

2009-06-24T11:29:40.142-04:00

ok you should SO WRITE PSAs woman.

I ADORE THAT.

can we also use:

If yer too fricken beat dont go out in the heat? staying inside is nice cover yer d*mn self with ice.

sweltering in TX,

Miz.

A friend of mine attracts lightening, she has been...

2009-06-24T11:22:45.046-04:00

A friend of mine attracts lightening, she has been hit just standing by a window in the house. Twice. Needless to say, she doesn't do dishes or talk on the phone during a storm.

Lillian's mom...PVC won't conduct, but the cast iron tub and the stainless steel sink might make you pause to think if either are anywhere near a window.

"If You See Lightning Strike, Cancel The F@cking H...

2009-06-24T11:02:47.106-04:00

"If You See Lightning Strike, Cancel The F@cking Hike!" That. Is. Perfect.

Does it make you feel better if I tell you my hubby went to high school with a guy who's been hit by lightning 3 times? All in completely different situations? And no, he does not have a plate in his head or anything. Although he is a bit weird now...

I am a lover of thunderstorms. And the only fear I have of lightning is the potential for forest fires in the aftermath.

I was often yelled at to get my @$$ inside before I was struck do to my prevalence for playing outside in the rain. (We had a swale along side the house that made a fabulous water slide during rain storms.)

"And "wait 30 minutes after the last clap of thund...

2009-06-24T10:43:56.555-04:00

"And "wait 30 minutes after the last clap of thunder, before going outside again." (And, um, how do you know it's the 'last clap?""

--the same way you know if you've passed perimenopause and entered official menopause -- you wait till you haven't had a period in 12 months and then a doctor blesses you with the title of Menopause Queen. Of course if you have another period after that, you have to return to Go, and start counting aaaalllll over again.

Ahem. Well, there's a link in MY mind between thunder and menop..... oh, never mind.

I love thunderstorms. In my teens, I used to go ou...

2009-06-24T10:32:25.797-04:00

I love thunderstorms. In my teens, I used to go out walking in them quite intentionally. And at least once a summer, I misjudge how quickly clouds are blowing in and get caught walking or biking in one. Not the smartest thing to do, I know and it does confirm how quickly a storm can arise from distant thunder. I guess I should adopt "When lightning is striking, forget about biking."