LIFE'S BETTER IN THE MOUNTAINS

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

All Hail Done Broke Loose

Hailstorms fascinate me.  Always have.  Hailstones "popping" in our grass kept me mesmerized when I was a child.  I recall many days on the porch swing looking out at the miracle.

A furious line of thunderstorms with intermittent hail along with them crossed our area last week.  Bright sunshine all morning gave no hint of the impending weather.  In mid-afternoon lightning streaked across the sky accompanied by loud cracks of thunder.  The satellite dish lost the signal so often we finally turned it off.  (That "searching for signal" came on the screen more than the program.)  I sat reading and enjoying the sound of the rain when the sound changed dramatically.  Hailstones hit the window and bounced in the yard like popcorn.  Pea-sized rather than golf-ball sized, thank goodness.

The digital thermometer continued to drop one-tenth of a degree at a time providing proof of the drop in outdoor temperatures.  When the thunder abated, our neighbor called and asked what happened.  They had been in nearby Asheville watching a matinee showing of The Hunger Games.  The sun was shining when they entered the theater and they exited to find themselves in the midst of the storm.  They missed most of the heavy rain and didn't see any hail until they got home.

The small hailstones did little, if any damage.  And it was fun to see the ground hushed and white but not with snow.



By the driveway





On the deck





In the side yard


I do so enjoy watching hailstorms from a sheltered area.  This one had a short life, but was repeated several times as the front bringing thunderstorms passed overhead.  And the next morning dawned bright and sunny, albeit with much lower temperatures.

[Just in case you didn't recognize it:  The title is a play on words from one of my favorite movies, "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?" in which the maid Tillie declares that, "All Hell done broke loose."]

13 comments:

Rudee said...

I was fascinated by the videos of the hailstorm on the 9th in Oklahoma. The size of the hail was enormous! One video showed the hail kerplunking into a pond with giant splashes.

As long as my car is in the garage, I like hail, too.

The Bug said...

I like that kind of storm. The one we had last year when it sounded like machine guns were aiming for our house? Not so much :)

KGMom said...

What the hail...
Hail is fun--we even had a round of it today. Overcast skies all day. Then a spattering of rain. Then sun.
Then, as you say, all hail broke lose.

troutbirder said...

You lucked out. When I hear hail I wonder if its too late to get the truck in the garage instead of the boat...:)

Ms. A said...

We've had cars damaged twice by hail, so I'm a little leery of it. As long as it doesn't do any damage, I find it quite amazing to have ice dropping from the sky!

Cicero Sings said...

Storms are lovely wild things ... lovely so long as they don't wreak too much havoc! One year the hail stripped all my potatoes of their leaves.

Janet, The Queen of Seaford said...

Saw reports of your hail on the news, some kid was shoveling hail out of the driveway. Glad it didn't do damage. Think the hail was as far south as Honea Path, we didn't have any down here.
This morning was a chilly one! Nothing like taking the dogs out in your summer bathrobe and see the temps in the 30's.

KB said...

We have a metal roof on our house, and you should hear how loud hail is when it done broke loose.

I like hail from sheltered viewpoints. I hate getting caught in it during a hike or bike ride (but at least a helmet helps :)

My Mind's Eye said...

OMC if we didn't know better we would have thought it was snow.
Where were the Golden Girls during all of that racket?
Hugs Madi

Anonymous said...

That's a lot of hail!

Busy Bee Suz said...

I love the title of this...and I am fascinated with hail as well.
I remember the first time I saw it as a child; I thought the world was ending!
Oh hail, have a great weekend!

NCmountainwoman said...

Thanks for your comments, everyone.

Rudee - I saw video of those hailstones. Unbelievable.

Ruth said...

Wow, that is an impressive amount of hail. We have had no precipitation this month and there have been several grass fires in the region;- Very unusual at any time of year