I love the Rain

There are often mornings when I wake up and wonder, "Did that just happen?" and soon realize that it was just a dream. On the contrary, it almost never happens that I am wide awake, something very bizarre happens, and I try to knock myself out of what appears to be a deep slumber.

The later of these two scenarios happened Friday night, when I went to what was supposed to be a relaxing night of Auburn University baseball. There was severe weather rolling in all day throughout the southeast, and it had really stormed bad that morning. I honestly wasn't expecting any rain at the game--just hoping for a win on the field. The Weather Channel had been hyping storms all day from--guess where?--in the elements, inches from the doors at their studios in Atlanta.

Anyways, we didn't expect much rain until a threatening cloud rolled in from behind Beard-Eaves Memorial Coliseum to rise in the horizon above the first base stands. This is where things get interesting.

If I remember correctly, it was the 5th inning when the skies started to darken. Then, to everyone's surprise, the tornado sirens sounded from afar. Uhh... What? Yes, apparently a tornado warning had been issued for the Auburn University vicinity. How lovely.

There was a pretty sizeable crowd on hand, and there probably wasn't one person who actually knew what to do. Where should I go? Where is the safest place to go? Why weren't the players taken off the field when a watch was issued? Was a watch issued? Has Jim Cantore been fired yet?

The PA announcer finally came over the speakers and suggested that everyone move to the Coliseum if they didn't have a safe place to travel to quickly. We of course could have walked to my apartment, but we instead chose to head on over to the Coliseum to relive some of our Lebo's Lunatics moments from the season past. We did this, walking around the court, strolling through aged corridors among several other baseball refugees, and then decided to take a seat near an elevator and just chill for a while. The evening had already been pretty bizarre--but what happened next made me think I was in a dream.

Auburn's famed radio announcer Rod Bramblett peeked his head around the corner to where we were and said hello. What? Now, I have seen Rod before, and have interacted with him many times at basketball games. He's even my friend on Facebook, but his presence there was just completely out of the blue. It's not that I was starstruck, I just was in such a state of awe from the whole night's events that my eyes were glazed and drool was starting to fall from my gawked mouth.

This kind of stuff doesn't happen every day (or night, if we're talking about dreams). It really made a supposed-to-be relaxing night turn into quite the adventure. We ended up being fine, getting out in about an hour. Apparently, there was just a little wind damage in the area. For me, the only thing that mattered was the smile on my face, the company of friends, and the raindrops I still couldn't avoid.

An Early April Spring Day

It's getting a bit late, so I'll keep this short.

Today was another gorgeous weather day in Auburn. A mini-cookout with a great friend and George Foreman really made the day. Minus a few insects and millions of yellow pollen bits, it really could not have been better. There is just something about soaking up vitamin D out in front of your abode, chatting about who knows what, and eating some really good food that was nearly just bought on a whim. It was really the most relaxing day I've had in a long while.

Also, I suppose I should mention that someone suggested I take a quiz on love languages. Now, I'm not really one to take quizzes that don't count for some kind of academic credit, but this actually sounded pretty interesting. How do I communicate my love for another? Flowers? Sappy phrases? A jab to the side? Actually, it was broken down into five categories: Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Receiving of Gifts, Acts of Service, and Physical Touch.

For me, I scored highest on Quality Time. This sounds just about right. With everything else gone, all I want (or need) is someone to spend, well, a good deal of quality time with. No matter where, how, or when, if I have that someone there, things are usually all good.

The lowest score I received on the quiz was Receiving of Gifts. Again, this is true. I don't want all of your cheesy presents, nor would I want you to waste your time going to great lengths to get them. I would much rather spend some "Quality Time."

All in all, this little quiz illustrates much of how an individual communicates his/her "love languages," and does so by asking just a few questions. Being somewhat of a stats geek and psychology advocate, I was skeptical at first, but now I have a better understanding of myself, and how others better behave if they want a piece.