Hello, Minnesota. Welcome to the Twin Cities Kossacks Weekend Open Thread, a weekly (usually) post for all things Minnesotan. Please join us to Connect, Unite and Act with other Twin Cities Kossacks. Posting most every Sunday . Do you live in Minnesota? Kosmail idlemoments to join this group so you can get updates on meetups and other Daily Kos activity in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.
Open Thread — Sunday morning -- june 9, 2019
Minnesota is not in tornado alley, but the southern and central part of the state definitely has its share of twisters, including one this Tuesday verified by the National Weather Service southeast of Rochester.
A small but significant part of my spring/summer childhood memories include hunkering down in the basement with my family after the sirens had gone off, while a storm rumbled overhead. This was pre-internet days, so we’d be down there with our big clunky flashlights, ready in case the power went off, and a Panasonic radio tuned to WCCO-AM.
The drama of a storm in those days was heightened by the static of AM signal, and the cutouts that would occur when there were lightning strikes nearby. I would also submit that the foghorn-like tone of the National Weather Service alert signal broadcast on the radio in those days seemed much more terrifying than the beeps used today. It was a markedly different experience this week when the sirens went off and we headed to the basement, but calmly monitored the storm via online radar of a local TV station.
Thankfully for us, just a lot of rain, and none of the flooding, golf-ball sized hail, lightning strikes, and flooding, reported relatively near to us in the south. In 50-plus years living here, I’ve been within a few miles of two tornado touchdowns but have been lucky my family never experienced anything but a few tree branches down.
Have you ever seen a tornado in person, or had one damage your home? You can share your tornado experiences at our next meetup of the Twin Cities Kossacks coming up in two weeks. Here are the details:
- The Twin Cities Kossacks next meetup is Saturday, June 22, 11 a.m. at French Meadow Bakery and Cafe, 1662 Grand Avenue, Saint Paul. The French Meadow we are meeting at is next to Macalester College, just a few blocks down from Snelling and Grand. There is a free parking lot across the street if you are driving.
Here’s the list of attendees, so far:
- Yes — mockingjay, idlemoments, slapshoe, rosebuddear
- Maybe — Done4nau, Judy
Can you make it? Please post below or Kosmail me, idlemoments
This is an open thread so, as always, post away.