Spring Love vs. The Sucking Vortex of Death Round One

Nobody appreciates the glories of spring like a Midwesterner. After months of sub-zero temperatures and high winds that crystallizes the interior of one's nose, a spring day instantly perks one up. Students around campus seem to come out of the woodwork, and all is right with the world. I write to you on this very fine day sipping a chilled expresso and lounging on the front lawn of my dorm watching the semi-nude boys play frisbee......yes like i was saying all is right with the world. So here the 10 reasons why spring/summer rocks my world

1) I turn 21 in exactly 2 months and 13 days.
2) Semi-nude boys playing frisbee
3) There are only 28 days of school left.
4) the sun is actually seen more than once a month
5) I can officially stop wearing shoes and start wearing sandals
6) Chicken Barbecue season Starts.
7) There are no months named January
8) There are no months named February
9) I can take leisurely walks through the quad instead of running from class to class to avoid frost bite.
10) Spring begins with an S and so does my name, which makes for great alliteration.

However this just wouldn't be a proper Susan blog if I didn't complain or rant about something now would it. So here are the top 10 reasons that I hate spring and Summer

1) Tornadoes
2) Tornadoes
3) Tornadoes
4) Tornadoes
5) Tornadoes
6) Tornadoes
7) TORNADOeS
8) Tornadoes
9) Skanky- hoes who decide that spring/and summer is an excuse to experiment in becoming a nudist.
10) Tornadoes.

The tornado season has already begun. This past sunday over 100 tornadoes hit the midwest killing at least 23 people. These sucking vortexes of death is a huge reason to avoid living in the Midwest all together. For those of you who don't know (FYI-if you are one of these people you are both an idiot and un-educated freak of nature) tornado is a violently spinning column of air in contact with both a cumiliform cloud base and the surface. Typically shaped like a funnel with the narrow end on the ground, tornadoes are known for being extremely destructive and are usually visible due to water vapor from low pressure condensation and debris from the ground. Tornadoes form in storms all over the world, and though they have been recorded in all fifty U.S. states, they form most famously in a broad area of the American Great Plains, Midwest, as well as South known colloquially as Tornado Alley.

Tornadoes can occur in the West as well, although they are usually very small and relatively weak. Recently tornadoes have struck the Pacific coast town of Lincoln City, Oregon, in 1996 and downtown Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1999 (see Salt Lake City Tornado). The California Central Valley is an area of some frequency for tornados, albeit of weak intensity. More tornadoes occur in Texas than in any other US state. The state which has the highest number of tornadoes per unit area is Florida, although most of the tornadoes in Florida are weak tornadoes of F0 or F1 intensity. A number of Florida's tornadoes occur along the edge of Hurricanes. The state with the highest number of stronger tornadoes per unit area is Oklahoma. The neighboring state of Kansas is another particularly notorious tornado state. It should be mentioned that states such as Oklahoma and Kansas have much lower population densities than Florida and that tornadoes may go unreported.

On average, the United States experiences 100,000 thunderstorms each year, resulting in more than 1,200 tornadoes and approximately 50 deaths per year. The deadliest U.S. tornado on record is the March 18, 1925, Tri-State Tornado that went across southeastern Missouri, southern Illinois and southern Indiana, killing 695 people. More than six tornadoes in one day is considered a tornado outbreak. The biggest tornado outbreak on recordÂ?with 148 tornadoes, including six F5 and 24 F4 tornadoesÂ?occurred on April 3, 1974. It is dubbed the Super Outbreak. Another such significant storm system was the Palm Sunday Tornado Outbreak, which affected the United States Midwest on April 11, 1965. A series of continuous tornado outbreaks is known as a tornado outbreak sequence, with significant occurrences in May 1917, 1930, 1949, and 2003.

When tornado warnings are issued, members of the public are advised to get into sheltered areas. In most buildings, it is recommended to seek shelter in a central, windowless room or corridor, below ground if possible. If a tornado does strike a building, it can cause debris to rain down on people inside, so it is advisable for those caught near a tornado to crouch under strong beams, in doorways, or under strong furniture. However, light structures such as mobile homes are in severe danger when tornadoes and strong winds appear. Residents of such structures are advised to evacuate them whenever severe weather is imminent and seek shelter in sturdier buildings, whether they are designated shelters or the homes of nearby friends. Storm cellars are also common places of refuge in some regions.

Tornadoes can cause serious damage, injury or death. One should always heed official watches and warning. Vehicles are extremely dangerous in a tornado. If the tornado is visible, far away, and the traffic is light, one may be able to drive out of its path by moving at right angles to the tornado. Otherwise, one should park the vehicle as quickly and safely as possible, out of the traffic lanes and seek shelter in a sturdy building or ditch. One should not, under any circumstances, stay in a vehicle if the vehicle is in or near the path of a tornado. Vehicles are easily tossed around by the extreme winds created by a tornado.

As the result of a concocted news story that involved two newscasters being overtaken by a tornado on a Kansas highway and being forced to take refuge under an overpass, some people have been led to believe that taking shelter under overpasses is good practice. Regardless that the newscasters survived the near miss of the tornado as it passed the bridge, underpasses are not considered safe places to take shelter. Bridges vary in construction, and many do not provide any significant protection from the wind and flying debris. They also act as a funnel, channeling the wind into a tighter space. Furthermore, the congestion of vehicles from several people parking their vehicles under and around the bridge can block the progress of other vehicles, potentially keeping them from having a chance to reach safety.

The National Weather Service, has created a presentation discussing the use of bridges as protection during the Oklahoma Tornado Outbreak that occurred on May 3, 1999, in the region of Oklahoma City where tornadoes passed over three different bridgesÂ?at least one person was killed in each instance.

So this spring/Summer if you are in an area with tornadoes- don't be that person who stands out in the driveway like a freaking tourist. Believe me as someone who has been in and seen several tornadoes you are not missing anything.